Deck 7: Increasing Corporate Control: From Supermarkets to Seeds, Philip H Howard

Question 1

1) When four firms control 40 to 50 percent of sales, a market is considered to be

A) competitive.
B) an oligopoly.
C) a monopoly.
D) vertically integrated.

Answer 1

B

Question 2

2) Negative impacts of market concentration can include

A) reduced innovation.
B) lower prices paid to suppliers
C) lower wages for workers.
D) All of the above

Answer 2

D

Question 3

3) Antitrust laws and regulations have been weakened through

A) reshaping the views of federal judges.
B) the promotion of neoliberal views by corporations.
C) corporate funding of think tanks.
D) All of the above

Answer 3

D

Question 4

4) Slotting fees are

A) fees supermarkets have to pay to food companies.
B) fees that farmers have to pay to food companies.
C) fees that food companies have to pay to get their products placed on supermarket shelves.
D) fees that food companies must pay to have distributors carry their products.

Question 5

5) Supermarkets in the US have

A) become increasingly concentrated nationally.
B) become regionally concentrated but not nationally concentrated.
C) become less concentrated over time, as new chains have emerged.
D) merged with other agribusiness companies to form conglomerates.

Question 6

6) To get their products to restaurants, producers

A) have many choices of distributors.
B) almost always sell directly to restaurants.
C) rely on few firms that control national distribution channels.
D) have formed distribution collectives.

Question 7

7) Much of the milk industry

A) remains controlled by small local companies.
B) is controlled by government agencies.
C) is controlled by worker-owned businesses.
D) is owned by Dean Foods.

Question 8

8) Consolidation of milk processors has resulted

A) a decline in prices paid to the farmers.
B) better prices for famers.
C) an expansion in the number of dairy farmers.
D) lower milk prices for consumers.

Question 9

9) For commodity crops, such as grains, farmers tend to

A) have direct relationships with food manufacturers.
B) go through commodity processors.
C) process their own crops into finished products.
D) have diverse options for selling their crops.

Question 10

10) Farmers are sometimes described as being on a treadmill because

A) farms are passed down from one generation to the next.
B) of the cyclical nature of farming.
C) for many commodities, increasing the supply results in lower prices.
D) All of the above

Question 11

11) Today, Monsanto to and DuPont control _____ of the global proprietary seed market.

A) approximately ten percent
B) approximately twenty percent
C) approximately fifty percent
D) all

Question 12

12) Agriculture input companies have become

A) less concentrated over time and more vertically integrated over time.
B) more concentrated and more vertically integrated over time.
C) more concentrated and less vertically integrated over time.
D) less concentrated and more and less vertically integrated over time.

Question 13

13) As corporate firms consolidated to only four or six, the seed industry has experienced

A) higher prices.
B) a narrowing of the diversity of seeds.
C) increased intellectual property protections.
D) All of the above

Question 14

14) Recent mergers and acquisitions indicate that

A) consolidation is no longer taking place in the food and agriculture sector.
B) consolidation is continuing to occur taking place in the food and agriculture sector.
C) monopolistic conditions are now found in all aspects of food and agriculture.
D) the food and agriculture sector is becoming less concentrated.

Question 15

15) Which of the following statements about the United States food and agriculture system is accurate?

A) There are a small number of farmers and a large number of food processors and manufacturers.
B) The middle components of the system are the most consolidated.
C) There are now more farmers than consumers.
D) Market concentration has decreased over time.

Question 16

16) Antitrust movements advocated for

A) market deregulation.
B) the implementation of neoliberal policies.
C) laissez-faire capitalism.
D) regulations to maintain market competitiveness.

Question 17

17) People in the United States buy groceries at which of the following?

A) Supermarkets
B) Warehouse stores
C) Convenience stores
D) All of the above

Question 18

18) For grain farmers in the United States,

A) it is most common to sell crops in open markets.
B) it is most common to sell crops via contract.
C) there is a large choice of processors to sell crops to.
D) there is a wide choice of cooperatives to sell crops to.

Question 19

19) Which of the following statements accurately describes trends in US farming?

A) There are fewer farmers and larger farms.
B) There are more farms and smaller farms.
C) Nearly all farms are now corporate-controlled.
D) There are fewer farmers and smaller farms.

Question 20

20) Corporate food manufacturers and supermarkets

A) are facing increased regulations today.
B) are filing for bankruptcy at high rates.
C) are facing increased competition from initiatives that directly connect producers and consumers.
D) All of the above

Question 21

1. Philip Howard argues that farmers often find themselves to be on a treadmill. Explain what he means by this and provide an example.

Question 22

2. Discuss how antitrust laws in the United States have been weakened over time.

Question 23

3. Describe how US agriculture resembles an hourglass.

Question 24

1. Philip Howard argues that the US food system resembles an hourglass. Write an essay that, first, explains what he means by this. Second, discuss the implications of such a structure for farmers.

Question 25

2. Market concentration has been a dominant trend in much of the US food system. Choose two components of agrifood supply chains and discuss (1) historic trends in market concentration and (2) the implications of such concentration for food and agriculture.