Addressing Efficiency and Length of Food Supply Chains

In 2013 a London supermarket called Tesco sold beef tainted with horsemeat, launching a scandal in the U.K. Feliciano School of Business Marketing Professor Archana Kumar uses this case in her classes to illustrate how long and inefficient food supply chains lead to its breakdown. “It was difficult to trace where the contamination occurred,” says Kumar. That single mishap was the tipping point that led consumer demand to know the origin of their food.

The importance of local produce to consumers’ health, their communities and the environment drives Kumar’s research. She addresses consumer’s views on local produce and marketing strategies that attract consumers, especially health-conscious millennials.

Her goal is to increase visibility of and demand for local produce, a growing concern of her students.

“There are many benefits to investing in a local food system, like fewer intermediaries, local farmers generate local jobs, and local food is healthier and more nutritious than conventional produce. Overall, it’s good for the individual, community and for the environment,” says Kumar.

The growing desire to increase the efficiency of food supply chains by shortening them can be credited, at least in part, to the younger generation. “The millennial generation is at the forefront of demanding sustainability and open and ethical practices from retailers,” says Kumar.

By sharing their interests in emerging trends and the hottest retailers students also help fuel Kumar’s research projects. “Many times, the idea for research comes from my students,” says Kumar. “They help me understand what the bigger social demographic trends are. Students are right there at the forefront.”

The benefits of such a relationship are mutual. Kumar asks students to share their consumer experiences then shares her findings with them, giving students a glimpse into the research process. “I usually talk to my students about my research. I value their feedback,” Kumar says. “How do you start thinking about it? You have your goal, you draw your plan, you develop your hypothesis. I’m helping them think along those lines. Then, I bring in my project, tell them this is the state of the art, and ask their opinion.”