The branding behaviour of Danish food industry firms

Abstract

Brands play an expanding role in the modern food industry. They feature in the competitive strategy of firms at all stages of the food marketing chain, and are both a cause and a consequence of change in the food industry. The research presented here identifies relationships between the branding behaviour of Danish food industry firms and their characteristics. <br/> This research is part of the 3-year project "Perspectives for Development of the Danish Food Sector". The project targets the policy environment surrounding the Danish food marketing chain, and has objectives to: <br/> 1. measure changes in function, structure and commercial practice in the Danish food industry, and compare and contrast these with developments in other countries; <br/> 2. characterize vertical and horizontal relationships in the Danish food chain, and their role in efficiency; <br/> 3. evaluate the efficiency and competitiveness of the Danish food system at each stage of the marketing chain; <br/> 4. review and evaluate instruments of Danish, EU and foreign public policy in the development of the food marketing chain; and <br/> 5. communicate research results in a number of media. <br/> The research reported here is associated with objectives 1, 2, and 4. Branding behaviour is defined and recent research into its determinants and interpretation is reported. Research hypotheses are specified and explained. Regression models are used to investigate different aspects of branding behaviour and its relationship to firms' size, commodity orientation, ownership, trade orientation and vertical integration. A discussion section draws inference from these results. A preliminary discussion of policy implications is presented. <br/> The project is partially funded by the Innovations Law of the Danish Ministry of Food and Agriculture. Early versions of the models and early drafts of the report were reviewed by Jørgen Dejgård Jensen.