Food industry

Food industry or food industry is agriculture downstream industry, in which a substantial portion of the produced agricultural products for human consumption is processed.

Smaller companies with fewer than 20 employees per establishment belonging to the diet and crafts, non-food industry.

Food industry, food crafts, food wholesale, food retail and catering together form the food industry and with adjacent service areas along the food industry. The overall system is rarely referred to as the agricultural and food industry or as agribusiness, as a food business or in English as a Food System.

The production of food is subject, among other things, to protect against food crises a complex food law and an intensive food control.

Historical and scientific classification

The industrial production of food has developed as in other areas of the corresponding branches of the food and crafts. Even today, a distinction rare on the production method as claimed in number of employees between artisanal and industrial companies. In the food industry, the official German statistics cover enterprises in the manufacturing sector from a size of 30 employees. The resulting number of companies is equated generally with the number of industrial enterprises. In the trades, the membership is usually determined by the membership of guilds, chambers etc. and not on the size of holdings. In the scheme of craft organizations so there can be even larger craft.

In addition to process development of production played in the last decades and biotech innovations a significant role ( such as in the production of synthetic Lab. ) For the technical methods of food production has with food technology within the process engineering own interdisciplinary higher education and research area developed with specific career opportunities within one of the four major industry sectors.

The study of the interaction between nutrition, food quality and health takes place within the framework of Nutritional Sciences, increasingly through the diet medicine. Particular attention judge these disciplines in the evaluation of industrially produced food alongside nutritional characteristics on health-related aspects, such as allergy risks as well as to the relation of diet to their life-style. This area will also be examined from a sociological perspective in the diet sociology.

Industrial food processing

Many food processing methods have evolved from domestic kitchen and craft production or comply with traditional methods in technical point of view, but there are larger in size, possibly supplemented by steps of preservation and packaging, and often mechanically supported.

Food Grade methods can be categorized as follows:

• Physico- Mechanical Process mix
• Crushing, such as cutting, chopping, grating, etc.
• Separating, e.g. by sieving, filtering, etc.

• Heat, for example, frying, cooking, pasteurisation, sterilization
• Cool
• Dehydration
• Distillation

• Alcoholic fermentation
• Lactic acid fermentation
• Acetic acid fermentation

• Protein coagulation
• Addition of chemical food additives

Data on the history of the food industry

• In 1700 the French physicist Denis Papin discovered the principle of canning as a method of preservation, but this does not pursued and devoted himself to the work on the construction of a steam engine. He made this essential preparatory work. Papin invented, among other things, the boiler and the steam cooker. With the pressure cooker he invented at the same time the same function, autoclave, which only took place ( in Germany ) from 1873 used in industrial food preservation.

• In 1819, the Paris Michel Eugène Chevreul chemistry professor had shiny crystals found in research on beef fat like pearls in a test tube. He named it after the Greek word " Margaron " for pearl: margaric. The first patent for margarine, however, was filed in 1869 by Hippolyte Mège - Mouriés

• Since 1862 a German produced the licensee of Justus von Liebig in 1852 yet invented as Fleischinfusum and further developed as a consequence of meat extract. In Uruguay, the product was produced industrially in large quantities and sold worldwide. As a popular seasoning for soups, and the extract thus became the forerunner of today's popular condiments such as Maggi and Knorr and can still be purchased in department stores today.

• 2010 was spent on food advertising in Germany 3.24 billion euros.

Structure and development of the food industry

In Germany, important companies and organizations have organized the food industry in the Federal Association of the German Food Industry (BVE ). According to this association are active in Germany, about 5,900 companies with over half a million workers in the food industry. The turnover in 2009 was around 149 billion (2008: 156 billion ) euros, of which 26 (2008: 26 ) per cent in exports.

In Switzerland, companies in the food industry have organized in the Federation of Swiss Food Industries ( fial ). The food industry in Switzerland consists of about 200 companies, employing around 33,000 people in 250 manufacturing enterprises. The total turnover of 13 billion Swiss francs (approx. 8.5 billion Euros ) divided into CHF 2 billion exports and 11 billion domestic sales.

In Austria, the Chamber of Commerce of Austria some 240 companies listed that are attributable to the food industry. Approximately 28,000 employees generate a turnover of around 6.4 billion euros. The export rate is 59 percent. Most important trading partner is Germany.

At European level, the food industry is represented inter alia by the European Federation of Food Industry ( Food Drink Europe) in Brussels.

Among the sub-sectors of the food industry include, in descending order of their share of sales in total sales ( in Germany ):

• Meat (21%)
• Milk (16%)
• Alcoholic beverages ( 9.6%)
• Sweets and dry baked goods (9.2%)
• Baked goods ( 8.0%)
• Fruit and vegetables ( 5.9%)
• Mineral water and soft drinks (4.6%)
• Oils and fats ( 3.5%)
• Mills, starch ( 3.2%)
• Coffee and tea ( 3.2%)
• Condiments and seasonings (3.0%)
• Sugar (2.5%)

The German food industry is characterized despite the presence of some very large international companies in the sector by a very high proportion of medium-sized companies. Opposite her is a highly concentrated food retailing as a dominant element of the food value chain, who has since skipped the national borders and thinks globally and acts. The concentration of companies in the food industry has so far been relatively low. The top 10 industry unite only 13.7 % of the turnover. The high cost pressure forces but also in the food industry, more and more companies on mergers, acquisitions and company sales to increase synergy effects and potential for rationalization. In particular, in the areas of meat and baked goods, a clear trend towards larger units in the next few years are expected.

The structure of the food industry by size class:

Data for 2003/2004 ( Germany ). Depending on the statistical source, the number of firms varies between 5,000 and 6,000 companies. The blur shows in particular in the areas of meat and baked goods, the structural proximity of smaller industrial enterprises and larger companies in the food trade.

Sources: Destatis, BVE, AFC

Largest Supplier of food retailing

Among the largest suppliers of food retailers to find analogous to the product groups of the food retail trade except food producers and some cosmetics, detergent and cigarette manufacturers. It is striking that are also in a relatively large domestic market like Germany among the top 10 suppliers with Tchibo and Dr. Oetker only two companies of German origin and owned German owners. This underlines the prevailing trend to larger internationally operating and ownership rights networked business units.

All data for 2005/2006, Notes: 1) including tobacco, 2) including Beiersdorf, 3) including Südfleisch, 4 ) incl Freiberger Brauhaus at Radeberger, including sparkling wine tax at Henkell & Söhnlein, 5) including Wella ( world) and Gilette (D), 6) total consolidated sales, 7) including Nut Company and Inter snack, 8) including brandy or champagne tax * estimated ** incl export source: Lebensmittelzeitung

Bargaining parties in the food industry

NGG

The union Food and Catering represents the interests of employees, among others, from the sectors baking industry, meat and fish, drinks, hotel and restaurant industry, dairy, confectionery, fruit and vegetables, sugar and tobacco. The union NGG looks back at the longest tradition of all German trade unions, because one of its predecessor organizations, founded in Leipzig in 1865 General German Cigarrenarbeiter Club. This applies, inter alia, because of its central structure as an organizational model for the trade unions in Germany. On the employer's side are her most diverse member organizations of employers association food and enjoyment over as social partners.

Employers' Association ANG

The Employers' Association food and enjoyment eV (ANG ) is a socio-political umbrella organization of the food industry. The ANG itself is not a direct social partners of the unions. The collective bargaining rests with the member associations. Unlike in most industrial sectors every year hundreds of collective agreements in the different regions and sectors of various employers' associations are completed. It is the employers as bargaining partners mostly the traditional union Food and Catering ( NGG ) against. The self-understanding of the ANG is to coordinate the differentiated tariff policy on the employer side.

Criticism

Critics of the food industry pursue in addition to general industry critical or critical of capitalism goals, some that are specifically linked to the topic of food and food production. Along all target dimensions, non-governmental organizations have formed who demand a strengthening of the goods it represents protection policy. Many of the protection categories have been included in government regulations, albeit in varying degrees. Among the most important protection categories include:

• Animal welfare: The largest and economically most important part of the food industry is concerned with the processing of animal products. The upstream in the food value chain of food production livestock is often criticized, in particularly in relation to housing conditions in the farming, poultry and pigs for fattening. Representatives are, for example, animal welfare organizations.

• Environment and Conservation: Closely linked to the issue of animal welfare, these motivations is generally directed to the protection and preservation of limited natural resources, such as to avoid long transport routes or the avoidance of disposable packaging. These ultimately includes the criticism of the use of genetic engineering in agriculture, as this other species are threatened. Representatives are, for example, various environmental organizations.

• Consumer Protection: This motivation is designed to protect against health threats by the excessive everyday consumption of sugar, fat, salt, etc. as well as to provide protection against food scandals. This applies to both hygiene as well as questions of permitted and prohibited ingredients of foods and their precursors (eg employed fodder, veterinary medicines, pesticides). Representatives are, for example, Food Watch.

• Economical Consumer Protection: Some critics have accused companies of the food industry deception and manipulation, eg with regard to ingredients, standards / grades or regulations. A well-known representatives of this position in Germany 's Thilo Bode. Economical Consumer Protection has so far always a competition dimension, as it allows the company to act monitored market rules. Representatives are eg consumer associations.

• Protection against unfair consequences of globalization: Against discrimination of producers in developing countries compared to stronger trading partners in the industrialized countries sat down according to a protection -oriented organizations. Part of seal of approval to be developed in order to make positive examples as role models identified can. In this category fall ultimately all other conservation interests, relating to unfair consequences of globalization such as social standards, child labor, etc. Representatives, for example, TransFair.

• Finally, there is a special case, the object of protection " taste ". As a counter-movement to an increasingly industrially defined consumer culture clubs and organizations find strong encouragement that deal with the discovery of enjoyment not industrially produced food. Unlike in the other categories of protection, of course there will be no political debate about the taste. Representatives are eg clubs such as Slow Food.

Documentaries like Food, Inc., Our Daily Bread and We Feed the World critically question the industrial food production.

Specialized media

The food industry is represented ( outward and for members) by some specialized media:

• " Alimenta - trade magazine for the Swiss food industry "
• " The food industry "
• " Lebensmittel Zeitung "
• " Food - practice "
• " Lebensmitteltechnik.de "