中文1910字The Marketing and Distribution of Fast FoodMaterial Source:Contemporary EndocrinologyAuthor: Michelle Christian and Gary GereffiThe origin of fast-food chains began with the franchising of McDonalds in the 1960s, and since then the strength of fast-food brands has grown at a meteoric rate. The largest fast-food chains (such as McDonalds and Yum! Brands) brought the mass production concept to foodservice, and in the process, changed how food is produced, distributed, and marketed. The activities of each segment of the chain are determined by the specifications of the lead firms, the branded fast-food restaurants, and their suppliers. The fast-food brands determine the production of food through their requirements forhow food products should be cultivated, manufactured, packaged, distributed, and displayed. They work directly with food processors, who in turn work with farmers . Fast-food chains have fueled their rapid growth through global expansion. This pace has increased exponentially in developing economies since the 1990s, where the gradual removal of market barriers and trade restrictions made the process of internationalization smoother for leading companies. Yum!Brands is a conglomerate that includes KFC, Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, Long John Silver, and A&W.In 2008 the company boasted 36,000 units in more than 110 countries and territories. KFC is the companys strongest brand with 5,253 units in the United States and 10,327 internationally, including 2,497 in Mainland China alone . However, McDonalds is by far the global fast-food brand leader.In 2008 the companys total system units were 31,967, with 56% of those units being internationally based . Like KFC, China leads the international market for McDonalds with 1,021 units in 2008, doubling since 2003. Other countries like Mexico, Brazil, India, Vietnam, and the Philippines have quickly adopted the fast-food revolution. McDonalds operates 379 units in Mexico and 562 in Brazil. India, a country with a rich spice tradition and many varieties of local cuisine, is experiencing a “fascination” with fast food . Since 2006, KFC has opened more than 45 restaurants with projections to surpass 120 by 2010. Pizza Hut operates 120 stores in 34 cities and McDonalds 132 stores, with further expansion planned in the coming years . Entrepreneurs in Vietnam, now a member of the World Trade Organization, are trying to push forward franchise agreements with Carls Jr. and Round Table Pizza , while by the year 2000, the Philippines had 2,000 national and global brand chained fast-food restaurants . When fast-food firms enter emerging markets, they have the strength, technological prowess, and modern Western image to impact local food production in various ways. Matejowsky claims that the“efficiency and regimentation” of fast-food production styles reinforce the idea that fast food is often superior to local food because it is “scientifically designed” . Interaction effects between global and local fast-food value chains are seen in the global agrobusinesses that buy products from local farms around the world or else they set up their own farms where they lease out plots to local growers to cultivate the crops the agro-businesses want. These local farms may supply internationally based fast-food units, local food manufacturers, or transnational corporations that have set up operations in developing countries in order to serve the domestic market.In developing economies, TNCs are certainly not the only actors that are practicing industrialized farming, making processed foods, and setting-up fast-food restaurants. Domestic companies do this as well. However, the global and local food chains are connected because the standards, practices, and technological achievements that local farmers, manufacturers, and fast-food companies are using were generally adopted from Western firms. Thus, there is an interaction effect. Schlosser argues that McDonalds and other fast-food chains impart to developing countries new systems of agriculture and food production, which reorient local food systems from staple domestic crops to externally induced needs . For example, when J.R. Simplot entered China in 1993 and created the first commercial French fry for the Chinese market, agricultural producers began cultivating potatoes to meet this new demand for processed food . Similarly in India, after importing processed French fries for several years. by 2010 each McDonalds French fry is expected to come from Indian soil but processed by McCain Foods. McCain worked with Indian growers for 9 years to change their potato crop to the Shepody variety to meet McDonalds exacting standards . This is a switch from the typical Indian potato varieties that are low in solids and high in water. Both companies see emerging economies as cornerstones for the frozen food market. The dissemination of global fast-food production and consumption through local imitators is eviden