Change Their Tastes, Change Their Minds
The last "downstream" aspect of food systems I want to mention briefly is the agribusiness effort to change tastes in order to sell more. First off, pretty soon, the whole world will be eating bread— preferably bread made from US wheat. This is a fait accompli in Korea where there are several mills and 7,000 bakeries; a flour mill that will require 400,000 tons of imported wheat a year is under construction in Sri Lanka where rice has always been the staple food. The Great Plains Wheat Association (GPW) made a five week trip to Africa in 1977 to "explore specific alternatives for increased wheat market development activities in West Africa and Zaire ... to acquaint (government) leaders with the GPW market development program."90 Seven of the countries visited already import over 1,300,000 tons of wheat a year; they produce nine tons. With "the implementation of intensive market development programs in West and Central Africa, the imports of wheat to these markets should increase significantly over the next five years." In fact, GPW sees over 2 million tons in 1981-82 if all goes well. The Great Plains travelers contacted as many government planners as they could, but were not above visiting millers or even pastry-shop owners. This survey was phase one. In order "to fully achieve the goal of maximizing US wheat sales to West and Central Africa," phases two and three will require that they:
develop personal relationships with key government, industry and business leaders in the decision making, importing and processing sectors. Identify and develop third party cooperators. These goals will be accomplished through frequent trips to the area and through the dissemination of pertinent market information by the African Regional Office. Development and implementation of pilot market development programs in selected countries (including) technical servicing of milling and baking industries and participation in trade shows.
While no stone is left unturned to increase consumption of what is a foreign food for most of the Third World, bread is not the only wheat product to be introduced. In Global Reach, Barnet and Muller describe the dream of National Biscuit Company's former President: to have the same satellite cracker advertisement beamed at two billion consumers at once. While we await that great day, Nabisco is busy getting Ritz crackers into every retail outlet it can find in the UDCs. The company has already launched the "largest new product venture in Nabisco's 78 year history"; four years and $ 15 million have been required to develop a rice-soya blend called Ricetein. "It is priced higher than rice but is less expensive than meat." Nabisco expects to sell bulk shipments, processing plants, and royalties on Ricetein to any number of poor countries where rice is the staple food. Senegal was the first to sign up—first for bulk shipments, then for the process and the plant.91 Senegal grows rice (but no soya); Nabisco can thus help it to make its rice more expensive for the average consumer by fortifying it with protein most nutritionists would consider unnecessary. People who get enough "energy" foods (including rice) generally get enough protein as well—in any case, if there is a nutritional problem, imported US soya is not the cheapest solution.
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"The baffle for confrol of fhe world food system is now being waged, and its chief combatants are agribusiness and the State."
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Coca Cola's strategy is the opposite of Nabisco's: it would rather have its name deeply imprinted on the consciousness of every inhabitant of the Third World even if it does not yet have any distribution in the area. Coke will spend $5 million sponsoring soccer clubs for kids in Africa and the Middle East, "even though distribution of Coke itself in many areas is miniscule or non-existent." The 14-28 year old market is the best soft-drink target and while there is no baby boom at home, in many Third World countries half the population is under 25. Coke's Latin American Director says "The only thing that's going to hold back our growth there for the next several decades is going to be a lack of machinery, trucks and equipment."92
White bread replaces rice and tortillas; soft drinks, because they are so expensive, replace nearly everthing, and most readers will already be aware of the great harmful influence MNC advertising has had on downgrading breastfeeding and promoting infant formula in the Third World.
US fast-food chains are already installing their first affiliates in countries of traditional agribusiness investment like Brazil and Mexico. I am not suggesting that by Friday there will be a McDonalds in Rwanda. What does seem clear is that each peripheral country, according to its station and its resources, the affluence of its population and the docility of its peasants, will find its niche in the world food system. The process will be accelerated in direct proportion to the degree of servility of the ruling elites to outside interests or their ignorance of their true aims. The battle for control of the world food system is now being waged, and its chief combatants are agribusiness and the State. From my vantage point, the odds are depressingly in favor of agribusiness.