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| While there will always be a gray area in some industries, at some point there are obvious indications that consolidation is harmful to people, the industry itself and sometimes whole regions.
The consolidation of the meat packing industry is a prime example. This area once had hundreds upon hundreds of farmer feeders. They are largely gone because once the packers bought the companies that once bought their fat cattle, the game was over. So now farmers are stuck with poor grain prices, unable to add value to it. Calf price lagged because there were fewer bidders. Guys quit cows because the calves couldn't pay the tab. The small feed stores and elevators that once depended on both disappeared. The small towns, their schools, etc had another nail in their coffin. Now consumers are also at the hands of four packers. So what good came of it, not only for rural America, but America in general when nearly half the beef packing capacity is owned by Brazilian companies? It evidently hasn't made beef more affordable according to many. | |
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Ag Consolidation in input suppliers.. FarmDoc.
