This paper examines the evolution of the supermarket industry, from the birth of the chain store concept in the early 1900s to the recent rise of the Wal-Mart supercenter. The central message is that the major themes relevant today (the importance of scale and standardization, technological...

Growing appreciation of the novel challenges of climate change and environmental degradation is among the core drivers of the ongoing transformation in the food industry. In response to the growing costs for society and the environment, the broad reliance on large-scale and industrial methods of...