Opportunity identification and selection in australia Research Paper

Opportunity identification and selection in australia - Research Paper Example years, with rising incomes in Asian and African countries, export opportunities have opened up and despite the low unit values of bread, innovations in processing and preservation of these products have made it worthwhile for companies involved in biscuit production to look into export markets. This report examines various external factors that are playing a significant role in the biscuit industry, especially in the context of recent developments. The baking sector in Australia is comprised of three primary sectors: (a) bread (b) biscuits and (c) cakes and pastries (www.daff.gov.au). Domestic consumption of biscuits is higher than exports and the sales of biscuit products contribute about a third of manufacturing turnover in the baking industry. According to the report on the baking industry which was published in 2001, 75% of the retail trade in biscuits occurs through supermarkets, with the market being concentrated and dominated by the major corporate entities, Arnotts and George Weston Foods; while exports had jumped to 63 million dollars with over 50% of these exports being directed towards New Zealand (www.daff.gov.au). These trends appear to be continuing because according to an industry upgrade report in 2006-7, the trends in the biscuit industry still show a preponderance of sales through giant supermarket chains. The biscuit industry has changed somewhat in the past decade. In Australia, the biscuit industry has traditionally been restricted to the domestic markets, but exports have been increasing. The major changes in the external environment which are necessitating changes in the operation of biscuit companies are (a) increasing automation of biscuit manufacture (b) the need to comply with Government regulation (c) changes in patterns of consumer nutrition (d) rationalisation and consolidation and (e) use of toll or contract manufacturing. All of these aspects are discussed further below, because they are the major external mandates which have