The food industry is composed of four main sectors: agricultural services, producers, processors and marketers. Each sector plays an important role in the production and distribution of food products. The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) is a global organization that oversees the obligations of each sector. The agricultural services sector is responsible for providing logistics, transportation and storage facilities for the food industry.
This includes ensuring that food is not contaminated or tampered with from physical, biological and chemical sources. The producer sector is responsible for cereal production and other raw materials of animal or vegetable origin. This sector also includes waste management companies. The processor sector is responsible for transforming raw materials into food products.
This includes departments of government regulation for the food industry, which are responsible for food quality, safety and industry lobbying activities. It also includes academic institutes, consulting services, vocational training and other resources to safely prepare fresh, healthy meals for families. The marketers sector is responsible for distributing and retailing food products to consumers. This includes grocery stores, supermarkets, farmers markets, public markets and any point of sale.
It also includes e-commerce websites and grocery shopping apps. This sector also provides tools, programs and information to market locally produced products. Ensuring that communities have access to fresh, affordable, healthy and culturally appropriate food requires economically sound companies, strong community partnerships, and initiatives across all sectors of the food system.
