瑞士恺撒里兹酒店管理学院留学生作业模板：The global trend of fast food

瑞士恺撒里兹酒店管理学院留学生作业模板：The global trend of fast food

 

 

Economic globalization is a mutual integration process which can be described as follows: it is the market economy based on advanced technology and productivity, led by the developed countries in order to maximize profits and economic benefits through the division of labor, trade and investment, reaching the final target of the market division and cooperation in harmony. The fast food industry is the star industry in the development of people's living standards, and it is also necessary for economic development of supporting industries. Therefore, as an important branch of industry in economic development, the fast-food industry must extend its market all over the world accompanied by the trend of globalization. This essay will firstly introduce the basic status of the global trend of fast food. Following this, it will analysis the advantage of the fast food in the trend of globalization. Then, it will reflection on the global trend of fast food from three aspects. Finally, it will put forward some relevant measures under the background of the globalization in fast food from three aspects, too.

经济全球化是一个相互融合的过程可以描述如下：它是基于先进的科学技术和生产力的市场经济，由发达国家为了通过分工最大利润和经济效益，贸易和投资，在和谐中达到市场分工与合作的最终目标。快餐业在人民生活水平发展的明星产业，也是支柱产业经济发展的需要。因此，作为经济发展中的产业的一个重要分支，快餐行业必须扩大其在全世界市场伴随着全球化的趋势。本文将首先介绍快餐的全球趋势的基本状况。在此之后，它将在全球化趋势的快餐的优势分析。然后，它将从三个方面对快餐的全球趋势的思考。最后，将提出一些相应的措施，在全球化背景下，从三个方面对快餐食品

 

 

Basic status of the global trend of fast food

Fast Food is the term given to food that can be prepared and served very quickly and it is a gastronomy phenomenon which has specific content and form in the process of modernization. The content is that the varieties of food are simple but relatively nutrient-rich enough to meet the normal needs of life. Fast food products are often characterized by their high content of fat and sugars, high palatability, large portion size and high energy density（Schro¨der, Fı¨to, & Covas, 2007, p.1274), and its form is dining environment and simple procedures. The so-called Fast Food is relatively speaking to home cooked meal and feast. Fast food and the Fast food industry developed rapidly from the 1970s in the West until 1994. The global fast-food industry output had overfed 90 billion dollars, and the amount of fast food varieties had already been more than 12000.The number of fast food outlets and sales increased dramatically during the past 30 years in North America and, to a lesser degree, also in Europe（Schro¨der, Fı¨to, & Covas, 2007, p.1274). For example, KFC began to get into the Chinese catering market in 1987, and after 15years it achieved a great success in the world's largest consumer market China. Some Chinese food shops had been forced to close down due to compete with Western fast food. So the problem how to take some effective responses to the expansion of fast food industry is placed in front of each country at the trend of economic globalization. 

 

 

Besides, with the accelerating pace of urban life and the increasing income level of residents, demand for fast food is increasing too and the cheaper and efficient fast food shops are bound to be welcomed by people. Moreover, in the modern society, the growing number of social activities has requested by modern people especially the young group. As a consequence, the efficient and the affordable channel are urgent needed not only for the place to eat but also place to communicate with each other. Thus, the fast food industry meets the needs of people and gets a rapid development at the same time.

此外，随着城市生活节奏的加快，居民收入水平的提高，对快餐食品的需求日益增加，更便宜和高效的快餐店一定会受到人们的欢迎。此外，在现代社会，社会活动日益增多的现代人尤其是中青年组要求。作为一个结果，高效和负担得起的通道是迫切需要的不仅仅是吃饭的地方也相互交流的场所。因此，快餐业的满足人们的需要，同时获得快速发展。

 

 

Analysis the advantage of the fast food in the trend of globalization

The first is the creative chain mode. The most of Western fast food companies choose the chain mode as their operation mode. The chain mode is an operation and management model which is according to certain coupling link and certain rules and link to integrate the many isolated and decentralized business units into a whole. The world famous fast food companies have a very good business philosophy and professional operation mode about fast food shops management. For instance, the standardized manual species of KFC are more than 100, and the standardized manual is involved in many aspects such as shop location, raw materials purchasing, processing, and products trade-marking and so on. And the stores around the world share only one enterprise criterion. Coincidentally, McDonald's also has its own standardized criterion to guide the conduct from materials supplying to finished product promotions. Because of the global standardization, KFC and McDonald's can be recognized at first glance wherever in the world. All in all, chain mode is a powerful driving force of the development of Western fast food. In addition, Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) also makes the multinational corporations profit a lot. FDI is a key mechanism shaping the market for highly processed foods in developing countries. FDI makes more processed foods more available to more people. It enables lower prices and opens up new purchasing channels（Hawkes，2005, p.361). The second is the advanced marketing strategy. The organization’s survival depends on the environment and the capability of the organization to adapt to the environment. So, Determining the strategy in a complex and changing environment is critical to how the organization responds to the contingencies (Sussan, 2009, p.230). Faced with the fierce competition in the fast food industry, Western companies perform well in marketing by virtue of its many years of experience and in-depth study of consumer psychology. Western fast food enterprises through the survey found that with modern standards improve people's emotional communication tends to dilute, the life is stress of life and the work fatigue make people more eager to warm family atmosphere. So the powerful promotion advertisement often shows emotion outpouring. Moreover, a variety of incentives and gift is an endless stream.

 

 

The third is the sensible production and service concept. What is fast food? The fast food is the modernization of cooking, combined with modern science, technology and management philosophy. In short, modernization and industrialization are the standards of fast food industry. From this point of view, the Western fast food has the undoubtedly advantage. Although many countries’ traditional food is delicious and distinctive, they are still in the danger of being eliminated. This is because they are too far from the criterion of modernization and industrialization to be expanded. In terms of service, Western culture highlights individualism which gives great attention to personal. At the same time, the multinational fast food industry realized that culture and international marketing of food services are strategically intertwined.（Oyewole, 2013, p.76). So, the fast food stores and the companies in the Western take full advantage of this to give their customers more thoughtful, more convenient and more personalized service. 

 

 

Reflection on the global trend of fast food

The first is the influence on people's food structure and diet culture. Fast food is gaining popularity among younger generations and is widely spreading over both traditional and non-traditional food outlets (Satia, Galanko, & Siega-Riz, 2004, p.1089). In developing countries, eating fast food has become an excellent and fashionable choice in holiday for consumers, especially for young people. Originally, in foreign country, the reason why fast food becomes more and more popular is that the fast food has the advantages of cheaper and less time-consuming compared with other foods. However, when KFC entered the markets of developing countries, for the vast majority of consumers, it has become the one of fashion and high-grade due to the higher prices compared with the local food. And in the group of young people, the fast food has the most attraction to them. Their unique age, the crazy love to pursuit boom, and the strong curiosity of the foreign cultural expressed in psychological characteristics have gradually become the driving forces to make them become the most active groups in the consumption of fast-food culture. The rising consumption of energy-dense, nutrient-poor foods high in fats, sugars and salt has become a source of global concern. In a trend known as the ‘nutrition transition’, populations of developing countries are now consuming diets closer to those of developed countries, with more animal products, vegetable oils, sweeteners and processed foods, and fewer whole grains( Hawkes, 2005, p.357).

 

 

In China, the Chinese traditional food culture emphasis on healthy and nutritious meals, while the calories in most fast food is higher and richer than it is expected. Take the hamburger as an example, the bread in it can meet the staple food needs for children and ensure the healthy development of bones and brain growth. Besides, the chicken in it are able to provide the sufficient heat needed for the growing children. However, this high-fat, high protein, high cholesterol, high salt, high sugar and high seasoning meals are likely to cause a serious imbalance in the nutrition of consumers because of the high heat and calories. Common adolescent food choices from fast-food restaurants, including hamburgers, pizza, French fries and sugar-sweetened beverages, which are frequently served in large portions, can contribute to poor nutritional intake (Bauer, Larson & Story, 2007, p.1767). Under the trend of fast food globalization, there are more and more people joining the group of obesity. Although the obesity is a multi-faceted problem that is related to a number of societal, cultural and environmental attributes (Satia, Galanko, & Siega-Riz, 2004, p.1090), it is still undeniable that the trend of globalization of fast food is also one of the factors contributing to the obesity. Throughout the world, major shifts in dietary patterns are occurring, even in the consumption of basic staples towards more diversified diets. Accompanying these changes in food consumption at a global and regional level have been considerable health consequences. Populations in those countries undergoing rapid transition are experiencing nutritional transition (Kearney, 2013, p. 2793).

 

 

The second is the challenge for the traditional gastronomy. Indeed, the efficient and convenient fast food greatly satisfied the needs of the people under the conditions of market economy and it represent the positive factors which is called efficiency is everything in developed commodity economy and culture. However, when met with local traditional cooking, it is facing a series of problems. Take the Chinese food as an example; the core in Chinese food can be characterized as grain-based, less meat and supplemented with vegetables. It also emphasis on color, flavor, taste and cooking skills, as well as its traditional slow-eating food culture. The pursuit of Chinese food is the perfect mixture of color, smell and taste; variety of dishes and the delicate style. So the cooking method of fast food would be inconsistent with the traditional Chinese cooking methods.

 

 

Nowadays, the world market is presently flooded with cheap vegetable fat. Urbanization leads to over-consumption by increasing market access to fatty and sugary foods, including fast foods. Globalization increases the consumption of sweet soda pops, biscuits and snacks produced by multinational companies. Western supermarkets and fast food franchises also promote these dietary changes. It has been proposed that the population in developing countries is more vulnerable towards these dietary changes in regard to obesity and chronic diseases, due to the under-nutrition in early life.

 

 

Accompanied by a soaring consumption of fast foods from developed countries, developing countries are also making changes of their own traditional food. Consequently, with the globalization of food systems, traditional diets in developing countries are being transformed as more meals are now available in the fast-food calorie-rich pattern of developed countries, and these are increasingly abundant and cheap through advances in food processing and modern technology (Kearney, 2013, p.2803).

 

 

The third is the new task faced by the food and beverage industry. The fast food with its features such as inexpensive, convenient, nutrient-rich has attracted more and more consumers and its share in the food market is growing all the time. So, the rapid development of fast-food exerts great impact on traditional food and beverage industry. The analysis of supply, demand, competitive situation and problems of traditional food and beverage industry may help them realize the general situation and find countermeasures for their future development.

 

 

Faced with the strong invasion of the fast food industry, the traditional food and beverage industry is suffering the unprecedented challenge. French, a country famous for its delicious food, the consumption ratio of fast food exceed the traditional food in 2012 for the first time. According to the latest statistical report, the 2012 the sales of French fast food industry has been 34 billion Euros, accounting for 54% of the total sales of the food and beverage industry. Since 2004, French fast food industry begins to improve the quality and increase the pattern in its traditional food and beverage industry constantly. However, affected by the decline in the purchasing power of consumers and the rapid development of the foreign fast food industry, the traditional French food and beverage industry declined inevitably. To survive, the traditional food industries had to shift to product innovation combined with a more radical multi-product strategy, which in its turn marked the need to break from strategies based on core product(Wilkinson, 2002, p.331).

 

 

Response measures under the background of the globalization in fast food

The first is making promote on the competitiveness of native food. The life cycle of product is limited, which reflected in the food and beverage industry is the life cycle of dishes. Except the enduring traditional dishes, most market cycles of the dishes are getting shorter and shorter. Competitors which imitate each other will lose the advantage of their dishes quickly. Therefore, it is critical for native food to find their potential advantages and make innovation all the time. From the aspect of the varieties in food and beverage industry, the nutritional problems of the McDonald's, KFC and many other world-brand products are arousing more and more concerning from the people all over the world in recent years. Their varieties on development, formulation and processing are standardized but single; the fried-based cooking method is easy to make the drawbacks of body fat and also detrimental to human health. In China, the nutrition transition appears to be occurring at a faster rate among those on lower incomes. Now, owing to lower prices and an affluent food supply, even the poor have more access to more fat and animal products. Another element of the nutrition transition is the increasing importation of foods from industrialized countries. As a result, traditional diets featuring grains and vegetables are giving way to meals high in fat and sugar(Kearney, 2013, p.2801).

 

 

However, the scientific studies have shown that consumers’ dietary knowledge has been found to be an important predictor of healthy eating(Zhang, Lans, & Dagevos, 2011, p.89). With the gradual improvement of the people's health awareness and the growth of health knowledge, people will pay more and more attention to the healthy fast-food industry instead of the fast food industry, especially for the adolescents. Efforts to help adolescents reduce their fast-food intake may result in the achievement or maintenance of a healthier weight, along with better dietary intake, during a critical age where individuals increasingly need to make independent food decisions and prepare themselves for the transition into young adulthood（Bauer, Larson, Nelson, Story, & Neumark-Sztainer, 2008, p.1773), and more and more country realized that “the identification of lifestyle variables that are associated with this trend is crucial for health policy”(Schro¨der, Fı¨to, & Covas, 2007, p.1274). Taking advantage of this opportunity, the local fast food should create the health brand, combining the cultural essence of financial local food with the modern nutritional science in a appropriate way, and build their own local fast-food products which is better and more attractive than the foreign fast food.

 

 

The second is exploring the local development mode and marketing strategy. Exploring the local development mode and marketing strategy should establish the right and fast development in the concept of scientific, mechanized, and standardized. The "fast" of fast food is not merely means the simplification of traditional meals, but represents the focus on the word "fast" in terms of scientific, mechanized, standardized management and production. Making a general survey of the method in Chinese food, it is quite clear that the vast majority of Chinese fast food followed the ancient form of operation. Although the input of raw materials tends to be standard, the synthesis process still relies on the personal experience of the chef. Besides, even though the manufacturing production of fast food has the same name, the quality of them is vastly different for their small-volume and high cost packaging, storage, and transportation methods. Furthermore, the public health emphasis on nutritional outcomes has further amplified the food security framework to some extent（Ericksen, 2008, p.236). So, the local fast food industry should put more attention in the development of standards, varieties and facilities by inputting more human, technical and financial resource, and gradually reach the international level of the scientific, mechanization and standardization.

 

 

The third is taking advantage of the own characteristic and expanding the boundaries of national food. Taking advantage of the own characteristic and expanding the boundaries of national food are the wise choice for local food industry to create the local fast food brand. Whenever talking about fast food, the first thing come into people's minds must be the distinctive Western-style fast food brands. On the contrary, it is difficult to thought of the other vivid fast food brand which immediately. So, taking participate in international competition, and establishing their unique clear-cut image has become urgent task facing to local food industry. Take China’s overseas market strategy as an example, walking along the side of the street in many cities in the United States, you can always see a circular mark: there is a red dot in the middle of the white, a lovely giant panda in the dots and the head of the panda is surrounded by a line of English words "Panda Express". This is the largest Chinese fast-food chain which is called Panda Express in current days and its chain has opened in five states throughout the United States. Seen in this light, going out of the country and having its own local fast food brand is not impossible.#p#分页标题#e#

 

 

In addition, we should also recognize that different countries have different cultures and regions and the best way to face cultural differences is "do as the Romans do". KFC is has set a benchmark for cross-cultural management in the world's fast-food. Whether the local fast food will go abroad or worked hard in the domestic market in the future, the first thing to recognize and understand is the existence of differences, and much attention should be paid to understanding and learning of other country's language, customs and local behavior. Secondly, everything has two sides and the culture is also a "double-edged sword". The correct attitude towards the cultural contradictions and conflicts will help the local food industry capture the new opportunities and find a source of innovation.

 

 

The fast food industry is the star industry in the development of people's living standards, and it is also necessary for economic development of supporting industries. Therefore, as an important branch of industry in economic development, the fast-food industry must grasp the opportunity of the trend of globalization and face the challenge in a reasonable way. Only in this way can fast food industry survive the fierce competition in globalization no matter at home and abroad.快餐业在人民生活水平发展的明星产业，也是支柱产业经济发展的需要。因此，作为经济发展中的产业的一个重要分支，快餐业必须把握全球化趋势的机遇和面临的挑战，以合理的方式。只有这样，快餐业在全球化生存在家里不管激烈的国内外竞争。

 

 

Reference

Bauer, K., Larson N., Nelson, M., Story, M., & Neumark-Sztainer, D. (2008). Socio-environmental, Personal and Behavioral Predictors of Fast-food Intake among Adolescents. Public Health Nutrition: 12(10), 1767–1774.

Schro¨der, Fı¨to, M. & Covas, M. (2007). Association of Fast Food Consumption with Energy Intake, Diet Quality, Body Mass Index and the Risk of Obesity in a Representative Mediterranean Population. British Journal of Nutrition, 98, 1274–1280.

Zhang, X., Lans, I. & Dagevos, H. (2011). Impacts of Fast Food and the Food Retail Environment on http://www.ukassignment.org/ Overweight and Obesity in China: a Multilevel Latent Class Cluster Approach. Public Health Nutrition: 15(1), 88–96.

Ericksen, P. (2008). Conceptualizing Food Systems for Global Environmental Change Research. Global Environmental Change 18, 234–245.

Satia, J., Galanko, J. & Siega-Riz, A. (2004). Eating at Fast-food Restaurants is Associated with Dietary Intake, Demographic, Psychosocial and Behavioral Factors among African Americans in North Carolina. Public Health Nutrition, 7(8), 1089–1096.

Wilkinson, J. (2002). The Final Foods Industry and the Changing Face of the Global Agro-Food System. Sociologia Ruralis, 42(4), 329–346.

Kearney, J. (2013). Food Consumption Trends and Drivers. Philosophical transactions of the royal society, 365(1554), 2793–2807.

Hawkes, H. (2005). The Role of Foreign Direct Investment in the Nutrition Transition. Public Health Nutrition: 8(4), 357–365.

Oyewole, P. (2013). Fast Food Marketing and the African American Consumers. Journal of International Consumer Marketing, 19(4), 75–108.

Sussan, A. (2009). Customization and Technological Change in Fast Food Industry. Competition Forum, 7 (1), 228–233.