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- July 2022
- Case
General Mills: Responding to the Killing of George Floyd (A)
By: Debora L. Spar and Alicia Dadlani
Jeff Harmening, CEO of General Mills, one of the world's largest manufacturers of breakfast cereals and packaged foods, was deeply disturbed and instantly aware that he and General Mills would need to respond. George Floyd, an African-American man who had been accused...
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- December 2021
- Case
Pairwise
By: José B. Alvarez and Annelena Lobb
Pairwise discusses the strategic approach of a company aiming to “snackify” fruits and vegetables by using CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing to create nutritious, bite-sized foods that could compete with packaged snacks. The company is confronting a number of challenges,...
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- October 2020 (Revised February 2021)
- Case
Twiga Foods: Revolutionizing African Retail (A)
By: Shikhar Ghosh, Pippa Tubman Amerding and Wale Lawal
Twiga is a leading agricultural produce supplier in Kenya offering services to mostly informal retailers. Under Peter Njonjo, a co-founder and Twiga’s new CEO, the company is considering multiple options for expanding its business, including offering packaged foods and...
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- 2021
- Working Paper
Accounting for Product Impact in the Consumer-Packaged Foods Industry
By: Amanda Rischbieth, George Serafeim and Katie Trinh
We apply the product impact measurement framework of the Impact-Weighted Accounts Initiative (IWAI) in two competitor companies within the consumer-packaged goods industry. We design a methodology that allows us to calculate monetary impact estimates on customer...
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Keywords:
Product Innovation;
Impact;
Impact Investing;
Impact Measurement;
ESG;
ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) Performance;
ESG Ratings;
Social Corporate Responsibility;
Corporate Social Responsibility;
Social Impact;
Nutrition Database;
Nutritional Information;
CPG;
Consumer Packaged Goods;
IWAI;
Product Design;
Product Positioning;
Society;
Environmental Sustainability;
Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact;
Nutrition;
Product;
Safety;
Consumer Products Industry
- May 2020 (Revised March 2022)
- Case
The Coronavirus (COVID-19) Pandemic and the Global Economy (A)
By: Alberto Cavallo and Christian Godwin
In April 2020, the world struggled to contain the exponential escalation of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Dozens of countries had imposed restrictions on travel, work, and social gatherings. A large share of the global population was under lockdowns and...
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Keywords:
COVID-19 Pandemic;
Demand and Consumers;
Supply and Industry;
Finance;
Central Banking;
Financial Markets;
International Finance;
Globalization;
Government and Politics;
Health Pandemics;
Decision Making;
Macroeconomics;
Employment;
Crisis Management;
Supply Chain;
Risk and Uncertainty;
Food and Beverage Industry;
Food and Beverage Industry;
Food and Beverage Industry;
Food and Beverage Industry;
Food and Beverage Industry;
Food and Beverage Industry;
Food and Beverage Industry;
Food and Beverage Industry;
Food and Beverage Industry;
Food and Beverage Industry;
Food and Beverage Industry;
Food and Beverage Industry;
Food and Beverage Industry;
Food and Beverage Industry;
Food and Beverage Industry;
Asia;
China;
Europe;
Latin America;
Africa;
United States
- January 2020 (Revised April 2020)
- Teaching Note
Brandless: Disrupting Consumer Packaged Goods
By: Jill Avery
Brandless, an online direct-to-consumer seller of upscale private-label consumer packaged goods (CPG), offered consumers a limited assortment of values-conscious products delivered directly to their homes with the simplicity of one fixed $3.00 price point that promised...
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- December 2019 (Revised June 2021)
- Case
Mãe Terra and Unilever (A)
By: Lynn S. Paine, Ruth Costas and Priscilla Zogbi
The case concerns the sale of Mãe Terra, one of Brazil's leading brands for packaged organic foods, to the consumer goods giant Unilever in 2017. Working with Unilever management, Mãe Terra’s CEO Alexandre Borges must determine whether and how to keep Mãe Terra's B...
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Keywords:
Mergers ＆ Acquisitions;
Brand Management;
Sustainability;
Mergers and Acquisitions;
Mission and Purpose;
Social Enterprise;
Corporate Governance;
Governing and Advisory Boards;
Environmental Sustainability;
Organizational Culture;
Food and Beverage Industry;
Food and Beverage Industry;
Brazil;
Latin America
- December 2019
- Supplement
Mãe Terra and Unilever (B)
By: Lynn S. Paine, Ruth Costas and Mariana Cal
Unilever is making strides to integrate the operations of Mãe Terra—one of Brazil's leading brands for packaged organic foods—into its own structures, after acquiring the company in 2017. Mãe Terra’s CEO, Alexandre Borges, must decide whether to implement his original...
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- July 2019 (Revised April 2020)
- Case
Momofuku Ando and the Globalization of Noodles
By: Geoffrey Jones and Megumi Takada
This case examines the entrepreneurial career of Momofuku Ando, the Taiwanese-born Japanese entrepreneur who pioneered instant boodles with his Chicken Ramen (1958) and Cup Noodle (1971) products. It begins by reviewing his many previous unsuccessful ventures,...
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- July–August 2018
- Article
From Niche to Mainstream (HBR Case Study)
By: Elie Ofek
A large Japanese snack maker faces challenges in marketing products in the US. Several options for jumpstarting sales are presented.
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- January 2018
- Case
OldTown Berhad
By: Benjamin C. Esty and Greg Saldutte
In December 2017, Jacobs Douwe Egberts (JDE, a Dutch coffee company) made an offer to acquire OldTown Berhad (OTB), a Malaysian coffee company. Three large shareholders, representing more than half of the outstanding shares, have agreed to tender their shares, and...
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Keywords:
Mergers ＆ Acquisitions;
Discounted Cash Flow (DCF);
Malaysia;
Coffee;
Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG);
Free Cash Flow (FCF);
Multiples;
Bidding Premia;
Netherlands;
Tender Offer;
Mergers and Acquisitions;
Valuation;
Value Creation;
Food;
Investment Return;
Food and Beverage Industry;
Food and Beverage Industry;
Food and Beverage Industry;
Malaysia;
Netherlands;
Singapore;
Asia
- January 2018
- Supplement
OldTown Berhad
By: Benjamin C. Esty and Greg Saldutte
In December 2017, Jacobs Douwe Egberts (JDE, a Dutch coffee company) made an offer to acquire OldTown Berhad (OTB), a Malaysian coffee company. Three large shareholders, representing more than half of the outstanding shares, have agreed to tender their shares and...
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Keywords:
Mergers ＆ Acquisitions;
Discounted Cash Flow (DCF);
Malaysia;
Coffee;
Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG);
Free Cash Flow (FCF);
Multiples;
Bidding Premia;
Netherlands;
Tender Offer;
Mergers and Acquisitions;
Valuation;
Value Creation;
Food;
Investment Return;
Food and Beverage Industry;
Food and Beverage Industry;
Food and Beverage Industry;
Malaysia;
Netherlands;
Singapore;
Asia
- December 2017 (Revised March 2018)
- Case
Kellogg Company/eighteen94 capital
By: David Bell, Damien McLoughlin and Natalie Kindred
With 33,000 employees and revenues of $13 billion in 2016, Kellogg Company was the world’s largest producer of branded packaged cereal and a leader in branded convenience foods. Founded in 1906 and based in Michigan, the company had a proud history of product and...
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Keywords:
CPG;
Consumer Packaged Goods;
Cereal;
Battle Creek;
Michigan;
Breakfast;
Snack;
Agribusiness;
Change Management;
Growth Strategy;
Corporate Venture Capital;
Innovation;
Startup;
Brand;
Brand ＆ Product Management;
Advertising;
Demand and Consumers;
Innovation and Invention;
Venture Capital;
Food;
Brands and Branding;
Marketing;
Food and Beverage Industry;
Food and Beverage Industry;
Food and Beverage Industry;
United States;
Michigan;
North America
- December 2017
- Case
Molino Cañuelas: Serving Customers from Seed Development to the Kitchen Table
By: Jose B. Alvarez, Maria Fernanda Miguel and Mariana Cal
Molino Cañuelas was a vertically integrated food company with a management system that allowed it to innovate and grow systematically. With sales of $2 billion in 2016, the firm not only produced flour, vegetable oil, and packaged food products, it also owned a port...
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- December 2017
- Case
Mondelēz International
By: David Bell, Kerry Herman and Amram Migdal
Mondelēz International is a packaged foods company competing primarily in “snacks” around the globe. The case describes how and why the Kraft Inc. CEO, and later Mondelēz CEO, Irene Rosenfeld, created Mondelēz and how she positioned it as a growth company at a time...
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- November 2017 (Revised October 2018)
- Case
Brandless: Disrupting Consumer Packaged Goods
By: Jill Avery
Brandless, an online direct-to-consumer seller of upscale private-label consumer packaged goods, offered consumers a limited assortment of values-conscious products delivered directly to their homes with the simplicity of one fixed $3 price point that promised an...
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Keywords:
Brand;
Brand Management;
Retailing;
Retailing Industry;
Private Label;
Direct To Consumer Marketing;
Ecommerce;
Digital Marketing;
Consumer Packaged Goods;
Startup;
Marketing;
Marketing Strategy;
Disruption;
Food;
Product Marketing;
Marketing Channels;
Consumer Behavior;
Brands and Branding;
Venture Capital;
E-commerce;
Food and Beverage Industry;
Food and Beverage Industry;
Food and Beverage Industry;
Food and Beverage Industry;
United States;
North America
- November 2017 (Revised November 2021)
- Case
Irene Rosenfeld at Mondelēz International: Crafting a Corporate Strategy
By: Raffaella Sadun, David J. Collis, Amram Migdal and Kerry Herman
The case focuses on Irene Rosenfeld’s tenure as CEO of the global snack food company Mondelēz International. Beginning in 2006, she had led the company through many acquisitions, including France’s LU Biscuit and British confectionery company Cadbury, before, in 2012,...
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Keywords:
Snack Food;
Snack;
Global Snacking;
Packaged Food;
Consumer Packaged;
Kraft Foods;
Kraft;
Agribusiness;
Change;
Change Management;
Corporate Strategy;
Transformation;
Geography;
Geographic Scope;
Global Strategy;
Leadership;
Leadership Style;
Leading Change;
Management;
Business or Company Management;
Growth and Development Strategy;
Management Style;
Marketing;
Brands and Branding;
Demand and Consumers;
Consumer Behavior;
Organizational Change and Adaptation;
Planning;
Strategic Planning;
Strategy;
Food and Beverage Industry;
Illinois
- February 2017 (Revised April 2018)
- Case
Kameda Seika: Cracking the U.S. Market
By: Elie Ofek, Nobuo Sato and Akiko Kanno
In spring 2016, Kameda’s CEO, Michiyasu Tanaka, is facing difficult questions from board members over the lackluster performance of the company’s U.S. subsidiary. Kameda was the leading player in the Japanese rice cracker market and was looking to expand overseas to...
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- January 2017 (Revised January 2017)
- Case
Susan Cassidy at Bertram Gilman International
By: Jeffrey T. Polzer and Michael Norris
In 2016, Susan Cassidy, VP of sales and marketing for the packaged foods division at CPG firm Bertram Gilman International, has to make a promotion decision. Should she choose the person she has been grooming for the position or another candidate recommended by central...
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- November 2016 (Revised March 2018)
- Background Note
Note on the Impact of Millennials on the Food System
By: José B. Alvarez, James Weber and Natalie Kindred
In 2016, the millennial generation (those age 19 to 35 in 2016), the largest generation by population in the U.S., was entering its prime home buying, family forming, earning and spending years. This generation was showing different beliefs and behaviors than previous...
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