The agricultural and food industries play an important role in the economy of any nation because human beings rely on food for their sustainability. The agricultural sector is a backbone to the economies of many countries across the world and any problem in this sector is likely to affect these economies negatively.
One of the features of the agricultural and food industries is that the agricultural industry produces raw materials while the food industry processes these materials into food that is ready to be consumed by human beings. The food industry sometimes produces semi-processed substances which are later used to prepare consumable food products (Abramson III, 2012). Another feature is that these industries mostly deal with perishable products, some from living things with biological nature. Doing business in these industries requires maximum concentration on work to avoid making losses due to products going bad. The products in these industries are greatly influenced by climatic, environmental and geographical factors like rain and drought (Rappert & Müller, 2005). This implies that participants in these industries should be very keen on timing to ensure high productivity. These industries are also known to have distinctive features in the degree of technology, number of employees and their distribution, the investment size and the degree of sophistication. Various combinations of these factors are normally used to categorize different types of enterprises in these industries. For instance, micro enterprises are defined by simple technology and a small number of employees. Lastly, these industries experiences a series of events with one event relating to another. Examples of these events or activities include storage, transport, industrial services, logistics, marketing, food preparation, processing and consumption.
One of the risks associated with these industries is diseases; these have been pointed out as major contributors of low productivity in these industries. Some of the diseases are caused by pests which have developed resistance to pesticides, making it difficult to destroy them (McMichael, 1994). Another risk is poor timing; this has led to many losses being incurred by farmers. The fact that the weather is sometimes unpredictable makes it very difficult for farmers to know when to plant their crops. High level of perishability is another threat in these industries where key players incur many losses due to their products going bad. Some do not have the necessary facilities to preserve food making them to register low profits. Characteristics like perishability and unpredictable weather have led to low yields and inconsistent returns in these industries.
In conclusion, these industries are generally at risk because of the highlighted factors and the government should intervene by helping the participants so that they get the best out of investing in the same industries. The government’s intervention will have the impact of developing the economy since many people rely on these sectors.
References
Abramson III, A. F. (2012). Biological Weapons--Still a Relevant Threat. ARMY WAR COLL CARLISLE BARRACKS PA.
Rappert, S., & Müller, R. (2005). Odor compounds in waste gas emissions from agricultural operations and food industries. Waste Management, 25(9), 887-907.
McMichael, P. (Ed.). (1994). The global restructuring of agro-food systems. Cornell University Press.
