A framework for analysing innovation in the food sector

The introduction of new products is widely regarded as an essential element of competition between food companies, and the successful management of new product development a key determinant of business performance. It is estimated that the modern supermarket often carries a product range of 10 000 to 15 000 products and turns over perhaps 10% or more of these every year. A leading UK food retailer is said to have introduced around 1500 new private-label products alone in 1993, compared with 300 in 1987 (Hughes, 1994). These keywords were added by machine and not by the authors. This process is experimental and the keywords may be updated as the learning algorithm improves.