Invisible Giant - Second Edition : Cargill and its Transnational Strategies

Rating:
Summary: A Gilmpse Inside the Giant
Review: No other company epitomizes the global concentration in worldwide commodity trading and processing like Cargill. Although it's the largest privately-held company in the world, few people realize the scope of Cargill's activities or its influence on the food we eat and even the salt we put on our roads in the wintertime.

Kneen's second edition of this book, published in early 2002, is timely and poignant. Even though at times it reads almost like a textbook, Kneen's work meticulously describes Cargill's business segments and its geographic reach. Cargill's classic approach is to enter a market in a modest way and establish a "beachhead." From there, it expands its ownership and influence, often becoming the dominant force in an industry. In addition, Cargill has the political muscle to affect public policy towards trade and agriculture, not only at the Federal level in the U. S., but also through state, provincial and local governments worldwide.

Although no fan of Cargill or big agribusiness in general, Kneen nevertheless presents a fairly balanced, at times almost antiseptic analysis of this secretive and very powerful company.

I recommend this book to anyone interested in the influence of large corporations on key economic sectors - especially agriculture.