An analysis of profits within the Canadian food processing sector : Analyse des bénéfices dans le secteur canadien de la transformation des aliments

The purpose of this Series is to create a picture of the competitiveness and profitability of the entire agri-food value chain to support a more informal discussion on changes in the agri-food value chain, and the challenges and opportunities it faces in the future. [...] The paper will use the rate of return (ROR) on long-term capital as the measure of profitability in the food processing industry and the manufacturing sector (without food processing). [...] Enterprises within the food processing industry and the rest of the manufacturing sec- tor are grouped according to their annual sales and the RORs for the different groups are calculated and compared. [...] Azzam and Pagoulatos (1990) found that the industry exercises market power in both the output market and the factor input market, with the degree of market power being significantly greater in the input market than in the output market. [...] The concepts and definitions of the terms used for the financial data are based on the guidelines of the Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants.