Local food in supermarkets: Multinational vis-à-vis domestic chains

Resumen

There is growing demand to offer more local food in supermarkets.
However, there is insufficient information on the availability of
raw and processed local food in supermarkets or the difference
between domestic and multinational supermarket chains.
Aggregate data are suboptimal to shed light on these gaps. We
use Puerto Rico as a case study where the average income is
relatively high, both multinational and domestic supermarket
chains compete, where most of the food is bought in these
retailers, and where the agriculture sector has been relegated
in the macroeconomic growth plan. We conducted censuses
of food in domestic and multinational supermarket chains and
found that, in general, 13% of the food is local, and this share
varied by food category. The share of local food was higher in
domestic supermarket chains. This situation exacerbates food
security in small islands such as Puerto Rico.