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Jawboning Cereal: The Campaign to Lower Cereal Prices

Author

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  • Ronald W. Cotterill

    (University of Connecticut)

Abstract

This article introduces the Forum by explaining the sequence of events related to the jawboning campaign and subsequent reductions in cereal prices. It also introduces the main issues on the vigor of competition and pricing that are analyzed in subsequent papers. Jawboning as a public policy strategy is assessed and found useful in certain circumstances such as those in the breakfast cereal industry in the mid 1990’s. The jawboning campaign was effective in advancing price competition in an industry that successfully resisted repeated antitrust efforts to promote competition. The RTE cereal industry is now undergoing major structural changes that are on balance pro competitive.

Suggested Citation

  • Ronald W. Cotterill, 1998. "Jawboning Cereal: The Campaign to Lower Cereal Prices," Issue Papers 17, University of Connecticut, Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics, Charles J. Zwick Center for Food and Resource Policy.
    • Handle: RePEc:zwi:ipaper:17
    as

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    File URL: http://www.zwickcenter.uconn.edu/documents/issuepapers/ip17.pdf
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Ronald W. Cotterill & Andrew W. Franklin & Lawrence E. Haller, 1994. "Harvesting and Tacit Collusion in the Breakfast Cereal Industry: A Case Study of Nabisco Shredded Wheat and Post Grape Nuts," Issue Papers 06, University of Connecticut, Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics, Charles J. Zwick Center for Food and Resource Policy.
    2. Richard Schmalensee, 1978. "Entry Deterrence in the Ready-to-Eat Breakfast Cereal Industry," Bell Journal of Economics, The RAND Corporation, vol. 9(2), pages 305-327, Autumn.
    3. Cotterill, Ronald & Franklin, Andrew & Haller, Lawrence, 1994. "Harvesting and Tacit Collusion in the Breakfast Cereal Industry: A Case Study of Nabisco Shredded Wheat and Post Grape Nuts," Issue Papers 160504, University of Connecticut, Food Marketing Policy Center.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. James Binkley & James Eales & Mark Jekanowski & Ryan Dooley, 2001. "Competitive behavior of national brands: The case of orange juice," Agribusiness, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 17(1), pages 139-160.
    2. Ronald W. Cotterill, 2001. "Neoclassical explanations of vertical organization and performance of food Industries," Agribusiness, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 17(1), pages 33-57.
    3. Chidmi, Benaissa & Lopez, Rigoberto A. & Cotterill, Ronald W., 2005. "A Supermarket-Level Analysis of Demand for Breakfast Cereals: A Random Coefficients Approach," 2005 Annual meeting, July 24-27, Providence, RI 19236, American Agricultural Economics Association (New Name 2008: Agricultural and Applied Economics Association).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    jawboning; nonprice competition; market power; market concentration; antitrust enforcement;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • L10 - Industrial Organization - - Market Structure, Firm Strategy, and Market Performance - - - General
    • L41 - Industrial Organization - - Antitrust Issues and Policies - - - Monopolization; Horizontal Anticompetitive Practices
    • L66 - Industrial Organization - - Industry Studies: Manufacturing - - - Food; Beverages; Cosmetics; Tobacco

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