The Development of the Agrifood Market in China: Opportunities and Challenges

Abstract

Through a PESTEL (political, economical, social, technological, environmental, and legal) analysis, this chapter aims to achieve an understanding of the current state of the Chinese agrifood market. Food security, food safety, the social need to increase rural income and urbanization are all fundamental objectives of the Chinese economic development. The process for achieving these long-term objectives imposes a daunting challenge to the development of agrifood production and provides an attractive opportunity for agriculture-based New Zealand exports. This chapter analyses issues related to the development of the agrifood market in China, including the Chinese agrifood policy and its ongoing evolution; cross-cultural issues as expressed within the agrifood business and also in relation to the agrifood business environment; the changes in food demand characteristics of Chinese consumers; the implications of all of the above in relation to the opportunities and challenges for the New Zealand agrifood businesses in China.