A review of the current thinking on competitiveness. Issues raised will be addressed through six European case studies, chosen to provide representation in terms of food product sector, orientation and country type.

Measuring food industry competitiveness, Eamonn Pitts and Magnus Lagnevik; structrual changes in the European food industry - consequences for competitiveness, Bruce Traill; the Irish dairy processing industry, Larry O'Connell, et al ; uncompetitiveness in a primary product - the case of UK horticulture, Bruce Traill; the competitive position of the Belgian pigmeat sector, Jacques Viaene and Xavier Gellynck; sources of competitive advantage and international competitiveness - the case of the Italian pasta industry, Luciano Venturini and Stefano Boccaletti; ecological responsiveness of Swedish food retailers - a driving force for upgrading competitiveness of the Swedish food sector?, Magnus Lagnevik and Helene Tjarnemo; changing environment and competitiveness in the Finnish food industry, Saara Hyvonen and Jukka Kola; are Porter diamonds forever?, Magnus Lagnevik and Jukka Kola.