1 Introduction
The topic of food retail transformation is important because of its potential impacts on the wider agri-food system, including the efficiency and structure of agri-food supply chains and the participation of value chain actors. The term supermarketisation describes the expansion of modern food retailersāchains of large-format, self-service stores, selling a variety of food and household goodsāin competition with traditional food retailers such as specialised retailers (greengrocers, bakers, butchers) and independent, āmom and popā grocery stores (Dries, Reardon, & Swinnen, 2004; Reardon, Barrett, BerdeguĆ©, & Swinnen, 2009). Modern food retailers include supermarkets, hypermarkets, convenience stores, and discount stores.
Cross-country evidence suggests that consumer food expenditure patterns have shifted significantly in recent decades, from traditional to modern food retail formats . Modern food retailing has generally spread from upper-income to middle-income and poorer consumer markets, and from large and intermediate cities to smaller towns (Reardon, Henson, & BerdeguƩ, 2007). This pattern is predicted to enhance spatial access to modern food retailers, improve local food system development by linking small farmers to modern food retail outlets, and bring about dietary changes by availing industrial commodities to consumers residing in less urban environments (Rischke, Kimenju, Klasen, & Qaim, 2015; Timmer, 2009).
However, limited evidence about the extent and process of supermarketisation or its effects within the agri-food chain has been reported in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, specifically in urban areas. Accordingly, this case study of Lebanon seeks to e...