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...elopment of marketing strategies, building partnerships in the food industry, and with governments on food policy formulation. He is a proponent of building strong vertical alliances – partnerships – in the food industry; between consumers and agribusiness, the farm sector, manufacturers, food service and retail. He has many articles/chapters published in notable national and international journals and books and is a Visiting Professor at the University of Kent Business School and a Visiting Professor at the Royal Agricultural College, Cirencester, U.K.
Professor Hughes is an international advisory board member of Rabobank, the principal international food and agribusiness bank; the U.K. Red Meat Industry Forum; LEAF Marque U.K. (Linking the Environment And Farming), an innovative environmentally-friendly commercial farming initiative; and several U.K. organisations and initiatives that focus on socially-responsible and consumer-friendly aspects of food production and marketing.
In October 1991, David returned to the U.K. after 20 years of professional work undertaken outside Europe and became the inaugural Sainsbury Professor of Food Marketing at Wye College (now, Imperial College), University of London. He directed the Food Industry Management Group (now, Centre for Food Chain Research), which offered a range of under- and post-graduate degrees in business subjects, and completed research projects on a wide range of food industry issues.
Prior to taking up his university appointment, Dr. Hughes spent four years establishing a fresh produce business in the USA. The firm produced and marketed fresh herbs to supermarkets in the Eastern USA and was sold in 2002. In the mid-80’s, he was Project Director of a USA Government initiative to establish an Agribusiness and Food Venture Capital Trust in the Caribbean – the Trust sought and took equity positions in growth-orientated agribusiness and food firms in the Caribbean region. In the first half of the 1980’s, he established regional offices for (then) Deloitte, Haskins & Sells Canada in the Eastern Caribbean and East Africa, and was responsible for directing the design and implementation of development projects in Third World countries in both hemispheres of the globe. In the latter half of the 1970’s, living and working in North America, David established with a partner a management consulting firm and agribusiness market research firm (both sold to Deloitte et al in 1980). These firms were market leaders in agribusiness and food consultancy in Canada. Arriving in Canada in 1973, David was an food policy analyst with the Federal Government, then, Director of Research for the Food Prices Review Board – an influential Federal Government Commission that represented the consumers’ interests in food and food policy during the turbulent high inflation years of the early-to-mid 1970s.
Academic Qualifications:
B.Sc. (Hons.) Agricultural Economics, University of Reading, U.K., (1966-69).
M.Sc. Agricultural Marketing, University of Newcastle-upon-Tyne, U.K. (1969-70).
(Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food Scholarship).
Ph.D. Food Marketing, University of Newcastle-upon-Tyne, U.K. (1971-73).
(Meat and Livestock Commission Fellowship).
The principal themes of Professor Hughes’s presentations (around 90 per year) revolve around global food industry developments, their impacts and consequential implications for food chain members – consumers, retailers, food service, manufacturers, ingredient companies, primary processors, farmers and farm organisations, input providers (e.g. banks, seed, packaging, logistics), and government policy makers. In 2006/07, issues relating to health and well-being, the impact of the food industry on the environment, climate change, and responding to grocery retail concentration have been increasingly evident on the radar screen.
A Few Indicative Comments from Customers over the past few years:
"Your presentation was enlightening, inspiring and challenging." Nestlé HQ, Switzerland
“…a very entertaining, engaging, animated, informed speaker….easy to understand and great value…" Australian Summerfruit Conference, Melbourne.
"...the man is a legend. If you have never heard him speak and have the opportunity to do so in the future, run without delay to wherever it is he is speaking. He is informative, thought provoking, hilariously funny…" Lisa Cork …FMCG New Zealand
"…David is a leading authority on food marketing. He is at the forefront of the industry, in demand around the world as a speaker and lecturer…many thanks for the brilliant presentation yesterday. The audience loved it – the only criticism being that they’d have liked you to speak for longer…" William Reed Ltd, The Grocer. Grocery & Food Service Conference
"…thank you for some highly interesting and inspiring days….
Evaluation: …David is especially inspiring and enlightening…"
Total Scores: Presentation skill 4.9 (out of 5)
Professional level 5.0 (out of 5)
Evaluation by Senior Managers at Danish Crown Seminars
"…thanks for a great presentation; it got everybody off to a great start, not only for the day but the New Year as well. You captivated the audience…..you have a wonderful talent…" Al Pope, United Egg Producers
"…top marks again (in the evaluation), David, no wonder you are in such demand…"
Patrick Davies, HGCA Conference on Innovation in the Food Industry
"…what a dynamic and informative sum-up of the day – brilliant”
William Reed Ltd, The Grocer, Conference - Healthy NPD to Drive Business Growth
Presentations for clients completed over the past few years include:
McDonald’s Inc., Global Supply Chain Group, Chicago, USA
Retailer-Supplier events for, inter alia, J Sainsbury, Tesco, Waitrose, Marks & Spencer (all U.K.), Coles (Australia), Spar and Kiwi Norway Group (Norway), Cold Storage (Singapore)
Danish Crown (world’s largest pork product exporter), Senior Management Seminars, Denmark
Kraft Foods Europe, Berlin, Germany
Loblaw’s Grocery Chain, Toronto, Canada
World Food Business Summit, Paris, France
Vestey Group, Danang, Viet Nam
Associated British Foods (ABF), UK
Heinz Wattie Australasia
AsiaFruit Congress, Bangkok,Thailand and Fruit Logistica, Berlin, Germany
Customer relationship-building seminars for banks (e.g. Rabobank, Barclays, HSBC), UK, Australia, New Zealand, Argentina
Food Manufacturer magazine conference on “Healthy NPD”, London, UK
The Grocer magazine conference on “Converging: Grocery Retail and Food Service”, London, UK
Nutracon, international conference on functional foods, Anaheim, USA
Danish Food Forum, Vielje, Denmark
US Poultry and Egg Export Council, Bangkok, Thailand
International Conference on Global Retailing, Shanghai, China
Syngenta, Alicante, Spain and the Netherlands
Cryovac Europe, London and Paris
An Bord Bia, food manufacturing presentations
World Economic Forum (Davos), London
Dairygold, Cork, Ireland
USA Food Industry Center, Minneapolis, USA
Nestlé, Vevey, Switzerland
Bayer Crop Science, London
World Pork Congress, Birmingham, UK
Australian Seafood Convention, Perth, Australia
World Food Technology Conference, Amsterdam, Netherlands
Yurum Food Group, Nanjing, China
Major food manufacturers, senior management briefings in, inter alia, U.K., the Netherlands, Denmark, Sweden, Finland, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, U.S.A., Canada
Research and Development organisations in New Zealand, Australia, U.S.A., U.K., the Netherlands
Euroforum Conference on European Grocery Retailing, Amsterdam, Holland
Meat and Livestock Australia, Melbourne, Sydney, Darwin
U.K. Frozen Food Manufacturers’ Conference, London
Agricore United AGM, Winnipeg, Canada
Oilseeds Industry Supply chain forum, Winnipeg, Canada (Federal Government of Canada)
Pulse Canada, Saskatoon, Canada
World Meat Congress, Brisbane, Australia
U.K. Soil Association, Harrogate
Meat New Zealand and principal meat companies, NZ
Celebration of 125 years exporting NZ lamb, Wellington, NZ
World Apple and Pear Association, Trento, Italy
Produce Marketing Association, New Orleans, U.S.A.
Board-level strategic management sessions with major fresh produce companies in the U.K., Holland, Australasia, North America
Seafood Market Developments, Vigo, Spain and Guayquil, Ecuador
Dutch food industry conference on functional foods, Wageningen, Holland
Senior management seminars on: wine industry management developments; food manufacturing and retailing interfaces; fresh produce industry initiatives – Australia and New Zealand
Value Chain Initiatives in the Global Food Industry – Alberta, Saskatchewan, Ontario, Canada
City Food Lecture (Chairman), London, U.K.
U.K. Garden Centre Association, Kenilworth, U.K.
International conferences on plant breeding, Australia, biotechnology, Malaysia and the U.K., supply chain management, the Netherlands
Australian Beef Conference and briefing for meat processors, Sydney, Melbourne, Rockhampton, Australia
US Potato Industry Conference, Denver, USA
Fluid milk and dairy product conferences, NEC, UK
International Macadamia Nut Symposium, Brisbane, Australia
Grodan A/S (Denmark), Sicily and Southern Italy
European Poultry Conference, Blackpool, UK
International Egg Conference, Guadalajara, Mexico
UK Cucumber Association, UK
European Value-Added Seafood Conference, London, UK
Euroforum Conference on “Blurring of Grocery and Food Service”, Rotterdam, Netherlands
Home Grown Cereals Authority Conference on Innovation in the Food Industry
Dutch Meat Industry forum, Amsterdam, Holland
Innovation and Functional Foods Conference, Bayer International, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
British Potato Council. Conferences on Fresh and Processed Potatoes, UK
UK Bakery Summit, London, UK
New Zealand Romeo Bragato Wine Conference, Gisborne, NZ
Zeraim Gedera Seed Company, Israel
European Fresh Berry Conference, Trento, Italy
Dutch Meat Board, Coventry, UK
Red Meat Industry Forum, London, UK
"The Consumer in 2015", 'The Grocer' Conference, London, UK
McDonald's European Supplier Forum, Salzburg, Austria
"Innovation in the fresh produce industry", Duda, USA
New Zealand Agri-Food Task Force, Auckland, NZ
World Agricultural Congress, St Louis, USA
Novus International, Poultry and Pork Meat Seminar, St Louis, USA
Zespri International, New Zealand
Food Service Tour of USA with Australian meat industry
Government ministries and agencies in Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the UK and the Netherlands
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- Impact of the food industry on the environment, climate change etc
- The global food industry
- Food - health and well-being
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