Reactions to Industrial Domination - Essay Example

The case considered here are multinational agro food companies. As in any entity, aside from corporate objectives of increased sales of products and services, these companies want to be seen as having humanitarian causes. They are pictured as companies who solve problems of poor countries, particularly in terms of hunger, through new technologies and free trade agreements. There is no objection to that. But behind these objectives, are the underlying reasons that these large corporations have a great ability to influence the market because of their large market share.

Again as in OPEC, any increase or decline in oil production has a dramatic effect worldwide. The flow of activities in industrial domination creates uneven distribution of wealth, and draws a big impact on the global economy. For instance, in food production, the system underpays their inputs and overpays their outputs. Here since there are few sellers, big corporations can command a price and exert their power to farmers in buying expensive agricultural inputs. and into buying the farmers' product at a bargain price, and sometimes lesser than it cost to grow them.

This alone is a disadvantageous position to farmers. Not only that, the large . Unknown to the public, these corporations influences the industry as it formulates guidelines on nutrition, food safety regulations, and rules for labeling and content disclosure which all work for their benefit. The monopoly of food conglomerates has the power to set wages and farm gate prices which is usually tipping the edge advantageous to the corporations by setting a below levels of farm gate prices, workers' wages and benefits.

The implication here starts when farmers are forced to sell their lands by the agribusiness powers, and in other developing countries, sometimes called third world countries, the fall down of domestic market due to the pressure of dumped imports. Domestic market cannot compete with the dumped imports eventually leading to the closing of factories and abandonment of agricultural lands. Workers, then have no resort but to accept low wages, work under poor conditions in the factories of giant corporations, and often restricted in labor rights, or others consider migration.

Effects on environment. While the damage to environment cannot be felt now, the future generation will feel the effects particularly on agriculture, when there would be soil erosion, water depletion, toxic contamination, and loss of" bio-diversity" that will deplete the natural resources . The loss will be shouldered by the people, while the gains are raked by these conglomerates.Influence on taxes and subsidies. The public is kept uninformed that they are actually subsidizing these companies thru taxes.

Because of influence, and complexity of operations, big companies found a way of reduced tax liabilities.