Establishing a framework for an information system

Many decision errors arise out of a failure to understand the nature and structure of the information system that supports policy decisions, public or private. For a information system to be reliable and accurate three subsystems data collection, inquiry (or analysis) and policy decision must share the same base of concepts, measurable proxies from the real world to represent those concepts and compatible measurement techniques and processing designs in the data used. All information systems must be closely adapted to the specific context of the decisions they are intended to support. Rapid globalization of markets and the parallel revolution in information technologies and supporting information infrastructure, institutions and human capital are transforming the agri-food sector. The food system is moving away from mass markets driven by the production of standardized commodities toward many smaller, diverse, and customized niche markets driven by consumer preferences for specific food characteristics. Concentration vertical coordination and integration are growing, particularly in the livestock sector, and especially hogs. Information technologies now permit firms to discover and track consumer preferences while the new biotechnologies make it possible to create the characteristics in products that consumers desire in niche markets. Information has itself become an important commodity.