Nestle Case Study

Through almost one hundred and fifty years of numerous mergers and acquisitions, the Nestlé firm, headquartered in Switzerland, went from being the initial inventor of baby formula to the world’s largest food and beverage distributor (“Nestlé’s History”). According to the company’s mission statement, Nestlé provides customers, “with the best tasting, most nutritious choices in a wide range of food and beverage categories and eating occasions, from morning to night” (“Nestlé’s History”). However, the scandalous and controversial history of the company proves otherwise. Nestlé’s globalization process reflects that of many other large transnational corporations at the time, with the exception that Nestlé was one of the very first be publically scrutinized and criticized for its polemic practices. Starting in the early 1970s, when neoliberal reform swept through the countries of the world, Nestlé altered its previous expansion tactics. Like many other transnational corporations at the time, Nestlé joined the trend of expanding its operations in order to target a larger customer base, as well as to maximize its sourcing efficiency by locating its production facilities abroad (Sparke). The decisions made by this profit-motivated company beginning in the twentieth century, specifically in the promotion of its baby formula in developing countries as well as its exploitation of cocoa bean farmers in Africa, represent the larger trend of its globalization efforts as a whole.

Initial Efforts at Expansion

Today, Nestlé owns around 8,000 brands, has 468 factories or operations in 86 countries and employs more than 180,000 people worldwide (“Nestlé’s History”). The initial expansion of the company can really be traced to the years following...

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...ts that enabled the company to reap the Third World of its natural resources, while paying farmers and laborers scanty amounts. Annual reports do show that the company’s income increased substantially during this period of globalization, but this came at another price. Nestlé’s marketing methods and labor disputes were not taken lightly by the public and the company is still trying to rebuild its image. Although aspects of Nestlé’s globalization process reflect that of many other large transnational corporations at the time, Nestlé was one of the very first be publically scrutinized and criticized for its polemic practices. Many of the controversial decisions it made during its expansion in the 1970s were involved in larger transnational corporation policies at the time, but Nestlé especially exploited the countries that were opening their doors to the company.