Copyright c 2008 Ianson Internet MarketingThe impact of the economic downturn on employment in the Food Industry today is worldwide The US processed food sector had steady growth in the ten year period after 1997 with slight decline near the end Many employed in the food manufacturing industry are multinationals Growth in processed food goods can be attributed to several factors including two income families less time at home for food preparation and more take home and restaurant food purchases Over that ten year period the value of food shipments increased about 27 percentMany smaller food manufacturing companies are hit harder by economic downturns They employ fewer people in food jobs pay more for food products deliveries and for manufacturing costs than large companies The few large companies hire more multinationals who account for about a third of all food industry jobs About 89 percent of the smaller companies have less than 100 workers Many smaller companies are swallowed up in acq