China overtakes us as top food market

8:07 PM China, market, overtakes No Comments

Carlos Barria / Reuters

A man shops at a supermarket in downtown Shanghai in this photo file.

By John W. Schoen, senior producer

The Chinese economy may have slowed from its blistering growth pace, but still no bite of consumer demand for food taken.

China overtakes the United States as the world's largest food and food retail, according to a report by research firm IGD and is expected to continue growing at a fast clip.

IGD said that the Chinese grocery sector for the United States 607 billion pounds ($964 billion) 2011 compared to 908 billion $ hit

Until 2015 Chinese households about $1.6 trillion on food, IGD spend the amount of spent in 2006 predicted three times. The U.S. market is taken probably about $1 trillion by 2015.

"This rapid expansion (in China) were operated three main factors: rapid economic growth, population, and rising inflation in food," said Joanne Denney-Finch, IGD of the Chief Executive.

China's appetite for food is the persistent increase in the wages under a growing middle class, fed is part of the Government plan 30-year-old a hrige to transform the country's economy.

Although the economy strongly came back after the global recession in 2007, growth has somewhat slowed down. After a peak in 2010 at 10.4 percent annual growth, China GDP is expected to expand 8.6 percent this year according to estimates by Goldman Sachs.

This is always fast enough still to increase the purchasing power of Chinese households at a healthy clip.

"Sustained, strong wage increases should consumption, support the Government of one of its most important objectives - the restructuring of the economy from dependence on exports and capital spending, reach according to capital economics Asia Economist Gareth leather and Mark Williams support".

Much of the increased consumption is the result of rapid inflation, as strong demand pushes a variety of food and other commodities higher.

This has still expects. Between 2011 and 2015, the growth of China's food market grows to 10.9 percent, double the growth rate for the United States

Although early-stage economic growth largely limiting China's coastal cities, the demand for consumer goods such as food rapidly spreading inland. By the year 2025 it about 200 Chinese cities with a population of over a million people is according to IGS.