International competitiveness is a prime concern of food industries and governments around the world as they have come to recognize that freer markets pose new threats and offer new opportunities. This book provides a review of the current thinking on competitiveness, encompassing ideas from Porter's "Diamond of Competitive Advantage", Balassa's "Revealed Comparative Advantage", Dunning's analysis of international business, Italian analysis of industrial districts and Boston Consulting Group approaches. Issues raised will be addressed through six European case studies, chosen to provide representation in terms of food product sector, orientation and country type.