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In December 2007 Asda-Wal Mart was one of several companies that were fined over $225 million after admitting that they fixed the price of milk, cheese and butter in a scandal estimated to have cost U.K. consumers about $526 million.<ref>''Supermarkets fined for price fixing'' [http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2007/dec/08/supermarkets.asda The Guardian], 8 December 2007. Accesed 22 January 2008</ref>
In December 2007 Asda-Wal Mart was one of several companies that were fined over $225 million after admitting that they fixed the price of milk, cheese and butter in a scandal estimated to have cost U.K. consumers about $526 million.<ref>''Supermarkets fined for price fixing'' [http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2007/dec/08/supermarkets.asda The Guardian], 8 December 2007. Accesed 22 January 2008</ref>
==Political contributions==
==Political Contributions==
Wal-Mart Stores Incorporated and its employees generally favor Republican candidates in terms of campaign contributions. In 2012, 53% of donations from the company (including employees) went to Republican candidates, vs. 47% to Democrats. 100% of major contributions from Wal-Mart Pharmacy associates went to Republican candidates in 2012.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.opensecrets.org/orgs/totals.php?id=D000000367&cycle=2012|title=Wal-Mart Stores: Totals|accessdate=2012-12-05|work=Opensecrets.org|publisher=The Center for Responsive Politics}}</ref>
Wal-Mart Stores Incorporated and its employees generally favor [[Republican]] candidates in terms of campaign contributions. In 2012, 53% of donations from the company (including employees) went to Republican candidates, vs. 47% to Democrats. 100% of major contributions from Wal-Mart [[Pharmacy]] associates went to Republican candidates in 2012.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.opensecrets.org/orgs/totals.php?id=D000000367&cycle=2012|title=Wal-Mart Stores: Totals|accessdate=2012-12-05|work=Opensecrets.org|publisher=The Center for Responsive Politics}}</ref>
=="Kanban" Just in Time: Interdependent Fragility of the Wal-Mart Distribution System==
The Wal-Mart chains of [[supply]] are lengthy and [[fragile]]. The Wal-Mart model is based on a "just in time deliver" or "JIT" or "Kanban" as the [[Japanese]] inventors called it in the [[1960s]]<ref>The [[Japan]]ese invented the "just in time deliver" or "JIT" inventory control system called "kanban" in Japanese.</ref>. The JIT [[inventory control]] of the [[retail]] and [[food distribution system]] is both [[interdependent]] and [[fragile]].
Wal-Mart is proof that we live in a fragile [[society]]. The kanban or "[[Just In Time]]" [[inventory]] system was developed in [[Japan]] and became popular in [[America]] starting in the [[1970s]]. It is now [[ubiquitous]] in nearly every [[industry]]. The concept is simple: Through close coordination with subcontractors and piece part suppliers, a [[manufacturer]] can keep its parts inventory small. [[Kanban]] is a key element of lean [[manufacturing]]. [[Manufacturer]]s order batches of parts only as needed, sometimes ordering as frequently as twice a week. Companies now hire Six Sigma [[consultant]]s and Kaizen gurus, they buy sophisticated [[computer|data-processing]] systems, and they hire extra [[purchasing]] administrators, and these expenses actually save them [[money]] at the bottom line.
Just In Time inventory systems have several advantages: less [[warehouse]] space, less [[capital]] tied up in parts inventory, and less [[risk]] of parts [[obsolescence]].
The downside is that lean inventories leave companies vulnerable to any disruption of [[supply]], for instance in the [[food distribution system]] or [[food production system]]. If [[transportation]] ([[UPS]], [[post office]], [[Fedex]], [[truck]]s, [[ship]]s, [[railroad]], and [[airplane]]s) gets snarled due to a [[Labor strike#Trucker Strike|trucker strike]] or bad [[weather]] or a [[disaster]], or if [[communication]]s get disrupted, or a parts vendor has a [[strike]] or a [[production]] problem, then [[assembly line]]s grind to a halt. Just one missing part means that no finished products go out the door.
The [[kanban]] concept has also been taken up by most of [[America]]'s [[retail]]ers (with Wal-Mart leading the way), most notably its [[grocery]] [[seller]]s. In the old days — say, twenty years ago — [[grocery store]]s had well-[[stock]]ed back rooms, with many extra cases of dry [[goods]]. But now in most [[store]]s the back room has been replaced with just a [[pallet]]-breakdown area. [[Merchandise]] comes in from [[distribution]] centers and it all goes immediately to the [[consumer]] shelves out front. Thus, what you see on the grocery store shelf is all that the store has on hand. What you see is what you get. The [[barcode]] [[scanner]]s at the checkout counters feed a complex reordering system. If Mrs. Jones buys three [[jar]]s of [[pasta]] [[sauce]], that could [[trigger]] a reorder for three more jars. As long as [[communication]]s and [[transportation]] work smoothly, then the entire system hums along like a [[Swiss]] [[watch]]. But what happens when the transportation [[infrastructure]] gets disrupted? [[Panic]] buying can clean out supermarket shelves in a matter of hours. The important lesson in all this is to get [[prepared]] in advance. Do not count on being able to buy anything to provide for your [[family]] on or after a [[disaster]], or worse such as [[SHTF]] or [[TEOTWAWKI]].
===Threats to the "Wal-Mart" system of distrubtion===
Some examples of [[threat]]s to the Wal-Mart style good and [[food distribution system]] include:
* [[Labor strike#Trucker Strike|Trucker strike]]
* [[Labor union]] [[strike]]
* Prices of a barrel of [[crude oil]] and hence the price of [[gasoline]] and [[diesel]]
* [[Man-made disaster]]s such as [[war]] and [[terrorism]]
* [[natural disaster]]s such as [[storm]]s, [[tornado]]s, [[hurricane]]s, [[earthquake]]s, etc.
==See Also==
* [[Food distribution system]]: [[transportation]] ([[truck]]s, [[ship]]s, [[railroad]], and [[airplane]]s), [[warehouse|warehousing]] (such as [[Amazon.com]], [[Costco]]), and [[retail]] facilities such as [[Wal-Mart]] and [[supermarket]]s) which move [[food]] from the [[food production system]] to [[consumer]]s.
* [[Essay:Systems of support|Systems of support]]
* [[Essay:Alternative systems of support|Alternative systems of support]]
* [[Food Production System]]: Modern industrial big [[Agriculture|Agri-business]] versus [[Permaculture]]
* [[Essay:Investing in tangibles|Investing in tangibles]]
* [[Preparedness movement]] and [[Survivalism]]
==External Links==
==External Links==
==References==
==References==
{{reflist|2}}
[[Category:Companies]]
[[Category:Companies]]
[[Category:Systems of Support]]
[[Category:Food]]
[[Category:Agriculture]]