There are not many books written about the reality of the fruit and vegetable industry and its vicissitudes.

In the 1950s, my late father, who wrote under the nom de plume Bill Sandford, and who like me was a previous FPJ editor, made an early contribution to such an overview.

He summed up the UK trade as a Covent Garden wholesaler having too much product delivered, and offering some on open price to a mate in Hull, who on receipt fancied the market in Bristol and sent it on, still making a profit. Not a mention of the grower, and not a supermarket in sight. How times have changed.

Today, with the supermarket sector now controlling some 85 per cent of fresh retail sales and making much of quality linked to tight specifications, the underlying emphasis has switched so that category management and traceability are of utmost importance.

Just how much this is already having an impact on established producers’ worldwide who are trying to serve both their national and international markets is well known.

This forms the subject of a 200-plus-page hardback which landed on my desk and will be widely available from April 25. Regoverning Markets, priced at a hefty £55 and also covering the impact on other fresh food, makes an interesting contribution to the debate.

In simple terms - as the publication covers countries as diverse as those in eastern Europe, Africa, Asia and Central America - the book confirms that the impact of the multiples is following the footsteps of civilisation, eroding the role of traditional outlets, which are the producers’ lifelines.

The solution in many cases, conclude the authors, is greater levels of disciplined cooperation to create the critical mass required. However, they rightly highlight the reality raised at many international conferences that for various reasons there is not an obvious tailor-made solution. They also make the point that the provision to growers of government or international subsidies only represents short-term relief.

As every country, including some of the richest and most developed, inevitably comes up with its own national solutions, I believe this will also encourage many more newcomers to the industry to consider exports .

After all, there is plenty of evidence to show that fruit and veg grown in poorer rural countries with low production costs and the right climate, theoretically offers the best chance of making a contribution to the national economy, as well as feeding the local population.

But how much more difficult will it become for many growers to survive as western supermarkets continue to develop strong footholds overseas?

The future could lie in the introduction of more Fairtrade or partnership schemes, but big business will decide this. What this latest offering does spell out is that the days of shipping on a whim, or simply because it seems a good idea, are over.