Problem:
Private-label brands now account for one of every five items sold in U.S. supermarkets, drug chains, and mass merchandisers. A controversial move by some marketers of major brands is to supply private-label makers. For example, Ralston-Purina, Borden, ConAgra, and Heinz have all admitted to supplying products - sometimes lower in quality - to be used for private labels.
Other marketers criticize this strategy, maintaining that these actions, if revealed, may create confusion or even reinforce a perception by consumers that all brands in a category are essentially the same. Choose a side, arguing that manufacturers should feel free to see private labels as a source of new revenue or that national manufacturers should never get involved with private labels.