Earlier this week, McDonald's fish, pork and and raw material sourcing director Jason Cervone told a room full of the leading executives in the Alaska pollock sector what was on his and the company's mind.

McDonald's -- a company worth $183.8 billion (€187.8 billion) on the NYSE that rakes in $23.2 billion (€23.7 billion) in annual sales -- is at the mercy of agriculture, and employs an army of analysts and forecasters that probably know more than most government agencies about the future of food.