Category: News

When you sell food products, the packaging it comes in is among the most effective ways to boost sales. While taste is an important element of successful food sales, the packaging you use can have a big impact on whether or not you attract customers in the first place. Food packaging should entice customers, so it’s essential to make the packaging design an essential part of the production process. In order to come up with the right design while also keeping costs down, you should consider working with a food industry consultant. These consultants can provide you with valuable insight on food packaging.

Focusing on Function

Food packaging isn’t just about communicating your brand identity. The packaging you use should also provide safety and preserve freshness so that the quality of your products isn’t affected. Customers are more likely to continue buying your products when they know that they won’t have to worry about getting food that has deteriorated due to low-quality packaging. Keep in mind that food packaging also needs to have certain information on it, such as a nutritional fact panel and a list of ingredients. A food industry consultant can help you determine where this information goes, so that customers can easily read it. Consultants can also help you with other functional design elements, such as using eco-friendly packaging materials and design processes.

Considering Cost

One of the biggest parts of food packaging design is determining costs. While it’s important to stay within your budget, you shouldn’t compromise on certain elements that can make your packaging successful. Food industry consultants can help you choose packaging materials that provide safety, eco-friendly features, and aesthetic appeal. Working with a consultant can also help you keep costs within your budget throughout the design and manufacturing processes. For example, a consultant might help you find ways to reduce costs during the manufacturing process while ensuring that you spend enough on the design and development process.

Contact Us for Food Industry Consultant Services

If you’re looking for a food industry consultant to help you reduce packaging costs, please contact The Greater Goods for a free consultation. We can help you create successful food packaging that boosts product sales.

If you’ve got a new food product, you know the process of just getting it developed was a lifetime of work. From sourcing ingredients, to finding a manufacturer, to packaging and delivery, it can be a process that possibly takes years.

If you’ve got your product all figured out, the last step might be one of the toughest ones yet: finding a distributor to take your product to market. Sure, you may have been distributing your product on your own to local shops and online. But to reach a greater consumer base, the best way to do this is through a distributor. Here are some tips on how to find a distributor that will work with you.

M Source Ideas explains what a food distributor can do for your food product:

“Distributors supply both aspects of the food industry; both the consumed at home side – the retailers (grocery stores, convenience stores) as well as the away from home side (restaurants, schools, hospitals). The distributor purchases, stores, sells, and delivers those products, providing food service operators with access to items from a wide variety of manufacturers. Food service distributors procure pallets and bulk inventory quantities that are broken down to case and sometimes unit quantities for the food service operator.”

Set Up Regular Meetings

To find the right distributor for you, it’s important you build on your professional relationship. A distributor is handling multiple sellers at a time, and your food product might fall by the wayside just because they’ve got a lot on their plate.

If you have had that initial meeting with the distributor, set up another one. Try to keep in touch with them at least every few weeks so you are fresh in their minds. You should also be coordinating with your food manufacturer to make sure tasks are being handled.

Here are some important notes to bring up with a food distributor, as highlighted by YFS Magazine:

“The first step to forming a fruitful union with a food distributor is to learn which company best aligns with your brand’s mission and vision. Things like freshness, quality ingredients, and the masterful production of your most prized recipes top most people’s lists. Ask your potential distributor about the types of products they currently carry. Some food distributors produce and transport mixed inventory (i.e. conventionally grown and certified organic). Others are strictly organic providers.”

Use a Food Broker

When working with large-scale food distributors, it may not be enough to negotiate on your own. Sometimes, getting a foot in the door just takes a bit of outside help. This is where a food broker can come in.

Where a food consultant can help you develop your food product, a food broker can also help to set up connections with a food distributor. If you’ve been trying to get that initial meeting or are looking for an idea on who to contact, this is where a food broker can come in.

Just what is the difference between a food broker and a food distributor? We cover this more extensively here:

“The differences between a food distributor and a food broker can be difficult to see at first. Both help food manufacturers get their product out to retailers and help them manage many of the tasks associated with the relationship between retailers and the manufacturers. However, the food distributor personally buys the product. They will purchase a certain amount of a given product at wholesale prices and then sell it themselves to retailers to make their profit. Since they purchase the product themselves directly, they handle more of the responsibilities involved with managing orders and inventory from the retailer.”

At The Greater Goods, we specialize in organic food like nuts, nut butters, dried fruits, cocoa and chocolate. Feel free to contact us for a free consultation with our expert food industry consultants and food brokers.

Launching a new food product is a challenge because the food market is so competitive. A successful launch requires you to get your product out ahead of your competitors in a way that people notice and appreciate. It often takes long hours and the right team, including a food business consultant, to get a launch off the ground. You can also use these tips and information to assist with your launch.

1. Do your research.

Before you start the long and expensive process of a product launch or even product development, you need to do some review of your customer base.

• Do they even want the product that you are developing?
• Is the product new and unique enough from your competitors?

You should also check your local food distribution and production laws to ensure you are in compliance before you develop a plan for the launch.

2. Create eye-catching packaging that works.

Some packaging looks great but really is not very practical. When designing your packaging, you need to consider both of these aspects. Will it stand out from the crowd on a shelf? Will it fit well on a pallet during the distribution process?

3. Create a catchy sales pitch and marketing scheme.

Your marketing tactics should focus on what will motivate a buyer to purchase your product. What need are you addressing? What problem are you trying to solve? Focusing on how you can add value to a customer’s life can be very effective.

Be sure that you tie your overall pitch to your packaging and other marketing channels, including your website. A food business consultant can help you ensure that all of these pieces work well together.

4. Be realistic about the product costs.

Determining how much it will cost to start up a new product can be very difficult simply because you may not have the experience you need to make an educated guess. A food business consultant can help you determine what kind of pricing is realistic. They may also be able to help you with economical sourcing options that you had not considered before.

Sitting down to list all of the potential costs and then individually assigning those a dollar amount can be helpful.

• Supplies to create the food product
• Packaging
• Labor costs
• Overhead and facilities
• Insurance
• Marketing

If you do not have to change your existing facilities, for example, you may be much more focused on the cost of goods sold rather than equipment changes.

5. Ensure you have an effective distribution plan.

Unfortunately, many food entrepreneurs overlook creating effective distribution methods for their new products. However, a new product launch depends a great deal on how your product is distributed. Developing methods of distribution at the outset can set you up for success.

6. Engage a food business consultant.

A food business consultant is an integral part of your team as you go through product development, create distribution channels, and market your new product. This type of consultant can ensure that you are making realistic estimations, good supplier choices, and they can even help you with marketing options.

At The Greater Goods, we help food businesses launch their products in a way that lines up with their overall goals and values. Learn more about our services by requesting a free consultation with our food business consultants.

After going through all the processes of food production, you are finally ready to release your food product to market. The problem is finding the right method of selling to customers. There are many routes to go, from selling independently, to wholesale, to using a food distributor.

If you’re struggling figuring out where to start, it’s important to treat the sale of your product as part of the production process. To do this, you have to figure out what will make your food product sell, where and who you’re selling it to. Here are some tips to keep in mind when selling your product in the food market.

Know Your Clientele

Being familiar with your clientele base is true for any sale, no matter the industry. If you’ve sold food products before, either in person or online, look back on your best-selling – and worst selling – products. What were the reasons behind the product’s sales performance?

A lot of the time, food products can be targeted to specific customers and clientele. If your food product features any specific health benefits or ingredients, that is a sales characteristic that can apply to a specific demographic.

Michael Adams at The Balance Small Business also says to follow up with buyers after they’ve purchased:

“After a couple days, follow up with an email or phone call. Once you get on the shelf, follow up some more. Call the buyer to see how things are going. Spend some time developing ideas for store promotions to pitch during your follow-up calls and meetings.”

Create an Interesting Product Design

Design has almost everything to do with what we buy, and the same is true for food packaging. Your product design should be visually appealing and get your message across. Highlight certain ingredients, like if your product is gluten-free, certified organic, or other certifications it may have. Consumers want to know what’s going into their food, so make an interesting design that has clear labelling.

Melinda Gaines at Chron explains more on developing interesting packaging:

“Develop attractive, functional packaging for your products that meet all U.S. Food and Drug Administration labeling guidelines for the type of food product you make – without this, no store will be able to put your food on its shelves. You can purchase wholesale food containers from online retailers or restaurant supply stores and have labels printed by a local graphics shop or do it yourself if you have the proper equipment.”

Make Direct Sales to Retailers

If you’re a small business and having trouble accessing a distributor, there are still plenty of options for you to get your product to market. One example is by making direct product sales straight to retailers. You can approach local businesses, shops, and retailers and offer your products with a wholesale price. This may take some work since you’ll be managing the delivery yourself, but some retailers will actually pick up your shipment from your manufacturing centre. Making a direct sale can often be cost-effective, too.

The British Columbia Ministry of Agriculture Marketing says if you’re just starting out, try selling to a small retailer:

“Many small companies start by talking to independent specialty food stores or local store managers of a food chain and selling directly to the store. This approach allows familiarization of working with a retailer and getting product into local stores.”

At The Greater Goods, we specialize in organic food like nuts, nut butters, dried fruits, cocoa and chocolate. Feel free to contact us for a free consultation with our expert food industry consultants and food brokers.

During the age of Covid-19, giving back to your community is as important as ever. As both businesses and consumers, the impact you can make on local business is immense. By just donating some of your time or money, a local business can get through the rough economy and come out of this still standing.

If you’re a food business, the need to give back might be as important as ever. Here are some tips on donation or volunteer options available to you as a food business.

Donate to Charities

If there is a particular charitable organization that speaks to your heart, see if you have the funds to donate to it. If you’re struggling as a business as well, a great way to still donate to the charity you want is by donating a portion of the proceeds. It’s not always important to donate a large sum of money immediately to a charity. To make it a more sustainable practice that you can continue even after the pandemic is over, donate a reasonable amount every month.

The best way to do this for yourself and consumers of your food products is by taking a portion of the proceeds and donating it to a charity. Most consumers actually want to know that their money is going somewhere, so indicate it on your social media or your packaging.

Host a Food Drive

If you’re someone who loves to organize events, hosting a food drive is a great way to give back to your community during these unpredictable times. Partner with a local charity or another local business and host a food drive in your area. More than ever, people are volunteering their time to help out, and you’ll be surprised at how many volunteers and donations you receive.

As a food business, it can also be a good way to boost your community presence so more people will know about who you are and what you can offer.

AARP has a great tip sheet on how to organize your own food drive. Here, they suggest reaching out to your local food bank to determine what they need:

“Consider both the obvious (food bank and homeless shelter) and the less obvious (faith-based organizations, senior citizen centers, schools). If you want suggestions on food organizations in need, start by contacting your local food bank…Food banks and pantries are all different, so before you start planning, be sure to reach out to learn the best way to meet their needs. Food banks are warehouses that collect large quantities of food to distribute to local food pantries, soup kitchens, etc. The food bank itself may be interested in benefiting from your drive. Or, they may suggest a local food organization in your neighborhood.”

Source Food Locally

Sourcing food locally is one of the most effective ways to give back to your community. Ensuring that the ingredients you’re putting in your food product are local is important not just to the environment, but to the people in your community. This way, you’re putting investment back into local business and supporting yourself and others.

Annie Mueller at Organic Authority suggests that one of the best ways to find organic foods locally is by going to your local farmer’s market to establish that first connection:

“Those vendors who are at the farmer’s market are often small farmers with additional products to sell all year long. They may raise livestock and sell meat or dairy in addition to the fresh produce you pick up during the summer. Get their names and contact information from the manager of the farmer’s market and get on the phone. You’ll often get better prices, too, by ordering ahead of time or ordering for a group (get your friends in on this). You’re supporting local farmers, getting local food, and getting better prices.”

If you’re looking for help on where to find the right ingredients, we at The Greater Goods can help. Reach out to us for a free consultation with our expert food industry consultants and food brokers.

If you’re a small business and you’ve sold a food product on the market before, you’ve probably wondered how you can sell your product wholesale. 

Wholesale lets you sell your products in bulk to a retailer, who can then sell it directly to customers. Often, wholesale allows your product to become available to more than just your target consumers and be distributed to a larger market, even internationally. 

Chocolate products can be sold wholesale to retailers. It just takes a keen eye and your finger on the pulse of the food industry to determine how to effectively turn your product into a wholesale product. Here are some tips on how to get started. 

Sell Your Product Online

If you’ve tried approaching local retailers in your area on wholesale but they have declined, consider selling your product online. You can set up your own website and offer wholesale, but this requires a lot of networking to get your product out there. 

If you want more people seeing your chocolate product, reach out to online chocolate product retailers. Find their contacts through their website or on social media platforms like LinkedIn, and ask them what their wholesale market is like. They may want your product for their website and this way, you’ll be able to reach a huge audience. 

Entrepreneur Magazine highlights the growth of wholesale distribution in America: 

“Upon opening the doors of your wholesale distribution business, you will certainly find yourself in good company. To date, there are approximately 300,000 distributors in the United States, representing $3.2 trillion in annual revenues. Wholesale distribution contributes 7 percent to the value of the nation’s private industry GDP, and most distribution channels are still highly fragmented and comprise many small, privately held companies.”

Create a Steady Production Schedule

Acquiring a wholesale deal is one thing, but keeping up with product demands is another. So, when you’ve made the sale and have retailers to send your chocolate food products to, plan out when and how you’ll be getting this all done. 

For example, if you have three different retailers you’re delivering products to by the end of the month, plan out how long each step of the production process will take. The more detailed your schedule is, the better you’ll be able to plan for any setbacks or delays.  

Michael Adams at The Balance Small Business notes that your delivery schedule should be consolidated as well: 

“Doing deliveries every day throws off your schedule. That’s why you should consolidate your deliveries on certain days of the week. Maybe one county is Mondays and the next county over gets deliveries on Fridays. That leaves the middle of the week for producing product, doing office admin work, and calling on new retailers. Why don’t you consider drawing a route out that helps you get all your deliveries done faster?”

Create a Wide Network of Distributors

If you have multiple retailers to send products to, it may be hard to keep up with demand. Creating a wide network of distributors makes sure that no one is stretched too thin. 

If you’re sending your chocolate product out to a national or international destination, consider what distributors it’ll have to go through to get to the retailer. Whatever company or delivery service it’s going through, make connections with those distributors. Create good working relationships with the distributors that you use and check in when you can to make sure everyone’s on the same page. 

The Houston Chronicle says that determining your target market is also key in building your business profile: 

“Profile the target market for your food products. Doing so will help you figure out exactly who is most likely to buy your products and which retailers are best to work with. For instance, if you produce gourmet seasoning salts, your target consumer would be someone who is into fine dining and has the disposable income to splurge on luxury ingredients. Therefore, you should try to get accounts with high-end retailers, as opposed to discount grocery chains.”

At The Greater Goods, we specialize in organic food like nuts, nut butters, dried fruits, cocoa and chocolate. Feel free to contact us for a free consultation with our expert food industry consultants and food brokers.

If you’re creating a new food product with nuts as a main ingredient, it’s important that you’re getting the right nuts that’ll work with your product. This food has a huge flavor profile and needs several things to be considered, like where it’s grown, textures, flavours and what kind of tree nut it comes from. 

Finding the right supplier can be tricky, especially for foods that have tons of suppliers, like almonds, peanuts, hazelnuts, and cashews. Here are some easy tips to follow to find the right nut supplier for your food product.  

Reach Out to Local Companies

You may not know it yet, but there could be suppliers of nuts in your surrounding area. This is where networking can really come in handy. Reaching out to food companies that you know and asking them who their suppliers are is a great start. They may be able to connect you with where to look for bulk nut suppliers in your area. 

If you know of some food suppliers already, reach out to them to ask what their prices are and what types of nuts they offer. Bulk buying can offer big discounts, plus, you’ll be able to support another business in your local community. Here’s what Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada says about why Canadian-sourced food is great: 

“Canada’s agriculture and food industry is complemented by a robust research infrastructure, bringing innovation to all areas of production. Canada boasts leading technology, cutting-edge innovation, and some of the world’s most advanced production, processing, storage, and packaging techniques.”

Find Suppliers at Tradeshows or Online

If you don’t know any bulk nut suppliers in your city or county, you may be able to network with some in your country or on an international scale. Going to food tradeshows is a big part of this. 

At tradeshows, people from every aspect of the food industry meet and establish business connections. You may be able to find the right supplier for you if you visit their booths, connect during one-on-one sessions, or ask other industry experts who you should look for. 

As well, you can find a bulk nut supplier in a similar way online. Use LinkedIn or your local social networking sites to connect with industry professionals and chat casually online. 

Gregory Go at The Balance Small Business provides these tips on networking with suppliers online: 

“Invest time in networking to build the trust and connections that will help you find the best possible wholesale suppliers for your small business. Participate in online forums which can be a great source of free information and help from other people with experience in your market or industry. You can also build your LinkedIn profile, subscribe to industry newsletters, and join your local Chamber of Commerce or small business networking groups to build your professional connections.”

Seek the advice of a Food Consultant

It might be harder than it seems to develop the right business connections when it comes down to finding a nut product. This is where a food consultant or food broker can come in handy. 

A food consultant often has decades of experience in the industry and can connect you to the right supplier based on your needs. If you’re looking for a certain taste or wanting to source your ingredients locally, a food consultant takes that into account. 

Here is our company promise to you: 

With over 20 years of experience, we know how to help businesses like yours get the products that will help you succeed. We know it can be difficult to find quality products that meet your expectations and certification requirements. It gets even harder when you are trying to meet a certain price point and want to stock something unusual. No matter what your struggle is, we can help you find the bulk nuts wholesale suppliers you need.

 At The Greater Goods, we specialize in organic food like nuts, nut butters, dried fruits, cocoa, and chocolate. Reach out to our team for a free consultation with our expert food industry consultants and food brokers. 

Finding locally-sourced ingredients for your food product not only gives your product a fresher taste, but also helps your business support your community. Through keeping as much of your food production as local as possible, you can contribute directly to the local business economy. 

But just how can you find these ingredients and who do you reach out to? If you’re new to the realm of locally-sourced foods, hiring a food consultant to work with you can be a huge help and time-saver. 

Connections with Local Suppliers

Food consultants have a huge network of suppliers that they’ve worked with on previous or current projects and they can help you establish those connections in your business. If you’re a new business, you’ll need a solid amount of business contacts or partners to help you find out where to find local suppliers. 

A food consultant will know exactly who to contact based on your needs. They’ve gone through this process before and they’re here to fit their services to what you require for your product ingredients. 

Small Business Trends says that sourcing locally actually helps you strengthen your company’s ties to the community: 

“Buying locally can also help you build connections within your community. When you buy directly from farmers, you can work with them one-on-one and then build relationships over time. This can lead to a great working relationship that might lead to even more opportunities for your business and community in the future.”

Know the Difference Between Organic and Local

Consultants are generally well-known in their area, so when they reach out to local businesses and food suppliers, they have a good understanding of which suppliers make certain foods. 

It’s important to understand the difference between organic and local food. They might not always be the same thing, and if you’re looking to have your food certified organic as well as locally-sourced, you should indicate that to the consultant you’re working with. 

Sam Oches at QSR magazine explains the difference between local and organic ingredients, and that they’re not always mutually exclusive:  

“For organic, the USDA regulations assure that the food is produced according to specific guidelines and is better for the earth. Local ingredients are both good for the environment—the food travels a shorter distance, creating a smaller carbon footprint for the restaurant—and infuse dollars into the local economy.”

Decades of Industry Knowledge

Having the right knowledge and experience is a huge part of the food industry. To get the right ingredients, it’s about having connections and who you know. That’s an important facet of sourcing locally, where you’ll have to reach out to businesses in your area that you may have never interacted with before. 

If you’re working with a food consultant who’s from your area, they’ll know the community quite well. Consultants often have decades of experience and sometimes actually have previous job experience in the food industry. When you’re working with a food consultant, they will have the right connections and industry knowledge to find the right local ingredients for your product.  

Here are just some of the facets of our consultancy services that we provide: 

• Using our group buying capacity to leverage better prices for all our clients
• Sourcing from industry leading competitive sources
• Helping solve ingredient/ manufacturing challenges
• Providing supply security
• Identifying co-manufacturing opportunities (In and Out)

For more advice on how to source ingredients locally, like dried fruit, nuts and organic chocolate, we offer a free consultation with our expert food industry consultants and food brokers.

So you have a great food product that regularly sells out at local farmer’s markets. You’ve created something people want and need. But it’s time now to get your product onto the shelves of local or national grocery retailers. We have four simple steps to help. The first one, partnering with a food business consultant, will assist you in more ways than you ever imagined possible.

1. Choose the Right Food Business Consultant

A food business consultant knows everything there is to know about launching a new food campaign. They’ll help in numerous ways, including:

• Finding ingredients that may be difficult to attain
• Steering you toward the certifications you’ll need to sell to grocery stores
• Helping you purchase ingredients and supplies at lower prices
• Linking your resources, people, and suppliers who can help promote your efforts

Your food business consultant should be a wealth of information and resources. Look for someone who’s thoroughly established in the industry and who has great client reviews.

2. Obtain Your Food Processor License

If you’ll be selling within the United States, regulations vary between states. Check with your local health department to find out what’s needed. Usually, you’ll need a food processor license. This gives you permission to manufacture, label, package, and store food for distribution to grocery stores. You may need additional licenses as well, if you work with shellfish, dairy, or juice.

In Canada, you’ll need to check with the Safe Food for Canadians Regulations (SFCR) to determine which licenses are required.

Wading through licensing requirements can be time-consuming and confusing. But an experienced consultant will be able to look at your ingredient list and steer you in the right direction with ease.

3. Incorporate Your Business

Incorporating your business helps protect your personal assets in the event of a lawsuit. Incorporating as an LLC defines your business as a Limited Liability Company, meaning if you lose a lawsuit, only funds generated by your company are fair game. And if you have business partners, you may want to file as a C- or S-corporation to protect them as well.

In Canada, you’ll want to set up as either a corporation or as a limited partnership. Talk with your accountant for more information on how to separate your personal assets from your business assets.

4. Approach Your Markets

This is the most difficult step for many — actually finding and convincing stores to carry your product. Your food business consultant can do the bulk of this chore for you. A stellar pitch will be required, so will marketing materials such as consumer coupons and store signage. You’ll be responsible for supplying these, and they’ll need to look professional. While the store manager may make the decision in smaller grocery store chains and independent markets, the bigger retail chains will require a pitch to a corporate buyer. Your business consultant should know how and where to reach them. Your food business consultant can demystify this whole process for you while taking on the brunt of the work. That’s why it’s vital to foster a great partnership with an experienced consultant at the very beginning.

If you’re a small business who’s just getting their food product on the market, there are plenty of difficult challenges to overcome. Even if you’re just starting out your business and you have a product idea in mind and no way to execute the plan, it can be hugely beneficial to bring outside advice. 

This is where a food broker comes in. They can give you the help your business needs to take your food product from just an idea into a product that is widely distributed and, most importantly, tastes great. 

Assess Your Company Needs

If you’ve never worked with any outside consultancy before, then it’s best to assess your company needs before you have that first meeting with a food broker. Even if you plan on meeting with multiple brokers before you decide on which one is the right fit, it’s important that you come into each meeting prepared. 

A food broker is working completely to make your product better, so communicate exactly what you want your food product to be and your target market. The more specific you are about your vision, the better the broker can judge if they’ll be a good fit.  

Judy Alexander at The Balance Small Business points out these essential questions to ask yourself before setting up the initial meeting with a broker: 

“Consider your needs by asking these questions:

• What are you looking for in a food broker?
• What are your expectations of that person/s?
• What is your marketing budget?
• What are the fees and/or commission rate you can pay? Be realistic.
• What territory will you give them? Again be realistic.
• What distributors are you willing to give them to expand your business?”

Network Online 

There are plenty of opportunities to network with others in the food industry online. Tradeshows are a great way to do this too, but if you’re looking for someone quickly, a simple browse through LinkedIn can connect you to tons of food brokers. 

If you’re looking for someone in your area, make sure that when you’re searching online to indicate your city or county. That way, you can have the option of networking with a food broker through online means or meeting them in person for your meetings.  

The Alberta Ag-Info Centre explains why a food broker can be hugely beneficial to your business: 

“A broker has personal contacts and established relationships with buyers the importance of which can’t be underestimated in today’s competitive food industry. Brokers also have expertise in select markets. They may also have regional expertise and the ability to address the region’s individual characteristics.”

Ask for Consultations and Frequent Meetings

It is a must to ask your broker to have frequent meetings. This is important if you’re forming any sort of business partnership, especially with a consultation service like food brokerage. Just because you have had that initial meeting with a food broker and told them your needs, you’ll still need to keep in contact. 

Make sure that when you’ve found the right food broker for you that they are continuing to set up meetings at a regular schedule you’ve agreed upon. For instance, at The Greater Goods, we’ve had an effective working relationship with our client by checking in with a weekly one-hour conference call.  

Pod Foods explains that a food broker does more than just sell your product, but can help you with multiple aspects of production: 

It may seem like the only job of a broker is to get your product onto the shelf, but they do much more than that. While brokers do employ sales representatives to sell in products, they can also help to grow your business through other methods. Many brokers will work with stores to market the product and coordinate demos, especially during events and promotional sales. They not only help establish your presence in the store, but they also increase your overall marketing, making it easier for consumers to become familiar with your brand.”

Here at The Greater Goods, we offer consultation services for your business, from food production to distribution. If you’re looking for advice on how to get up and running, we offer a free consultation with our expert food industry consultants and food brokers. 

When you’re looking to get a new product to market, or just starting the ideas for a new product, assessing all the aspects of production can be overwhelming. 

This is where a food consultant can really help boost production drive. They can find the right ingredients for you based on a number of different factors, and connect you with the right producers and suppliers. 

However, many food companies that want to simplify the process are turning to vertical integration strategies for the production of their food. Let’s dive into what that means and how it could help you start up your new product. 

What is Vertical Integration?

To understand how a food consultant can help facilitate vertical ingredient integration, let’s break down what it means. 

Ernst & Young LLP defines vertical integration here:

“Vertical integration, by definition, is the combination in one company of two or more stages of production normally operated by separate companies. This is typically done for reasons that tie back to quality control, reduced costs through economies of scale and even increased market share due to the high barriers of entry.”

Essentially, what it means is having one company or location be responsible for all stages of food production. From sourcing the materials to packaging and distribution, it can all be handled by one company. 

You’ll usually see vertical integration at large corporations that have the funds and means to supply their own farms, factory workers and distribution trucks. However, for smaller businesses, it is possible to streamline as much of the food production process as possible.  

Provide Traceability to Your Products

With the help of a food consultant, they’ll be able to connect with the right suppliers to source each ingredient for your product. However, with vertical integration, the challenge is finding a supplier who can provide all of the ingredients. 

If you’re making a more complex product that involves multiple ingredients, this could be a challenge. But vertical integration actually forces the final food product to be made with fewer, more simple ingredients. 

By sourcing all of your ingredients from one place, you’ll be able to see every aspect of production and provide traceability to your products. You and your consumers have more transparency on how each ingredient is sourced and where it’s coming from. 

Ensure Food Safety

Adding to the idea of ingredient traceability, vertical integration also ensures food safety. If you’re able to see each aspect of production and how ingredients are sourced all in one company or facility, then you can also see if the company is following the right rules and regulations. 

A food consultant can help with this because they have a depth of knowledge when it comes to food production. A third set of eyes can ensure that food production facilities are up to industry standard. 

Consultants have worked with a number of different food companies at different stages of production and can help your food product follow the governmental regulations to have them approved. 

Shoreline Fruit explains more on how vertically integrated products ensure food safety:

Food safety is absolutely critical within the food industry. Not only is there an enormous effort required to create, track, and test the food safety program, but every time a change is made it requires additional effort to maintain the program. Vertically integrated companies have a few key advantages in this area, one being that they work together closely on a long-term basis. A close working relationship creates a more stable environment as opposed to regularly switching suppliers.

At The Greater Goods, we specialize in organic food like nuts, nut butters, dried fruits, cocoa and chocolate. Feel free to contact us for a free consultation with our expert food industry consultants and food brokers. 

If you’re looking to use your food product to put more good out into the world, there are easy ways to do it. A great place to start is reaching out to your community and finding ways to help. 

This is actually easier than it looks, and you can involve plenty of people and resources in your community at both production and distribution of your food product. Let’s look at some of the ways that you can help your community with your food product. 

Source Ingredients Locally

Sourcing ingredients locally is a direct way to support the agriculture and manufacturing in your area. Not only is sourcing local more eco-friendly, but the local economy benefits from it and it can keep small businesses afloat. 

Before you start production on your product, assess what it is you might be able to source from a local manufacturer. Look at ingredients, packaging, and even product design. These could all be facets of your product that you can get from your community.  

QSR magazine’s Sam Oches points out that local is one of the most common facets of food that consumers look for:

“Local ingredients, most believe, are an agreeable middle ground for consumers, who can still get affordable food with a back-story that makes them feel good. ‘Consumers want to connect with their food,’ says Barbara Haumann, senior science writer and editor for the Organic Trade Association. ‘They want to hear the story behind their food.’”

Distribute Locally 

Distributing your product in your local city or county is a great and easy way to get involved in your community. Approach local shops and ask if they’ll carry your product or buy it wholesale. This can help you form a lot of great relationships in your community and reach more people and new customers. 

This could be as easy as selling at local farmer’s markets. Part of setting up a booth at a farmer’s market is for your business to directly sell your product to customers, but another part of it is the fees you pay towards the farmer’s market. These fees actually go to directly help and support the community.  

Localism explains more on the importance of buying locally-sourced goods: 

“Buying local benefits everyone in our communities, and it’s time to seize this golden opportunity to integrate the old ways of yesterday with the present, to improve our communities and the overall global society in a positive and more self-reliant way. By making conscious decisions to support local merchants, food growers and service providers, we are embracing our local economies and empowering our cities, our neighbors and our selves to grow and thrive.”

Work with Local Charities

Starting a campaign or partnership with local charities is one of the most direct and easy ways to help give back to your community. Consider donating part of your product profits to a charity run in your community. 

Lots of food companies choose to give back to charities that are relevant to your company. Consider what your company’s motto is and what it stands for. 

Molly St Louis at Inc highlights why businesses should donate to local charities: 

“Charitable contributions have numerous benefits, but the most important one is obvious: you should give back to your community. Charitable donations help better your community, and the public will notice if a company is making a real effort to improve its surroundings.”

For more advice on how to source ingredients locally, like dried fruit, nuts and organic chocolate, we offer a free consultation with our expert food industry consultants and food brokers.