90% SKU reduction
The Problem
A mid-sized food processor in the Midwest was facing capacity issues due to the surge in demand after COVID-19. Their commitment to culinary scratch cooking meant that many of their sauces and glazes involved time-consuming reductions and cook/simmer times ranging from 1-4 hours. While they considered adding more kettles to increase output, this wouldn’t solve the issues of high energy, line-time costs, and labor costs, nor would it address the problem of constrained capacity.
The Solution
Midas Foods was approached to help solve the issue. Midas reviewed the initial six high-volume sauce formulas and matched them into culinary-level dry blends. A culinary working day was scheduled at the Midas Foods North American campus in Detroit for the chefs from both companies to meet, evaluate the prototype matches, and discuss revisions. The entire day was set aside starting at 8 am. By 10:30 am, the company’s culinary team had already approved several sauce matches, and several others received minor revisions and approvals before noon. The chefs were impressed with the matches and confident in Midas’ ability to complete the remainder of the blends.
The Results
The use of Midas’ dry blends allowed the food processor to double its output, reduce raw ingredient SKUs by over 90%, and bring down costs. The solution provided a “quick-to-plate” solution for the food processor, meeting the high demand without having to invest in additional kettles, reduce energy costs, or increase labor costs. The collaboration between the two companies resulted in a successful outcome and a mutually beneficial partnership.