Today’s post is written by Heather Powell, Director of Major Accounts and Special Projects at SafeSourcing Inc.

Want to start a family feud quickly? Tell your Aunt or Grandmother you made your potato salad with mayonnaise, Miracle Whip®, or sour cream! Traditionalists will say that their potato salad is only made with mayonnaise, while others will say their choice of potato salad creaminess is open to whatever pleases the palate.

Manufactures of potato salad want the best of both worlds and many are choosing proprietary blends of mayonnaise to meet the traditionalists’ tastes, but also provide new tastes options to the foodie groups. Small companies can make their own creaminess and control the amounts of sugar, salt, vinegar, dairy, and oils that go into their special recipes, but how to manufacture control in what goes into their product to keep it the same time after time? How do they know the manufactures of the mayonnaise are meeting their client’s needs? Are the manufactures of potato salad getting the best pricing for their purchase of mayonnaise?

Custom or proprietary blends of mayonnaise or really anything can be taken out for bid. The key is knowing exactly what is in your proprietary item and what the ratios are. If you have a contract agreement in place that you own the proprietary blend made for you by a manufacturer, you need to have this in your possession for several reasons—what happens if the manufacturer has a natural disaster or fire? What happens if they are shut down due to a salmonella or e-coli issue? And what if you want to test the market place for pricing and capabilities?

Is now the time to review your mayonnaise purchases? Look your contract over and see when it expires (ed) or do you have an out clause? Be prepared to take your time to do this right. You want to ensure you have the proper suppliers who can handle your volume needs and manufacture custom items. You will want to know exactly what the market rates are for oils and eggs as these will directly affect your pricing expectations and longevity of the contract. You will also want to allow time for the manufactures to make your mayonnaise or product or allow equivalent blends for sampling. Some suppliers will do this at no charge; others will expect a minimum order purchase to be able to provide your custom product as they need to schedule the time to put your product in a small quantity into their production line.

While the family feuds will probably always occur over what makes the best potato salad, do not allow a manufacturer make you feel as if you have no options to replace your mayonnaise provider. This is your product and you have the right to get the best product at the best price.

SafeSourcing can assist you in exploring your procurement solutions for your business or on our “Risk Free” trial program for RFPs and RFQs, please contact a SafeSourcing Customer Service Representative.  We have an entire customer services team waiting to assist you today.

This author hopes that you found this series fun and educational. While I enjoy the traditional mayonnaise potato salad with a touch of yellow mustard, my favorite has become the new red skin potato salad with a bacon, chive, sour cream, and shredded cheddar cheese. There are many manufactures of this combination but I truly enjoy making my own and playing with this recipe by adding more bacon/different smoked bacons, chive or dill, and various cheeses.

We look forward to your comments.

Today’s post is written by Ivy Ray, Senior Procurement Specialist at SafeSourcing Inc.

Those of us here in the United States are mostly familiar with buying milk in cardboard cartons, or plastic jugs.  Although, Americans who live in the Wisconsin, Minnesota and Iowa region, Kwik Trip sells milk in a bag in Whole, 2%, 1%, Skim and Chocolate. Throughout the rest of the world, including our Canadian neighbors to the north, milk is sold in non-resealable plastic bags.  The innovation was introduced in 1967 by DuPont using European equipment. The new packaging quickly found favor with the domestic dairy industry, because they are lighter and less fragile than glass bottles. However, the consumer public preferred plastic jugs for years, but largely accepted the new containers in certain regions in the 1970s.

How do milk bags work? The way it works is you take the bag and place it into a milk bag pitcher or holder, then cut a triangular hole in the tip, and pour as you would any other pitcher of a beverage. Two accessories are commonly associated with Canadian milk bags: pitchers and bag openers. The key-shaped bag opener with a clip and a magnet was invented in Toronto in 1979.

In the U.S. classic glass milk bottles were replaced by cardboard containers in the early 20th century because the paper containers were significantly lighter and easier to transport in large quantities. G. W. Maxwell developed the first paper milk carton in 1906.  Workers manufactured these cartons by hand, including gluing them together. The paper was coated in paraffin wax to make them waterproof.  John Van Wormer of Toledo, Ohio, received a patent for his folded paper milk carton, which he called “Pure-Pak,” on November 16, 1915. The design is efficient, because there’s no lid required. Simply pop out the spout and pour.

Even though there’s more equipment involved with drinking milk from bags, it’s actually better for the environment than the alternative. In Toronto, for example, milk bags are recyclable as long as they’re rinsed out, and milk bags take up significantly less space than a jug or a carton. Milk cartons and jugs are technically recyclable, though according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, over 70% of milk jugs are sent to the landfill.

People use milk bags because they are more eco-friendly. Grocery stores in the United Kingdom have also been testing out milk bags instead of cartons or jugs for this very reason. Back in 2010, Sainbury’s made the switch because the milk bags would contain 75% less plastic than the jugs and ultimately save up to 1,400,000kg of packaging every year, according to a report from The Guardian. They also require fewer resources to produce.

So which do you choose, “paper or plastic?”

For more information on how SafeSourcing can assist you in exploring your procurement solutions for your business or on our “Risk Free” trial program, please contact a SafeSourcing Customer Service Representative.  We have an entire customer services team waiting to assist you today.

We look forward to your comments.

References…..…………………………………………………………………

1. https://www.chefsuccess.com/threads/milk-in-a-bag.54643/
2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milk_bag
3. http://www.ohiohistorycentral.org/w/Folded_Paper_Milk_Carton
4. https://www.tangiblesltd.com/the-snippit/
5. http://static1.squarespace.com/static/546d61b5e4b049f0b10b95c5/t/553020c7e4b00a1eb5c4ed0c/1429217479138/Why-Recycle.pdf
6. https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2010/aug/11/milk-bottle-sainsburys-environment

Today’s Post is by Eli Razov, Senior Account Manager at SafeSourcing Inc.

Is the Mayo category on the rise? The mayonnaise production industry is a $2-billion a year industry that continues to grow in North America. The global mayonnaise market is a $9.9 billion industry. This global market is anticipated to reach a value of $12.5 billion by 2023. That being said, the number of businesses in the North American industry has grown roughly 2% since 2015, with the number of employees growing 2.7%. Mayonnaise is consumed by a considerable amount of customers and forms the highest consumed category of food dressing worldwide.

So what is mayonnaise? It is a thick and creamy dressing used as a condiment in various cuisines. The standard mayonnaise is an emulsion of oil, egg yolk, and either lemon juice or vinegar with many other herbs and spices. Egg-free alternatives are also available in market for vegans and those allergic to eggs. Contrary to popular belief, the fat present in mayo is unsaturated, or “good fat”, as the oils used come from plant sources which in turn are sources of antioxidants and vitamins. The rising demand of egg-free products among vegans has boosted the growth of the mayonnaise market, making manufacturers turn to egg alternatives. Additionally, a change of consumers towards plant-based products is adding fuel to the demand. This is setting the foodservice world ablaze adding new types and styles of mayonnaise and aioli.

As far as packaging goes, mayonnaise can be found in jars, single-serve packets (sachets), bottles and buckets (for larger foodservice needs). Sachets are expected to witness high growth over the next five years due to its availability in various sizes and convenient packaging. That being said, we have run many single serve, foodservice and large quantity RFQ’s for our clients with an average savings of 17%. Now is a great time to look into taking your mayonnaise needs to market. With an ever growing demand, and a low market price, now is the time to strike.

For more information on how SafeSourcing can assist you or on our “Risk Free” trial program, please contact SafeSourcing  we have an entire team waiting to assist you today.

Today’s post is by Alex Borbely, Vice President of Sales at SafeSourcing Inc.

SafeSourcing’s professional service offerings support our mission of providing information and services to our customers through e-procurement best practices that proactively support e-procurement events from category discovery to results analysis. As part of our full-service offerings, this also includes ROI delivery and focus on consumer safety and environmental standards in the global supply chain. Today, I would like to discuss a service of providing industry updates/news that may affect sourcing events on category spends.  We often play a role with our clients in keeping them abreast of changes in the marketplace and specifically what impact a commodity like corn can have on the pricing of items such as corrugated products.  Most items at your favorite supermarket, discount store, or shopping mall were safely delivered in boxes made of corrugated cardboard, and many are displayed in the same boxes, which were manufactured so they could be opened and used for this purpose. Other items may arrive in their own corrugated or alternative types of paperboard boxes. Because corrugated cardboard is such a versatile packaging material, millions of tons are used each year to protect and display products. Annually, more than 50 million tons of corrugated cardboard were produced in the United States. In addition, millions of tons of uncorrugated boxboard or paperboard are also produced for use in folding cartons.

Fast-growing pine trees provide the primary raw material used to make corrugated cardboard. The largest packaging companies own thousands of acres of land where trees are matured, harvested, and replaced with seedlings

At the corrugating plant, only a few other raw materials are needed to make a finished box. Corn starch glue is used to bond the corrugated medium to the liner sheets. Because so much glue is used, rail cars or large tanker trucks deliver it as a dry powder that will be stored in huge silos at the corrugating plant until it is needed. Drawn from the silo, the dry corn starch is mixed with water and other chemicals and pumped into the corrugator to be spread on the corrugated medium as the layers of liner are added.

When speaking with clients about corrugated spends it is important for the buyer to understand the components that go into the product and what impact those ingredients have with pricing such as corn.  There are a lot of factors that one needs to bear in mind such as the time of the year, supply and demand, hedgers/speculation traders, ethanol demand, and many other influencers that play a role in corn pricing and as a result the final product price of corrugated.

If you would like more information on how SafeSourcing can help you, please contact a SafeSourcing Customer Service representative.  We have an entire team ready to assist you today.

We look forward to your comments.

Today’s blog is by Margaret Stewart, Director of HR and Administration at SafeSourcing, Inc.

Every year there are highly anticipated movies and televisions shows that many of us just can’t wait to see. Two shows that have been highly anticipated, the final Avengers movie and the final season of Game of Thrones, are both set to be released April, 2019.

Because these shows are so highly anticipated with large fan bases, security surrounding filming, scripts, plot-lines, effects, etc. has been tighter than ever before. Despite all the added security, much is known or speculated about what these fan favorites will bring. One thing we know about these is that filming has long been over. Game of Thrones filming ended in July, 2018, nine months before its release, while Avengers: Endgame finished in January, 2018, a full 15 months before its release. So, why such the long gap in between?

The reason for the long gaps after filming is to allow ample time for all the work that needs to be done behind the scenes. This is a key part in any production and is often the most overlooked by those not involved in the process. For filming, this could include video editing, sound editing, special effects, and many other final touches. While actors and directors often get the spotlight for their work on a film piece, there are many more people working just as hard to create the final successful film or show that we all see and enjoy.

The ways the work is set up in film brings the idea that there are many other industries where a significant amount of work is done behind the scenes – procurement being one of those industries. A procurement partner is someone who works with your organization to help you obtain the goods and services you need, but there is a lot of work that goes into the position that may not be known to most. While a company can enjoy the end result benefits of getting exactly what they need at a competitive price, the procurement partner has done a lot of behind the scenes work along the way, from spend analysis, market research, supplier research, data analysis, product details and specifications, to term details. Just like the behind the scenes team for television and movies, a procurement partner can help make your sourcing efforts as successful and enjoyable as possible.

For more information on how SafeSourcing can help in your procurement efforts, or on our Risk Free trial program, please contact a SafeSourcing Customer Service Representative. We have an entire team ready to assist you today.

Today’s Post is by Eli Razov, Senior Account Manager at SafeSourcing Inc.

Did you know that tea is the second most widely consumed beverage worldwide? Global tea production exceeds $73-billion in sales and produces about 5.2 million metric tons of product a year.  About half of the world’s tea production comes from China, while India, Kenya, Sri Lanka, and Indonesia make up a large portion of the remaining tea market.  The tea market is broken into four segments: ready-to-drink tea (RTD), the traditional market; the specialty segment and the foodservice segment. So what does this have to do with us? Although coffee is often thought of as America’s preferred beverage, tea has quickly proven itself to be very popular in homes nationwide. A survey among U.S. consumers showed that 23 percent of participants drink tea every day, while only ten percent of consumers never drank tea at all. That is roughly 74,911,000 Americans whom drink tea every day! The majority of the tea consumed in America comes from the foodservice industry and ready to drink segments of the tea market. Most of this tea is purchased in gas stations, c-stores, and restaurants around the country. With that much consumption on a daily basis, the US tea market is a $7-billion industry.

We here at SafeSourcing have helped many of our clients run tea e-Procurement events, both separately and with other warm beverages together. With an average savings of 23%, we have helped clients save money on an ever growing market. A lot of foodservice companies sell tea and other beverages so it is easier to reach a higher spend when you combine the buying power of all your hot beverage needs. There are some instances where specialty companies need to be contacted for more particular blends of tea. That is where our vast database of suppliers and knowledge of the industry comes in. By working with SafeSourcing you can grow your pool of suppliers and save even more money on all of your tea needs!

For more information on how SafeSourcing can assist you or on our “Risk Free” trial program, please contact SafeSourcing  we have an entire team waiting to assist you today.

Today’s post is from our  SafeSourcing. Archives

Distributors have been selling products and equipment since the early days of the industrial revolution, but are they still the best choice for companies in pursuit of products?  The answer is sometimes and here’s why.

Typically, full service, distributors make their name by providing excellent, personal service to their customers.  In most cases, they work a small territory and are “local” to the companies they serve.  They usually offer 24/7 service and have emergency spare parts and consumables on hand.  Full service distributors are in the business of developing relationships with their customers.

The same is true when purchasing commodities.  In most cases there is more than one manufacturer who offers a product capable of satisfying your application for a fair price.  In the end, you probably purchase your equipment from someone you have developed a relationship with or from someone you can see yourself developing a relationship with.  In most cases, a distributor fits the bill due to their locale and ability, and willingness, to service you.

Most manufacturers are engineering and manufacturing focused.  Typically they do not specialize in sales and service.  This is not a bad thing, however.  Manufacturers are expected to spend their efforts on developing great products.  They are the pioneers of innovation, and all of us depend on them.  This is not to say that they have no place selling or servicing their products.  It is important for them to be involved in understanding the marketplace and issues with their products.  But from the end-user point of view, manufacturers’ efforts are not always apparent.  Although very critical, their efforts are typically behind the scenes in R&D.  It can be difficult for an end-user to develop a sales/service relationship with an organization that operates with an engineering and manufacturing focus. But not so fast…..

Unless you work with SafeSourcing, although a lot of what I said above is true, it is still possible to work and purchase from both manufacturers and distributors. The keys are who are you speaking with and what you are purposing. At SafeSourcing, we engage both, why? Because some manufacturers see the benefits to selling directly to our clients, while some distributors cannot meet all needs and visa versus. The SafeSourcing staff asks the key questions and talk to the right people to determine who is best fit for our clients. This vetting process saves our clients time and money and getting what they want at a considerably lower cost.  And you can still develop a strong and long-term relationship with either.

To sum it up, manufacturers and distributors do play specific roles in the purchasing process, but not reaching out to both could affect your bottom line.

Robert Rice is an Account Manager at SafeSourcing. Robert or any member of the experienced team at SafeSourcing would be happy to discuss how SafeSourcing can help you with your eProcurement planning. For more information, please contact SafeSourcing.

We look forward to your comments.

Today’s post is written by Ivy Ray, Senior Procurement Specialist at SafeSourcing Inc.

Amazon is now in the oil business, with the release of its Amazon Basics Full Synthetic Motor Oil. Amazon’s private label oil is a competitor to Valvoline, Quaker State and other leading brands. Proving, that there isn’t an industry Amazon can’t enter.  According to former Amazon executive BrittainLadd, now a consultant specializing in digital transformation and strategies, Amazon is becoming so powerful that even Walmart can become marginalized in as few as 10 years.

Private label is becoming extremely strategic to Amazon. As of July 2018, Amazon has a total of 76 private label brands and Ladd estimates Amazon will have over 2,000 private-label brands within 3 to 5 years. Companies can no longer afford to operate as if Amazon doesn’t exist.

Known as the “Amazon effect”, more and more people have become online shoppers which has rapidly changed the retail landscape. This increase for e-commerce businesses comes at the expense of brick-and-mortar retail stores, with the most recent victims Toys R Us, and Sears closing its doors. Some stores are adapting by providing an electronic retail option or E-tailing, with online shopping portals which allow online ordering and a pick-up option at a nearby retail store.  E-tailing helps traditional brick-and-mortar stores reach more consumers worldwide and increase sales.

Another adaptation has been the surge of pop-up retailing.  Pop-up stores are temporary retail locations that offer a unique experience to the customer with minimal overhead to the retailer. Pop-up store customers have the chance to touch, try on, and demo products in person before having to make a purchase. The retailer gets an opportunity to interact with customers face-to-face which allows them to address potential concerns on the spot. Best Buy, J. Crew and Nordstrom have all recently ventured into the world of pop-ups.

Reinventing how we do business in this quickly evolving economy is the key to survival.  Staying relevant can be the difference between staying alive or becoming the next casualty of e-commerce.

For more information on how SafeSourcing can assist you in exploring your procurement solutions for your business or on our “Risk Free” trial program, please contact a SafeSourcing Customer Service Representative.  We have an entire customer services team waiting to assist you today.

We look forward to your comments.

References……………………………………………………………………………………..

https://zurb.com/blog/the-amazon-effect-and-how-retailers-can-s

https://www.forbes.com/sites/brittainladd/2018/09/14/amazon-is-in-the-oil-business/#7c168e3648f8

https://www.retailtouchpoints.com/features/special-reports/pop-up-stores-become-more-than-just-a-trend

Today’s post is by Gayl Southard, Administrative Consultant at SafeSourcing.

It is the time of year when holiday packages will be arriving on people’s doorsteps across the country; however gift boxes this year might not become recycled gift boxes next year. Recycling is now a crisis in the US.  China, America’s go-to nation for processing recyclables into boxes, is now requiring the cleanest, purist loads. This decision has left recyclers without a market causing recyclables to pile up and prices to fall. Waste Management, the trash hauling giant, reported it has become more expensive to recycle glass, plastic and paper. UPS reports that they will deliver 800 million packages this holiday season, an increase from 762 million in 2017. FedEx will add another 400 million, if they match last year’s total.

After years of conditioning Americans to throw all of their reusable containers and papers into a recycle bin, cities across the US are charging higher collection fees, as well as eliminating certain items they will not pick up. Nearly 35% of the nation’s waste is diverted to recycling from the solid waste stream. That accounts for millions of tons of material that can be repurposed, saving energy and time rather than making product from scratch. Mixed paper was worth $85 to $95 a ton to recyclers a year ago. Today the price has dropped to $6.50 to $8.50. Lesser-quality plastics were worth $45 a ton. Now it costs $35 to get it recycled. Cardboard prices fallen too.

There are about 100 Waste Management recycling processing facilities in the US. The cost of processing recyclables was $85 a ton, now sorted loads only bring in $65 a ton. Instead of receiving a check for recyclables, some cities are being asked to pay to have them removed.

Waste Management reported that 25% of recycled material is contaminated. Junk such as dead batteries, hoses, broken lawn furniture, plastic grocery bags, greased-stained pizza boxes, are some of the items that should not be put into recycle bins.

For more information on SafeSourcing, or on our Risk Free trial program, please contact a SafeSourcing Customer Service representative. We have an entire team ready to assist you today.

Today’s blog is by Margaret Stewart, Manager of HR and Administration at SafeSourcing.

Don’t cut before measuring. It’s a common phrase and probably one of the first things someone learns when doing any kind of construction – measure before you cut. In fact, many people would recommend measuring a board multiple times before ever making any cuts. While this saying is primarily woodworking, home improvement, or construction specific, the idea can prove useful in multiple industries.

The idea here is that each and every time you are about to execute a project, first make sure you are doing it right. Then make sure again. Sometimes, we can miss important details or overlook glaring errors. For example, while sending an email and forgetting to attach a document is a minor detail, sending an email to a wrong person can be much more serious.

SafeSourcing, however, can help with some things that are often overlooked. For example, when sourcing a product, we analyze the data and the specifications and check them against invoice and industry standards. This ensures that the data is correct and that the savings you see after your procurement project completes is true. We can work with your own procurement, purchasing, or finance department and determine which categories would best be taken out to source. Do you know if you are getting the best price on the goods you already purchase?

For more information on how SafeSourcing can help in your procurement efforts or to help analyze your data, or on our Risk Free trial program, please contact a SafeSourcing Customer Service representative.

We have an entire team ready to assist you today.