The National Provisioner November 2011

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2012 Consumer Trends Report 42 | Finding growth opportunities.

34

COVER STORY

Open for innovation OSI Group has sent a loud-and-clear message that it is ready to carry its customers to the next level.

10 | Regulations & Legislation: Going to the next level 12 | Fight for Food Safety: Traceability: Keep your company from losing its way

Visit the new ProvisionerOnline.com

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New PMMI/Pack Expo series

Read Us Online

PMMI’s Tom Egan discusses the changing landscape of food safety and how processors can take down silos within their organizations.

The National Provisioner is online in an easy-to-navigate, easy-to-read digital format at www.ProvisionerOnline.com.

THE NATIONAL PROVISIONER | PROVISIONERONLINE.COM | NOVEMBER 2011

FORMULATION STRATEGIES

Focus on breakfast 26 | Hot breakfasts fight off the chill?

Departments Guest Column ................. 14 New Products.................. 18 Business Strategies ......... 22 Ingredients ...................... 24 Tech Showcase................ 74 Classifieds ....................... 78 Ad Index.......................... 85

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“When it came to our new high-speed hot dog packaging line, no one could keep pace with Reiser and Repak.” “At Berks Packing Company, we are a thirdgeneration, family-owned and operated meat processor. We supply the food service industry and retailers with a wide variety of high-quality hot dogs. We were looking for a flexible, high-speed, automatic loading and packaging system that would allow us to easily produce upwards of twenty different package sizes. After talking with all of the potential suppliers, we chose the Repak RE25 form/fill/seal packaging machine from Reiser. “Reiser came to us with more options and better ideas. They took us to see a similar high-speed installation in Canada. The more we talked with Reiser, the more confident we became that the Repak would be the race car we needed. And they delivered! “The Repak works perfectly with our high-speed automatic loader to produce attractive, wrinkle-free, perfectly sealed packages. Depending on the package size, we can now package up to 1,400 hot dogs/minute. From sales, to support, to delivery, to installation, to their guarantee, our family couldn’t be happier with the Reiser team. In fact, we’re so pleased with the performance of our new RE25 that we just placed an order for an additional machine!” Pete Boylan, Product Development Manager, Berks Packing Company, Inc.

725 Dedham St., Canton, MA 02021 • (781) 821-1290 • www.reiser.com

Pete Boylan Berks Packing

Joe Schmidt Reiser

Leading the food industry in processing and packaging solutions.

November 2011

Volume 225 Issue 11

Tech

Editorial Board

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The National Provisioner’s Editorial Board comprises highly respected experts associated with the meat and poultry industries who assist the editorial staff in bringing you insightful, relevant information. When you see this logo, you are reading content contributed by an Editorial Board member. Tim Biela AFA Foods

H. Russell Cross Texas A&M University

CONTRIBUTING THIS MONTH Dan Emery Meaningful Solutions John E. Johnson

SPECIAL REPORT | 50

Processing bacon to perfection A look at the trends driving the operations side of bacon-processing today. PACKAGING TECH 68 | Chip Bolton takes a look at films and barrier technology.

JBS

CONTRIBUTING THIS MONTH Leigh Ann Johnston Tyson Foods Huston Keith Keymark Associates

CONTRIBUTING THIS MONTH FOOD SAFETY 56 | The training process for inspection and detec-

tion systems remains crucial.

PROCESSING TECH

Lynn Knipe

64 | Ensuring food

Ohio State University

safety in cook/chill processes.

Gary McMurray

THE NATIONAL PROVISIONER (ISSN 0027-996X) is published 12 times annually, monthly, by BNP Media II, L.L.C., 2401 W. Big Beaver Rd., Suite 700, Troy, MI 48084-3333. Telephone: (248) 362-3700, Fax: (248) 362-0317. No charge for subscriptions to qualified individuals. Annual rate for subscriptions to nonqualified individuals in the U.S.A.: $178.00 USD. Annual rate for subscriptions to nonqualified individuals in Canada: $216.00 USD (includes GST & postage); all other countries: $228.00 (int’l mail) payable in U.S. funds. Printed in the U.S.A. Copyright 2011, by BNP Media II, L.L.C. All rights reserved. The contents of this publication may not be reproduced in whole or in part without the consent of the publisher. The publisher is not responsible for product claims and representations. Periodicals Postage Paid at Troy, MI and at additional mailing offices.

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THE NATIONAL PROVISIONER | PROVISIONERONLINE.COM | NOVEMBER 2011

Kurt Vogel University of Wisconsin - River Falls

Event Staff MeatProcessing Xchange

PROVISIONERONLINE O .COM Publisher Publisher/Midwest Sales

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THE NATIONAL PROVISIONER | PROVISIONERONLINE.COM | NOVEMBER 2011

The Vision to See Beyond Detection

Reduce Fat Claims and lean meat giveaway

The EAGLE FA x-ray inspection system offers 100% inspection capabilities for weight, contamination and fat analysis for ease in managing a HACCP program. EAGLE FA verifies weight and inspects for contaminants such as metal, glass, stone and calcified bone at speeds of up to 160 tons of bulk / carton meat per hour. Additionally, it will analyze continuous bulk meat or cartons of meat for chemical lean (CL) value within +/- 1CL. With the smallest footprint and highest throughput capacity in the industry, EAGLE FA is the ideal inspection solution for your production line. Acquired by METTLER TOLEDO on March 18, 2011, the EAGLE business continues to operate as a separate entity using sales and service channels.

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Regulations&Legislation

Going to the next level By Dennis Johnson

ith E. coli O157:H7, more tests are conducted each year. Thankfully, the vast majority of the results have been negative, but there are still positive findings. In some cases, a high number of findings on a particular slaughter day may result in the questioning of the negative findings and whether the intact product, not customarily tested, is also implicated (“an event”). In other cases, a downstream test may implicate product that had previously been found negative and shipped to other facilities (in this case, the certificate of analysis (COA) sent with the product is no longer valid in light of the new positive finding). This means that purchasers of products intended for non-intact use (e.g., ground or injected) cannot rely solely on their supplier prerequisite program to deal with such unusual situations.

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In its draft Guidance on E. coli O157:H7 testing, FSIS stated that if intact products were treated with an effective intervention, the intact products may not be implicated in an event. In Directive 10,010.1, one option available to a purchaser of raw beef that did not obtain a COA is to treat the product with a validated intervention. In considering options to address unusual situations, purchasers may well consider installing an intervention. There are a number of interventions available, and which is best for a particular use is beyond the scope of this article. That said, there is one regulatory issue on interventions at further processors that has generated some confusion: Would such an intervention be incorporated into a food-safety system as a CCP or prerequisite program? It would seem that (as modeled below) the intervention would most appropriately fit in the hazard analysis as a prerequisite program. Remember, the further processor already addresses E. coli O157:H7 in its food-safety system. Most establishments address the presence of this pathogen through purchase specification programs. As FSIS likely would phrase it: E. coli O157:H7 is not reasonably likely to occur because the ongoing execution of the purchase specification prerequisite program prevents the hazard from occurring. The purchase specifications make the hazard not reasonably likely to occur, but if the basis for the determination is suspect, there is a supplier event or invalidated COA. The intervention provides an alternative for supporting the decision. It addresses events and absence of COAs. As FSIS notes in its discussion of prerequisite programs in Directive 5,100.1, Rev. 3, at page 19: “Some prerequisite programs may be linked to other prerequisite programs and in essence support a decision in the hazard analysis through their relationship to one another.” Here, the purchase specifications and the interven10

THE NATIONAL PROVISIONER | PROVISIONERONLINE.COM | NOVEMBER 2011

tion are linked as supporting prerequisite programs. Please note, even though the intervention would be a prerequisite program, the establishment should be absolutely committed to implementation. This would include validating the intervention (at least some in-plant testing for micro-organisms) and conducting verification activities (to include some testing). Although the establishment would not need to meet the same demands applicable to a CCP, it should monitor the intervention, take action when the intervention is not functioning, and maintain records. The establishment will never know in advance when it will need the intervention to avoid issues should the purchase specifications not be sufficient due to an event or an invalidated COA. Dennis R. Johnson is a principal with Olsson Frank Weeda Terman Bode Matz PC in Washington, D.C. Johnson has 30 years experience in food-safety law and regulation, representing large and small meat and poultry companies.

© 2011 Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. All rights reserved. Copyrights in and to the Piggy Bank photograph is owned by a third party and licensed for limited use only to Thermo Fisher Scientific by Punchstock.

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FightforFood Safety

Traceability: Keep your company from losing its way By Shawn K. Stevens

I

t is difficult to overstate the importance of maintaining a system which maximizes effective and accurate food traceability. Certainly, failure can and has resulted in financial disaster and bankruptcy for even the largest of companies. Alternatively, having a system in place which ensures accurate traceability can make the difference between the continued success and the catastrophic end of any business.

In addition to new initiatives by USDA, the FDA has similarly recognized the importance of traceability, and focused much of the Food Safety Modernization Act’s changes on improving traceability in all foods, but especially produce. There is also the industry-led Produce Traceability Initiative, which has been developed to ensure that companies are maximizing the effectiveness of traceback procedures. It is also working to institute an industry-wide approach to bolster the efficiency of traceability systems across the produce industry. We must ensure accurate traceability of food in order to safeguard public health. In the event of a foodborne illness outbreak, the capability to rapidly identify, isolate and establish control over any and all products that may pose a risk to the public is paramount. Effective traceability will minimize the amount of illnesses and by extension the severity of any outbreak. While the health of their customers is of course the primary concern of any company, the financial pitfalls associated with traceability failures can be enormous. This is especially true in the beef industry, where multiple raw materials from numerous upstream suppliers are comingled to produce ground beef products. Without the ability to define the window in which

12

THE NATIONAL PROVISIONER | PROVISIONERONLINE.COM | NOVEMBER 2011

potentially contaminated products may have been produced, FDA will — as it should — cast a net that is wide enough to ensure the capture of every possible product that poses any risk. USDA will likely soon follow suit. Lack of traceability can quickly balloon the universe of potentially affected products into devastating, even businessending, proportions. Because of numerous high-profile outbreaks and recalls, there has been a marked increase in the focus on traceability. The new rules coming into effect as a result of the FSMA’s passage have given rise to new technologies and software. In the short term, these new technologies will likely prove to be equally suitable for both FDA and USDA regulated products. Take a look at your systems now, before a crisis arises. Doing so can ensure that when it comes to traceability, you (or your company) won’t get lost. Shawn K. Stevens defends and counsels meat companies in foodborne illness matters throughout the United States. Mr. Stevens also assists industry clients with regulatory compliance, recall planning, crisis management and other issues in advance of and following major food-product recalls. Additional information about his practice can be found at www.defendingfoodsafety.com.

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GuestColumn

A bit(e) of E. coli history A history of E. coli O157:H7 as an “adulterant,” and why other EHECs should be “adulterants” too. By Bill Marler, Marler Clark LLP PS

I

t seems that any serious discussion of E. coli O157:H7 always has to start with one event: the 1993 outbreak associated with the Jack in the Box restaurant chain. This, of course, is with good reason. That outbreak left more than 650 persons ill (many with lifelong complications) and four children dead. The “9/11 for the food industry” precipitated a whirlwind of events including media coverage, consumer outrage, lawsuits and stricter federal regulations regarding meat safety. Though the swell of emotion that spiraled out of the Jack in the Box disaster dulls somewhat with each passing year, the federal regulations that sprung up in its wake continue to generate more questions.

Photo courtesy of U.S. Department of Agriculture

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THE NATIONAL PROVISIONER | PROVISIONERONLINE.COM | NOVEMBER 2011

To understand the significance of these regulations, a little background information is useful. The stated mission of the Food Safety & Inspection Service (FSIS) renders it “responsible for ensuring that the nation’s commercial supply of meat, poultry, and egg products is safe, wholesome, and correctly labeled and packaged.” FSIS operates as part of the USDA. To promote its mission, FSIS has the power under the Federal Meat Inspection Act (FMIA) to, among other things, seek the recall of products that have been deemed “adulterated.” FSIS drastically shifted how it interpreted and enforced the FMIA in 1994 when, following the Jack in the Box outbreak, the agency declared E. coli O157:H7 to be an “adulterant.” This marked a dramatic change from its previous stance that pathogens in raw meat were not adulterants. The declaration of E. coli O157:H7 as an adulterant was met with strong opposition from the meat industry. In a lawsuit filed soon after the 1994 declaration, the industry accused the FSIS of not following proper rulemaking procedures and of acting in an arbitrary and capricious manner beyond its legal authority. The United States District Court held, however, that the FSIS was allowed to interpret the FMIA and that the FSIS has the power to declare substances to be “adulterants” with the intended purpose of spurring the meat industry to create and implement preventative measures. According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), E. coli O157:H7 causes 73,000 illnesses and 50 deaths every year in the United States. Another six E. coli strains — O26, O45, O111, O121, O145 and O103 — are considered less pervasive, sickening “only” an estimated 37,000 people a year and killing nearly 30. E.coli O157:H7 is considered an adulterant in beef by the USDA (particularly ground beef); the other six strains are not.

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GuestColumn Nevertheless, following the meeting, FSIS failed to reUnder 21 U.S.C. § 601 ... (m), the Federal Meat Inspection interpret its policies. Act (FMIA), the term “adulterated” … : This brings us to today. We’re nearing the end of 2011, “… shall apply to any carcass, part thereof, meat or meat food product under one or more of the following circumstanc- closing in on 19 years since the Jack in the Box outbreak. Millions of Americans have suffered foodborne illnesses, es: (1) if it bears or contains any poisonous or deleterious injuries and deaths in that time, thousands of them likely substance which may render it injurious to health; but in case due to EHECs other than E. coli O157:H7. the substance is not an added substance, such article shall not It was on behalf of those persons that in 2009 the law firm of be considered adulterated under this clause if the quantity Marler Clark authored a petition to FSIS requesting the agency of such substance in or on such article does not ordinarily to issue an interpretive rule declaring all render it injurious to health …” EHECs to be adulterants within the meaning It is hard to read the above and not of the FMIA. The petition details the scientific think that the word “adulterated” does During the early and legal bases for the requested action, not apply to all E. coli. Presently, industry but perhaps more importantly, it details does not test for all of them (well, Costco part of this decade, the suffering that food contaminated with and BPI do) because the USDA and FSIS non-O157:H7 E. coli inflicted upon three have not traditionally required it — because, until recently, they have not been however, it became individuals: June Dunning, Megan Richards and Shiloh Johnson. considered “adulterants.” In addition, Ms. Dunning, whose infection was only five percent of labs in the U.S. roureadily apparent caused by E. coli O146:H21, unfortunately tinely test for these other E. coli leaving a succumbed to her illness, passing in 2006. gap in our food-safety network and the that E. coli O157:H7 Ms. Richards and Miss Johnson endured true level of illness unknown. lengthy hospitalizations, kidney failure, Non-E.coli O157:H7 EHECs have been and will both endure a lifetime of medifound in ground beef: In 2008, Marler was not the only cal complications as a result of their E. coli Clark hired a private lab to conduct a largeO121:H19 and E. coli O111 infections. scale nationwide study of ground beef, a deadly pathogen in On September 13, 2011, Secretary of Agkey vector in E.coli O157:H7 cases. During riculture Tom Vilsack and Under Secretary of 2008 and 2009, that lab tested just over Food Safety Dr. Elisabeth A. Hagen stepped 5,000 samples from a variety of manufacturthe E. coli family. to the microphone and declared that starting ers. IEH Laboratories found that about one March 5, 2012, six more E. coli strains, O26, percent of the samples were tainted by E. O45, O111, O121, O145 and O103, would be coli O26, O45, O111, O121, O145 and O103. deemed adulterants. It doesn’t matter whether the response The results and the testing methodology have been shared with was brought about by the previously mentioned petition, or USDA and FSIS and the beef industry. the simple need to do the right thing for public health. The fact During the early part of this decade, however, it became that science moved ahead of politics is a good thing. readily apparent that E. coli O157:H7 was not the only deadly It would be naïve to assume that a change to FSIS policy pathogen in the E. coli family — in fact, far from it. The CDC will immediately rid the world of all foodborne E. coli infecrecognized this fact when, in 2000, the agency made all EHECs tions. It has been unequivocally proven, however, that all nationally notifiable. The CDC subsequently referred to nonEHECs are potentially lethal pathogens that we must fight O157 EHECs as emerging pathogens that pose a significant tooth and nail to keep out of this nation’s food supply. health threat, with more strains reported every year. If we trust science and do our part to push government Still, FSIS remained steadfast in its stance that O157:H7 is agencies to enact regulations to require better monitoring, the only EHEC that should be deemed to be an adulterant. So what was wrong with FSIS’s position regarding E. coli O157:H7? we can no doubt begin to prevent further harm. In the end, after all, the requisite wading through the mess of The simple answer is this: The people of this nation do bureaucracy required to change federal regulation is all worth it, not deserve another Jack in the Box-sized catastrophe as a so long as the outcome prevents at least one more case like that of prerequisite for currently needed agency action. The scientific and medical communities have recognized June Dunning, Megan Richards, or Shiloh Johnson. the dangers of all EHECs, not just O157:H7. Nearly three years ago, on October 17, 2007, the CDC, FDA and FSIS A personal injury lawyer and national expert in foodborne illness litigation,William Marler has been a even went so far as to hold a public meeting to consider the major force in food-safety policy in the United States and public-health significance of non-O157 EHECs. In the Notice abroad. He and his partners at Marler Clark have repof the meeting, FSIS referred to the “growing awareness resented thousands of individuals in claims against food companies whose contaminated products have caused that EHEC’s other than E. coli O157:H7 cause sporadic and serious injury and death. Marler spends much of the outbreak-associated illnesses.” year speaking on how to prevent foodborne illnesses.

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THE NATIONAL PROVISIONER | PROVISIONERONLINE.COM | NOVEMBER 2011

“At J&G Foods, Inc., Reiser is much more than a supplier. They are a valued partner.” J&G Foods is a solidly positioned, successful niche supplier of case-ready meats for retail supermarkets and wholesale clubs. The company’s product focus includes natural, grass-fed and organic beef, marinated meats and Australian lamb. “Our strategic plan demands that we partner with equipment suppliers who provide the very best machinery, technology, reliability and service. When we completed our due diligence, we knew we had found a great partner in Reiser,” said Joe Piperato, President, J&G Foods, Inc. “Over the past two years, we have acquired six pieces of new equipment from Reiser. We use the Vemag HP10 Stuffer with an FM250 Loaf Former and a ProcessCheck checkweigher to produce high-end, perfectly portioned one- and five-pound ground beef blocks. We package it all using the Repak RE20 form/fill/seal packaging machine. We also use Reiser’s Holac Cubixx 100L Dicer to produce precision cut meats for stew and julienne slices for stir fry. And we recently purchased some additional equipment to help us produce MAP packages for fresh Australian lamb,” Piperato continued. “We couldn’t be happier with the performance of each of these machines,” added Piperato. “The folks at Reiser are professional, knowledgeable and easy to work with. Reiser has played a key role in the growth and success of our company.” Ed Briggs, QA Manager; Wayne Morin, Maintenance Manager; Joe Piperato, President; Ralph Babcock, Operations Manager; and Matt Pollard, Production Manager

Reiser 725 Dedham Street, Canton, MA 02021 • (781) 821-1290 Reiser Canada 1549 Yorkton Court #4, Burlington, ON L7P 5B7 • (905) 631-6611 www.reiser.com

Leading the food industry in processing and packaging solutions.

NewProducts Superior Farms launches new comfort line

Moe’s Southwest Grill unleashes retail line at BJ’s Wholesale Clubs

Superior Farms continues its innovative development of value-added lamb products with a fall lineup of retail comfort food items. They include a 2.5-pound pre-marinated cookin-the-bag leg of lamb, a 1.5-pound lamb and beef preseasoned meatloaf mix in an ovenready tray, and a 1.5-pound lamb and beef pre-seasoned classic stew. All items are developed to help make lamb an easy-to-prepare, flavorful and affordable dinner option. Research from the American Meat Institute shows that breaking these barriers in the mind of today’s shopper should lead to more lamb sales and consumer satisfaction.

Moe’s Southwest Grill and BJ’s Wholesale Club have partnered to create a line of retail appetizers, dips, veggies, soups, salsas and salad dressings that will bring the Moe’s experience to consumers in a whole new way. The partnership is Moe’s first foray into licensing and the products are available for purchase at all BJ’s Wholesale Clubs.

www.superiorfarms.com

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THE NATIONAL PROVISIONER | PROVISIONERONLINE.COM | NOVEMBER 2011

All Moe’s licensed products adhere to Moe’s Food Mission of bringing the highest-quality ingredients to every guest, every day, everywhere. Each of the 17 items features Moe’s brand personality, and many of them feature protein as a primary ingredient, from Chicken Tortilla Soup to Shredded Steak and Cheese Flautas, among others. www.moes.com

Roma Gourmet Sausages introduces OLD BAY line Roma Gourmet Sausage in East Baltimore, Md., has teamed with OLD BAY Seasoning to launch OLD BAY Sausages. The sausages are available at the specialty stand on the club level at the NFL Baltimore Ravens’ M&T Bank Stadium and at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. OLD BAY Sausages are available “hot and ready” at local Royal Farms locations and can also be found at select Maryland and midAtlantic retailers. OLD BAY has been the taste of Charm City for over 70 years with its unique blend of 18 herbs and spices. Now, the versatile Chesapeake Bay flavor icon goes from seafood to sausage. www.romagourmet.com

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NewProducts Uncle Charley’s introduces premium heat-and-serve products

Kunzler launches pretzel dogs

Uncle Charley’s Sausage Co. has introduced more new fully cooked, heat-and-serve products. A hickory hardwood-smoked, fully cooked, 22-oz. Ham Loaf is a traditional, mouth-watering main course that a busy mom or dad can quickly prepare in an oven. Just heat and serve in minutes for a family sit-down dinner. Uncle Charley’s Sausage also has introduced fully cooked Buttermilk Biscuit Sausage Sandwiches — with sausage, egg and cheese — which make a delectable breakfast meal that can be heated in a microwave in minutes. An 18-oz. package contains four individually wrapped sandwiches.

Kunzler and Co. has created the perfect grab-and-go snack or meal that is microwaveable and ready in less than two minutes. They have taken their Beef Premium Deli Frank, Áavored with Prime Rib Beef Seasoning, and hand-wrapped it in a delicious pretzel dough creating the ultimate hand-held fun food — a Pretzel Dog. The new Pretzel Dogs are available in a 17 oz. retail package, containing four 4-oz. Pretzel Dogs and a 1-oz. salt packet, as well as a 24-count foodservice package, containing four individual bags of six dogs each.

www.unclecharleyssausage.com

www.kunzler.com

20

THE NATIONAL PROVISIONER | PROVISIONERONLINE.COM | NOVEMBER 2011

NEW PROCESSING TECHNOLOGY FOR PROTEIN EXTENSION

The latest transglutaminase innovation from Ajinomoto When you use ACTIVA® BF, you can count on processing advantages for protein extension that result in more visually appealing ham, beef, poultry and pork products: aÚÚÚ£»Ð¬ëvlÚӟ˜bvÚî˜vŸlÓÖڟvÓÓÚÓbÐJ»ÚJ¨lÚXÐvJžJv aÚÚÚ
»»Ÿ˜bJXŸvژ¨Ú•˜•ÚvíÜv¨Ó˜¬¨iڟ¬ìÚÓ¬l˜å£Ú»Ð¬låbÜÓÚ like deli meats and hams aÚÚÚB¬ÐžÓÚìvŸŸÚ˜¨ÚŸ¬ìÚÓ¬l˜å£Ú»Ð¬låbÜÓÚì•vÐvÚ structure and sliceability are an issue ACTIVA® BF was specifically designed for use in brine, intended for either the injection or tumbling process. With ACTIVA® BF, transglutaminase activity is delayed until the brine is injected, even when high levels of protein extension are required. The enhanced handling time frame is an advantage when injecting in a high volume plant setting.

Easy-to-incorporate

ACTIVA® BF In the injection process, just add to dry seasoning blend during reconstitution with water In the tumbling process, reconstitute brine according to usual protocols –– it will not cause gelation

Want to learn more about how to include ACTIVA® BF in your brining process? Contact an Ajinomoto technical professional.

Call 1-800-456-4666 To watch a video demonstration, visit www.ajiusa.com

BusinessStrategies

Keeping pace with growing world demand

J

ust last month, I attended the Center of Excellence conference of protein and feed manufacturers in Barcelona, Spain, where I spoke to the group about brand building in the United States. I was able to visit with producers around Europe and learn about their challenges and opportunities. The good news is, our industry is in an area of need. We produce high-quality, safe protein at an affordable price, but our industry must continue to modify our processes and technique to enhance our ability to compete.

As the world population continues to grow, the demand for protein will grow dramatically -- especially in developing areas such as China, Russia and central Asia. We’re on our way to 9 billion people on the planet by 2050. By then, our growing global population will require an estimated 100% more food than we produce today. Unfortunately, we won’t have 100% more land available. The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) reports that added farmland Dan Emery, will help produce only 20% of Meaningful Solutions the additional food our planet Editorial Board Member will need in 2050, and 10% will come from increased cropping intensity. Seventy percent will require improved efficiency and technology. History tells us if food use increases, protein consumption increases at an even greater rate. U.S. poultry and egg production has increased well over 411 % since 1946. According to Bill Gates, “When farmers increase their productivity, nutrition is improved and hunger and poverty are reduced.” The challenge is to increase productivity using less resources such as land, water, energy and packaging material. Since 1946, we have increased food production 150% without increasing inputs. The EU has handcuffed its industry by implementing a series of policies and regulations that reduce productivity. Animal density has been reduced, GMO feed ingredients can’t be used, and animal medication has been severely restricted. During this election cycle remind your local politicians that agriculture is one of the last growing industries in this country, and you won’t be able to feed the new

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22

THE NATIONAL PROVISIONER | PROVISIONERONLINE.COM | NOVEMBER 2011

mouths in the world in handcuffs. More than 26,000 U.S. households were surveyed by AC Nielsen in October 2010 and results showed that 98% buy based on taste, cost and nutrition in that order. The EU has allowed approximately 5% of their population dictate agriculture policy. We can’t let the same thing happen in the U.S., or millions could face starvation. Global demand for food cannot be met by organic products, according to Peter Brabeck-Letmathe, chairman of the board of Nestle S.A., the world’s largest food company. “You have to be rational — there’s no way you can support life on Earth if you go straight from farm to table,” Brabeck-Letmathe said in the August 31, 2011, issue of Food magazine. He called organic food “a privilege” that not everyone is able to afford. Organically raised crops yield 30% less than produce grown through traditional means, Brabeck-Letmathe noted, and he suggests that the organic food market had peaked and was unlikely to grow much larger. Consequently, we in the U.S. need to look beyond the here and now to consider the needs of the larger population of the world. Through understanding the needs and sharing best practices, being innovative while prioritizing food safety, creating new technology and processes, and utilizing available resources while monitoring environmental concerns, we can set the way to the future. This foresight not only will guarantee the food supply for our own country, but also will allow us to continue to be the bread basket for the world. Dan Emery has 25 years experience in the food industry, including 15 as vice president of marketing at Pilgrim’s Pride. He is directing Meaningful Solutions, a company founded to assist clients in solving problems.

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Ingredients&Formulations

Photo courtesy of Caribou Coffee Co

Creating a component By Donna Berry

ot sure about you, but I have been enjoying some very decent hot sandwiches at very unsuspecting establishments, such as mini marts, coffee shops and even — brace yourself — vending machines. (The latter was out of desperation during jury duty, and I was pleasantly surprised that the vended beef dip hoagie — complete with Giardiniera — tasted like it came from the Italian corner sandwich shop.) Just this past week, I was invited to the opening of a new Caribou Coffee store in Chicago. On the menu was this incredible new line of chef-inspired breakfast sandwiches. I met the chef — Mark Miller, senior manager of culinary development, Caribou Coffee Co., Minneapolis — and he explained how the sandwiches are assembled by the bread baker near the company’s Minnesota headquarters and frozen prior to distribution. At the coffee shops, they are heated using both an oven and microwave, for complete warming, and even some crisping, without becoming soggy.

N

“When developing these sandwiches, we made sure we used the best breads, meats and cheeses,” Miller says. “Each and every sandwich must taste like it was made to order.” I sampled the Chicken Sausage Apple Daybreaker, which is an apple-seasoned chicken sausage and scrambled egg patty topped with melted Wisconsin cheddar cheese on a buttery brioche roll. There are also options with a turkey sausage patty or turkey bacon, as well as a line of grilled cheese sandwiches with various meats. 24

These innovations made me realize that there is a great deal of opportunity for meat, poultry and fish processors to develop fully cooked protein components for the growing area of heat-andeat foodservice. This not only includes sandwiches, but also the increasingly popular food bar, which typically includes an array of hot and cold prepared foods. For example, JTM Food Group, of Harrison, Ohio, recently introduced a new line of fully cooked frozen burrito fillings for foodservice Mexican fare. The meats

THE NATIONAL PROVISIONER | PROVISIONERONLINE.COM | NOVEMBER 2011

can be used on self-service hot bars, or for line cooks to quickly roll a burrito or even fill a taco. The line features more than a dozen options including Shredded Chipotle Chicken, Steak Ranchero and Pork Carnitas with Corn. For the health-conscious diner, there’s Reduced-Fat, Reduced-Sodium Beef Taco Filling. In addition, JTM now offers six breakfast Mexican fillings, including the new Chorizo con Pappas with Egg & Cheese. “JTM’s research-and-development team always has its ears to the market, so

we can constantly provide our foodservice customers with new menu options that are on-trend and on-taste,” says Jack Maas Jr., vice president-sales. “Right now, we’re seeing a ‘burrito boom’ across the U.S., as demand continues to grow for new Mexican dishes.” When formulating fully cooked proteins for foodservice, the greatest hurdle is to ensure an adequate shelf life, as most of these products are delivered through national and regional distributors. Because shelf life is limited by microbial spoilage and oxidative rancidity, which can lead to flavor deterioration and color loss, processors rely on ingredients that prevent either from happening. Foodservice formulators have an advantage, as one of the big differences between products formulated for foodservice and those packaged for retail is that ingredient information is not readily conveyed to the consumer in foodservice. As a result, processors have more leeway when choosing shelf-life extenders, as consumers cannot discriminate. Artificial preservatives such as butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA), butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT) and tertiary butylhydroquinone (TBHQ) have long been the standard to ensure an economically sensible shelf life for fully cooked and packaged meat products. And they continue to be; however for operators with an all-natural positioning, many prefer to use natural shelf-life extenders such as concentrated antioxidants obtained from rosemary and green tea. These ingredients can also assist with preventing warmed-over flavors from developing, which are the rancid off-flavors that arise when the lipids in fully cooked meats oxidize during reheating and storage. Some phosphates can also prevent warmed-over flavors from developing during refrigerated or frozen storage. With frozen products, it is important to take precautions to prevent excessive ice-crystal and freezer-burn development, which can occur in products exposed to freeze-thaw cycles. Hydrocolloid blends can typically assist, as they bind internal water and stabilize surface moisture, and by doing so, reduce or eliminate texture degradation in frozen foods. Now, before I head out to grab lunch at the nearby convenience store, I want to share a concept that debuted at

Donna Berry has a bachelor’s degree in food science from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and has been writing on food formulating for more than 15 years.

Anuga in Cologne, Germany, in early October, and one I thought worth sharing: a pre-cooked burger that warms in the toaster — the regular, old-fash-

ioned, pop-up toaster. Developed by Germany’s Tillman’s Convenience GmbH (see the photo) and sold in the freezer, each package contains two individually wrapped, fully cooked beef patties, two pre-cut buns, two packs of the company’s special burger sauce and two paper serving pouches. Both the burger and bun get warmed in the toaster for unprecedented convenience. Watch out Mickey D’s!

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FormulationStrategies

Hot breakfasts fight off the chill? By Olivia Sant’ Angelo, Innova Market Insights

WHAT WE EAT FOR BREAKFAST VARIES MARKEDLY IN DIFFERENT CULTURES around the world, but often includes carbohydrates such as cereals, rice or bread and bakery products, fruit and vegetables, protein — such as meat, fish, eggs or dairy products — and hot or cold beverages. Breakfast cereals are the most popular breakfast item in the U.S. and Canada, the UK and Ireland, and Australasia, but nowadays are also widely consumed in Europe. Nonetheless, a so-called continental breakfast of bread and bakery products, sometimes with cold meats and cheeses, is still more commonplace in many regions of Europe. Most Latin

26 6

American, Asian and African breakfasts are still not Western-style. Some countries, such as Australia, the U.S. and the UK have nearly universal household penetration of breakfast cereals, and this type of product now tends to dominate the breakfast market, particularly on weekdays, when speed and convenience is a key issue first thing in the morning. In the UK, the popularity of the traditional cooked breakfast fry-up of eggs, bacon, sausage, tomato, mushrooms, baked beans, etc., has declined in recent years, reflecting lack of time, greater levels of health concern and the

THE HE NA NATIO NATIONAL TIO TIO ON NA NAL AL AL PR PPROVISIONER PROVI ROVI OVISSIONER OV SIONER | PR PROVI PROVISIONERONLINE.COM OVISIO OVI SIONER SIO NERONL NER ONLINE ONL INE.CO .COM COM | NOVEMBER NOVEMB NOV EMBER EMB ER 201 2011 1

move toward lighter meals. However, it remains alive and well as an occasional or regular indulgent weekend option for many consumers. There have been relatively few product initiatives to date in terms of more convenient cooked breakfasts, although the appearance of savory toaster pastries in Europe over the past few years has been one significant move in that direction. These were first launched in Germany as a frozen meat snack under the Tillman’s Toasty name from Europe’s largest privately owned slaughtering and meat-processing company, Tönnies. Initially launched as the first meat-

based toaster pastry, Tillman’s Toasty soon encompassed bacon, poultry, fish and vegetable options, and has sales valued at 30 million Euros a year. It then targeted the breakfast market more directly with the September 2010 introduction of Frühstücks-Toasty Schinken und Ei (Breakfast Toasty Bacon and Egg). At virtually the same time, it launched a similar product in the UK market under the “Toast Me Bacon and Egg Breakfast” name, alongside a poultry variant under the “Toast Me Chicken” name. This was subsequently extended in the UK with five new variants, including Toast Me Cheese & Ham and Toast Me Hash Browns, suitable for breakfast consumption, alongside Chicken Curry, Chilli Chicken and Vegetable options that have more of an anytime snack or meal positioning. The move to hand-held breakfast items evident in the U.S. is also apparent in the UK, albeit in a much more fragmented way. As well as standard ready meals, such as the All Day Big Breakfast frozen ready meal from Kershaws, the frozen and chilled foods market encompasses a range of breakfast sandwiches, muffins, wraps and baguettes, containing fillings with ingredients such as sausages, eggs and bacon. Recent introductions include an All Day Breakfast Baguette from Eatwell’s under the Feasters brand, featuring Microvent technology to allow them to be heated in the microwave in their packets. UK frozen-foods retail chain Iceland also has introduced frozen Sausage & Egg Muffins and Big Breakfast Baguettes. There are even canned breakfast meal options, led by Crosse & Blackwell’s Hunger Breaks All Day Breakfast, made up of baked beans with added breakfast-style ingredients such as sausages, bacon, mushrooms and egg. The ubiquitous British pie has also been moved into the breakfast arena with the September 2011 extension of the Pieminister brand with two breakfast variants — Full English Breakfast Pie and Morning Glory Pie, both featuring promotions linked to the Rugby World Cup and targeting rugby fans rising early in the UK to watch the matches from New Zealand. The Full English Breakfast contains baked beans, sausage, smoked Cheddar and smoked bacon, while the Morning Glory variant has baked beans, button mushrooms and smoked Cheddar. In the meantime, there have also been some efforts to position existing breakfast standards, such as sausage, with a stronger breakfast association, as evidenced by Kerry Group’s early 2011 launch of Wall’s Breakfast Sausages, aimed specifically at the breakfast market with a thinner and lighter format than the rest of the Wall’s range, designed as a lighter choice for the breakfast period. With per capita consumption of breakfast cereals in the U.S. lower than that in the UK, at just over 4 kg compared to nearly

7 kg, respectively, there is also a greater demand for other breakfast items, including protein-based products, such as hot and cold meats and eggs. A significant market for frozen breakfast products has developed, with the major focus in recent years being on developing microwaveable options for rapid defrosting and heating, increasing the convenience of the products and their suitability as quick and sustaining breakfast lines. Interest in hand-held options is also rising, reflecting their popularity in terms of ease of eating “on the go.” A review of recent launch activity recorded on the Innova Database reveals that the hand-held sector now encompasses a wide range of options, including sandwiches, baguettes, muffins, wraps and even burritos, all filled with breakfast-type ingredients. Burrito-based breakfast options have proved particularly popular in terms of launch activity over the last few months, with both branded and private-label introductions. The José Olé range of frozen Mexican foods was extended in early 2011 with the launch of three Breakfast Burrito products in Egg & Bacon, Egg & Sausage and Egg & Ham variants, while on the private-label front, introductions have included Breakfast Burritos from speciality grocery retailer Trader Joe, launched mid-year just after its Breakfast Scramble range. Other U.S. own-brand activity in frozen breakfast lines has included Kroger’s English Muffin Sandwich in a Lite Canadian Bacon, Egg & Cheese variant. The breakfast sector now even encompasses some pizza products targeted at the breakfast market, as exemplified by Palermo’s Breakfast Pizza, launched in mid-2011 featuring a cheese sauce, egg, bacon and sausage topping. Concerns over health have led to the appearance of an increasing number of healthier breakfast options, with Heinz Weight Watchers Smart Ones a leader in this area. In March 2011, it extended its Morning Express frozen breakfast subbrand, which offers an assortment of balanced breakfast options, including quesadillas, stuffed sandwiches, English muffin sandwiches and cheesy scrambles. The new additions, both featuring protein and whole grains, were an Egg, Sausage and Cheese Morning Wrap, and French Toast with Turkey Sausage, featuring six and seven WeightWatchers PointsPlus values, respectively. Sara Lee’s Jimmy Dean breakfast foods range has also been developing its light options under the D’Lights low-calorie branding. The Ham Breakfast Bowl added in the spring of 2011 joined the existing D’Lights Bowls and Sandwiches range featuring Turkey Sausage Croissant, Turkey Sausage Whole Grain Bagel, Turkey Sausage Breakfast Bowl, Canadian Bacon Honey

NOVEMBER 2011 | PROVISIONERONLINE.COM | THE NATIONAL PROVISIONER

27

FormulationStrategies Wheat Muffin and Turkey Sausage Muffin. Jimmy Dean is the long-term leader in the U.S. breakfast sausage market, but has gradually extended its range through bacon and breakfast sandwiches to encompass a wide range of breakfast lines, including skillets, omelettes and bowls, as well as its Hearty Sausage Crumbles range launched at the end of 2010. The Crumbles are fully cooked, packaged in resealable pouches and can be heated in minutes to offer consumers a new way to add sausage to their favorite breakfast dishes. Another relatively recent addition is the Jimmy D’s range of three child-oriented breakfast items — French Toast Griddles, Griddle Sticks and Pancake Griddles. The importance of branding in the sector is also reflected in the appearance of restaurant brands in the retail market, with a mid-2011 introduction featuring a range of frozen breakfast

foods launched by Golden County Foods using the iconic pancake house brand IHOP. The range featured Omelet Crisper in Cheese, Sausage & Cheese or Bacon & Cheese varieties, French Toast Stuffed Pastries, and Griddle’n’Sausage Wrap. A Starbucks branded Veggie, Egg & Monterey Jack Artisan Breakfast Sandwich was also launched in the U.S. market in early 2011, while the Tim Horton’s branding was used for the launch of Homestyle Hash and Bagel B.E.L.T (bacon, egg, lettuce and tomato) breakfast products at the end of 2010. Nutritionists frequently refer to breakfast as the most important meal of the day, citing studies that find that people who skip breakfast are disproportionately likely to have problems with concentration, metabolism and weight. Even so, there are large numbers of people who still skip breakfast on a regular or occasional basis, most often citing lack of time or lack of appetite.

Even if these consumers can be encouraged to consume breakfast more often, ready-to-eat products such as breakfast cereals, cereal bars and bakery lines are likely to continue to dominate the market, reflecting their greater convenience. Nonetheless, there is always going to be demand, if on a more limited scale, for more substantial hot breakfast items in countries such as the U.S. and the UK, both for in-home and on-the-go consumption, with hand-held, microwaveable lines likely to see the most activity as a result of their greater relative convenience, portability and suitability for today’s busy lifestyles. The author,Olivia Sant’Angelo,is a market analyst at Innova Market Insights,(www.innovadatabase. com) a leading supplier of new product and trend information in the food and beverage space.Innova Market Insights is organized by food industry professionals to rapidly record new product activity and identify the trends driving the industry today and in the future.For more information,contact [email protected].

Success is a Matter of System Maximizing Profits with CSB-System Software Solutions With more than 33 years of experience, CSB-System is the leading provider of innovative software solutions for the protein industry. Our industry specific fully integrated solutions provide our global client base with long-lasting competitive advantages by increasing efficiency, reducing costs and maximizing profits. Integrated. Pre-Configured. Tailored to your Business. Chicago, IL. go, IL I in AMce sitit us ss Expo in Chnica Vi at Pro us at er r. ntnte Vis tiotionCeCe enen nvnv Co ce PlaPlace Co ckick mirm M McorCo atcC th-16th 131-4 ril er vemb NoAp 44 othot#2 BoBo h #19984

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FormulationStrategies

‘Meating’ kosher demands with

gelatin By Mindi McKibbin, Gelita USA

hether you spell it gelatin or gelatine, this hydrocolloid should be part of every food developer’s tool chest. Ideal for emulsifying, film forming, water binding and foam stabilization, gelatin’s unique functional abilities offer solutions to many foods. Gelatin is the only hydrocolloid that provides that oneof-a-kind mouthfeel, as most hydrocolloids are not thermoreversible and do not have a melting point near body temperature. Because of this, gelatin is often used in low- and no-fat recipes as a texturizer to give the creamy mouthfeel of full-fat versions. Protein sets gelatin apart from other carbohydratebased hydrocolloids. Produced from, among other sources, cattle hides, gelatin is an easily digestible collagen protein comprised of polypeptide chains. The degree of enzymatic hydrolysis determines the gelatin type, namely the “bloom,” or gel strength, because it is directly related to molecular weight. If hydrolysis is interrupted, a typical gelatin is produced. Gelatin is composed of longer chains with an average molecular weight of approximately 180kDa. If hydrolysis is carried to completion, the result is gelatin hydrolysate, also referred to as collagen hydrolysate or collagen peptides. Collagen peptides show a smaller average

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30

molecular weight of 2-20kDa, depending on the degree of hydrolysis. Gelatin hydrolysates cannot form gels and are easily dissolved in room-temperature water. Gelatin is available in diverse types with varying blooms, viscosities, iso-electric points and particle sizes, all of which should be considered depending on the final texture and desired functionality (see chart on page 32). Other factors influencing gelatin’s performance in a finished product are pH, equipment constraints, gelatin usage and processing temperatures. Since proteins are denatured by heat, temperature must be considered. Between 50°C and 60°C, swollen gelatins will dissolve completely and are maintained at this temperature without losing their ability to gel. If higher temperatures (80° C to 100° C) are maintained for only a few minutes, gelling power survives. Gelling ability will decline at temperatures above 100°C or in solutions with high concentrations of sugar or salts. Extreme pH, either acid or alkaline, also affects gel quality. It’s best to add these pH-altering ingredients after the gelatin is dissolved completely and just before the next processing step. Until recently, however, the use of gelatin in kosher foods

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was limited due to the unavailability of mass-produced OU (Orthodox Union) Kosher beef hide gelatin. Now, because beef hide gelatin is available with OU Kosher certification, formulators can consider the diverse functionality of gelatin and still meet growing consumer demands for kosher products (see sidebar on page 32). Zach Rubin, president and CEO of Geliko LLC, says, “Non-kosher gelatin and kosher gelatin have exactly the same functional properties. They have a neutral taste and little odor, so they are optimal for use in food applications without altering taste or smell.” Meat applications Gelatin provides multiple benefits in meat products, including water binding, emulsifying, glazing and providing structure to meats. As an emulsifier, it prevents the coalescence and phase separation of dispersed oil and fat globules and increases fat binding and water absorption. In canned meat products, gelatin decreases juices lost during cooking by either sprinkling dry granular gelatin into the can or adding a highly concentrated solution (40%; 250 bloom; pH >5.5). Typical dosage is 4-5% of this 40% gelatin solution. In glazing and dipping masses for sausages, gelatin offers a clear coating. To obtain a coating which will remain moist, use a plasticizer such as invert syrup or glycerine. The process is simple — add gelatin (4-5 lbs — 225 bloom) with stirring to cold water (3-4 gallons, depending on thickness desired) and soak for 15-20 minutes. Dissolve in a double boiler or steamjacketed kettle at 130-140°F with the invert syrup (4-5 lbs) or glycerine (2-2.5 lbs). In frozen cooked meats, gelatin acts as a binding agent by maintaining structure and avoiding water losses. For this application, the gelatin (1%; 175 bloom) is sprinkled between meat layers and placed in casings before heat treatment. Gelatin used in fresh or frozen meat significantly reduces

Gelatin provides multiple benefits in meat products, including water binding, emulsifying, glazing and providing structure to meats.

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31

FormulationStrategies Uses for Gelatin in Food Applications Application Meat: Aspic Meat: Low-fat luncheon meat Meat: Sausage Beverage: juice Beverage: smoothie Beverage: wine Confection: gummy candy

Confection: marshmallow

Confection: nougat

Dairy: ice cream

Dairy: yogurt Dessert: gelatin

Dessert: mousse/pudding

Gelatin Functionalities Gelling agent Water-binding; fat replacement Coating; adhesive agent Removal of turbidity; brilliant clear Provides smooth mouthfeel; thickener Removal or turbidity and tannins Provides smooth texture and mouthfeel; has a delicate chew; thermoreversible gel melts in the mouth; excellent clarity; neutral color and taste; assists flavor release High-degree of gel firmness; good foam formation and stabilization; thermoreversible gel melts in the mouth Good foam formation and stabilization; thermoreversible gel melts in the mouth Binds water; control size and distribution of ice crystals; stabilizes overrun Binds water; prevents syneresis; contributes to slippery mouthfeel Thermoreversible gel melts in the mouth; excellent clarity; neutral color and taste, assists flavor release Good foam formation and stabilization; thermoreversible gel melts in the mouth; prevents syneresis

drip loss (up to 50% in some instances) by adding 0.3-0.8% gelatin either as a powder on the outside of the meat or by processing the same amount into the meat product. Lastly, gelatin hydrolysates improve the softness and spreadability of sandwich spreads. Gelatin hydrolysates have excellent whipping properties and stabilizing effects on emulsions and suspensions and also improve flavor, aroma and color. Add gelatin hydrolysates to meat-based sauces and soups for a smoother and creamier texture and enhanced gloss. Aside from use in meat products, collagen proteins have a long history in other foods and beverages and in the pharmaceutical industry. Further, select gelatin ingredients are now being used in the cosmetics industry in products that claim to protect skin, hair and more. And, research suggests that gelatin ingredients, in particular gelatin hydrolysate, when consumed orally, can help treat bone and joint discomfort.

32

Usage Level 1.0% to 5.0% 1.0% to 5.0% 1.0% to 5.0% 0.002% to 0.015% 1.0% to 10.0% 0.002% to 0.015% 5.0% to 9.0%

1.5% to 2.5%

0.2% to 2.0%

0.1% to 1.0%

0.2% to 1.0% 1.5% to 2.5%

0.5% to 2.0%

Mindi McKibbin is a specialist in Edible Technical Services for Gelita USA. She received her Bachelor of Science in Chemistry and Mathematics from Buena Vista University. She can be contacted at (712) 943-0317 or [email protected].

THE NATIONAL PROVISIONER | PROVISIONERONLINE.COM | NOVEMBER 2011

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CoverStory

Showing off the presentation room at OSI Group’s new Culinary Innovation Center in Aurora, Ill., are Ron Bree, senior v.p., Foodservice Sales & Business Development; Kevin Scott, executive v.p., North America; Dan Milovanovic, senior v.p., North American Operations; and Pat Peterson, senior v.p., U.S. Finance.

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THE NATIONAL PROVISIONER | PROVISIONERONLINE.COM | NOVEMBER 2011

Open fOr

innOvatiOn With its new culinary innovation center in Aurora, Ill., and dry-sausage facility in West Jordan, Utah, OSI Group sends a loud-and-clear message that it is ready to carry its customers to the next level. By Andy Hanacek, editor-in-chief • Corporate photos by Vito Palmisano • West Jordan plant photos courtesy of OSI Group

T

o many, it’s the big meat processor that few know a lot about. To some, it’s the big meat processor that started serving McDonald’s the day the first restaurant opened and hasn’t looked back. But the reality is, Aurora, Ill.-based OSI Group has grown into an innovationcentric, people- and customer-focused powerhouse over the last decade-plus, quietly plying its trade in the background of the macro issues that have bombarded and also emerged within the industry. As the economy struggled through 2009 and 2010 (and in some cases still struggles), OSI was getting back on its horse, riding several initiatives toward long-term growth. Two of those initiatives came to fruition in the past months — OSI celebrated the grand openings of its Culinary Innovation Center at its Aurora headquarters and its brand new dry-sausage plant in West Jordan, Utah.

Beyond the obvious boost to the asset base and production tonnage for OSI, these two facilities signal much more about OSI’s plans, strategy and direction moving forward. In a big way, these moves tell the industry and a potential customer base that OSI has been and will be not only open for business — but focused heavily on bringing innovative products to market across the globe, using top-of-the-line knowledge and technologically advanced processes to get the job done more creatively and efficiently, and with even better quality. Branching out with quality, safety To those who may be in the know, the diversification of OSI’s business in the 1990s is old news. But given OSI’s penchant for not seeking out publicity and desire to remain a privately owned company, it’s worth hearing company chairman and CEO Sheldon Lavin describe how OSI’s business went from being more than 95 percent reliant

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CoverStory

During an off-hours tour in September 2011, Allen Forkell, operations manager – Dry Sausage, walks Andy Hanacek, editor-in-chief of The National Provisioner, through the innovative product-handling systems on the floor of OSI’s new dry-sausage facility in West Jordan, Utah.

upon McDonald’s toward a much more expansive customer base today. “Today, we continue to grow our business with McDonald’s while also serving the growing needs of many of the world’s leading brands,” he explains. Lavin believes OSI’s track record of producing safe and highquality food has been a big driver of this diversification over the years, and it is one tenet of the business that OSI promotes heavily today. “One of the reasons we have the customer base that we have is because of our food-safety systems,” Lavin adds. “We’ve been a McDonald’s supplier since Day One and supplied the first hamburger in the first store, and 56 years later, we’re proud to be one of their largest protein suppliers in the world. We have and will continue to evolve with our customers.” OSI is regularly recognized for its leadership in quality, ranging from development of robust foreign-material prevention programs to industry leadership in raw-material management. Other customers have taken note of 36

OSI’s abilities in these areas, and have helped diversify the company, as Lavin states. Furthermore, Kevin Scott, executive vice president, North America, believes the company’s advancements in food safety and quality give it an advantage globally. “Quality practices here are giving us a leg up in Asia right now,” he says, “because in their emerging landscape of regulatory and quality standards, we can utilize some of our U.S.-based expertise to provide our customers with excellent supply-chain and manufacturing solutions, distancing ourselves from the competition.” Best innovation foot forward Because of OSI’s long-term partnerships with its customers — focused on the restaurant, private-label, industrial and foodservice distributor channels — the company is able to deliver innovative product and processing solutions using its track record on quality, food-safety and operational excellence. OSI then caps it off by putting its best culinary and product-

THE NATIONAL PROVISIONER | PROVISIONERONLINE.COM | NOVEMBER 2011

development foot forward. After years of extensive planning and development by B.K. Girdhar, vice president, R&D, executive chef Chris Hansen, and their teams, OSI converted a wing of its headquarters office building into the OSI Culinary Innovation Center. Prior to this, OSI had the expertise and track record in product development and culinary innovation, but simply didn’t have a centralized “destination” for its brainstorming, testing and development sessions. Hansen calls the new center — which opened officially in September — the “perfect” space, one that includes a customer-focused kitchen, a taste-panel room, a large conference room and a presentation room. “At the end of the day, we wanted a functional space that could be used to the customers’ expectations and make them feel welcome,” Hansen explains. Already, in the center’s short active life, it seems to have paid dividends. Ron Bree, senior vice president, Foodservice Sales and Business De-

velopment, says one of OSI’s existing customers had used a competitor’s culinary facilities in the past to work on projects. But things appear to be changing already. “Today we had them specifically in our building working on three new items, and it puts us in the forefront with that customer,” he explains. “The center has played well with other customers as well. We already have had several new customers in here exploring exciting new product concepts. “It’s a great front-end approach to get them to come into our building, get relaxed and work with our culinary team and Chef Chris, who is a great customer-oriented chef,” Bree says. Furthermore, Girdhar adds OSI is certainly taking advantage of having the expertise and abilities all in one location. “Several times a week, we have work sessions or product cuttings,” he says. “Internally, we use it also for sensory evaluation and product development.”

The West Jordan dry-sausage facility’s grinding, stuffing and product-handling system uses optics to keep the line moving efficiently. An OSI Group employee (inset) hooks a log onto the system — from this point forward until the logs are placed in combos for shipping, there is no product handling by human hands.









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Bryan Dedrickson, plant manager; Allen Forkell, operations manager – Dry Sausage; Mark Chaplin, assistant vice president, Process Team; and Mike Yeager, vice president, Engineering; stand outside the brand new dry-sausage plant at OSI Group’s West Jordan, Utah, processing facility.

PUMA EB Building a new business segment While the Culinary Innovation Center is a great destination point for OSI and its customers to innovate and develop mutually beneficial ideas and products, it should be noted that OSI had been blazing its own trails into new business segments well before the center came online. The company has always worked with its customers to find new growth potential, and then has not been afraid to invest in the long-term opportunities brought about by those relationships. For an example of this, one needs to look no further than OSI’s brand new West Jordan, Utah, facility expansion into dry-sausage manufacturing. The West Jordan facility was constructed in 1977 and has produced frozen beef patties, cooked meats and specialty hand-cut steak items since then. When a significant restaurant customer came knocking on OSI’s door about the opportunity to fill a need for dry-sausage production in the west, the company jumped at the chance and agreed to build the plant at West Jordan, doubling the footprint of the overall facility (though the two plants share a wall and the rawmaterials receiving dock, they each operate relatively independently of one another). “As the demand has continued to grow in dry sausage, there has been

a limited amount of production in the west,” says Mark Chaplin, assistant vice president, Process Team. “Understanding that, ... we worked with our customer to build the facility and design it specifically to produce world-class pepperoni and Genoa salami.” Bree says OSI invested in the facility not only for its current customer’s needs, but also to expand OSI’s portfolio of core manufacturing processes. “We looked for opportunities across the industry where capacity was constrained,” he explains. “Dry sausage was one of those areas and a perfect fit for our customer’s specific needs in this case. If you look, drysausage manufacturing is very capital intensive, and it requires unique expertise. OSI is excited to now be a part of this growing business segment.” Mike Yeager, vice president, Engineering, explains that the West Jordan facility was built to accommodate plenty of growth down the road, beyond the existing capacity. “When we built the facility, we had two phases of expansion in mind, and we made accommodations for that in the construction plans,” he says. “One, within the physical walls, and two, some of our infrastructure can afford a physical expansion of the building outside of the walls that you see today.”

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CoverStory Innovative technology on display From a macro standpoint, the West Jordan dry-sausage plant stands as a shining example of OSI’s willingness to invest in a long-term opportunity that it believes has significant potential. However, below the surface, the plant bubbles with innovative technological advancements that take operations, quality and food safety to a whole new level for the industry. Chaplin says OSI did extensive homework on the drysausage process and put together a team with a broad range of experience in the manufacturing of pepperoni and an understanding of the nuances of the process. “You can talk to people in the industry and [mostly] they’re going to tell you what doesn’t work; what you can’t do, and what that does is puts up a lot of barriers to being a little more creative and stepping out a little further than what the rest of the industry has been doing,” he explains. OSI stepped back in response and looked carefully at how to be innovative across a variety of processes, whether it was formulating the product, grinding, stuffing, hanging, drying or moving that product around the facility. State-of-the-art processes were developed, all with efficiency and food safety top of mind. “What we came up with was a process that requires

The West Jordan facility’s innovative racking system allows an employee the ability to place logs on a conveyor without touching the actual product. He simply slides the bar through the loops and removes it from the conveyor area.

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very little human touching of the product,” Chaplin says. “From the time we grind that product, the only person that touches that product is the person that touches the stick and places the loop on the automated hanging system. That is it. ... That product is never touched again until it is placed in the combo.” Beyond the food-safety ramifications of this aspect of the system, Chaplin adds that it helps minimize worker ergonomics and product damage issues via a lack of human handling of heavy logs of meat. “In a traditional facility, there’s a lot of weight moved around by forklifts or handtrucks, or in some cases trees that you have to push,” he says. “So putting in an automated system that handles that for you saves ergonomics, saves efficiency and saves yields.” The overall facility has plenty of room to expand, Chaplin reiterates, and based on the employee base and its loyalty to the company (little turnover, long tenured, explains complex manager Bryan Dedrickson), as long as there is long-term growth potential, people shouldn’t be surprised to see OSI increase its footprint there. “The big thing about the future of this facility is, we’ve really laid the facility out and built it in such a manner that, if we decided to double the size of this facility, that easily could be accomplished,” Chaplin says. Yeager adds that the way the dry sausage plant is laid out offers OSI a variety of options if the company wants to expand into new segments as well. “If you look at the front end of the plant, for example, where we grind, stuff and make logs, if you’re openminded, there’s really not a reason that we couldn’t make logs of a lot of different components,” Yeager says. “We have the real estate here where we could actually use that front end to make different products that could go into a new, different room — today, [dry sausage] may go to the right, but in the future, if we wanted to, [a new product] could go to the left, and we could make a lot of different products

and compete in some segments that this facility doesn’t compete in as it sits today.” No matter the “direction” OSI travels in its pursuit for long-term growth, the company’s new Culinary Innovation Center and dry-sausage facility

register as more than a feather in the cap of a true trailblazing processor. These new facilities — combined with the business strategies and employee expertise behind them — show the world in a big way that OSI is open for innovation.

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ConsumerTrends

The National Provisioner’s

Consumer Trends 2012 Report

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THE NATIONAL PROVISIONER | PROVISIONERONLINE.COM | NOVEMBER 2011

Even with the current economic struggles, retailers and restaurant operators are finding growth opportunities. By Sam Gazdziak

G

iven the state of the U.S. economy, it’s increasingly difficult to find a silver lining among all the clouds when it comes to the food industry.

Yes, the U.S. foodservice industry experienced a record $604 billion in sales in 2011, making it the best operating environment for the industry in the last four years. However, profit margins and commodity costs have made profitability at foodservice a constant struggle. Yes, retail sales are strong, as consumers are eating at home more often. However, price inflation has forced some consumers to trade down in many cases, and private-label goods continue to eat into branded products’ sales. In spite of the problems plaguing the industry, there remains room to grow in both the retail and foodservice

segment — even if the growth is more modest than it has been in past years. The key to success in 2012, for both meat processors and their customers, is to provide value. “While there are certainly customers who have had to cut back dramatically in all areas of their household budgets, we’ve seen evidence that people still shop the deli — but they’re more value-conscious,” says Alan Hiebert, education information specialist for the International DairyDeli-Bakery Association. “Over the past few years, there have been a greater number of value-added products put into the supply chain,” adds Hudson Riehle, senior vice president of research for the National Restaurant Association. “In this environment, it really becomes an important component of success, because it allows the labor that would have been resident in that [restaurant] to be moved down the supply chain, where it can be done with greater efficiency and economics of scale.”

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ConsumerTrends

Photo courtesy of Tyson Deli

Value at the foodservice level Profitability in the foodservice industry has been hampered by high inflation rates, says Erin Lash, senior equity analyst for Morningstar Inc. She notes that a recent estimate from Sysco Corp. put the food cost inflation level at 6 percent, compared to 2 percent last year. “A modest level of food inflation — 2 to 3 percent — is ideal, but a rampant spike in food costs can pressure the firm and its customers, as it is now,” she says. The traditional method of handling higher inflation has been to raise costs to customers, but doubledigit inflation in categories like meat and seafood make that pass-along more challenging. However, there is a pent-up demand for restaurant dining, says Riehle. He says that consumer surveys held by the National Restaurant Association indicate that two out of five adults are not dining out as much as they would like. With nearly half of all the country’s food dollars going to the restaurant community, consumers have shown a desire to eat out when it’s financially possible to do so. However, with dining out becoming more of an occasional treat than a regular occurrence, there 44

is increased competition to get those dollars. “If the customer’s last experience in terms of food quality, service and price-value relationship doesn’t meet their expectations, they’re quick to vote with their feet,” he says. “It’s quite important for operators to give consumers, in essence, a nudge to make the decision to patronize.” Part of that nudge, Riehle says, is to provide signature products, and meat is obviously a large part of a signature dining experience. Restaurants are also looking increasingly toward value-added products as a way to save money through operation efficiency and productivity gains. Riehle sees a greater emphasis on value-added products and increased cooperation between foodservice operators and their meat suppliers to produce products that can help eliminate much of the kitchen preparation. Riehle noted that the upper-end, white-tablecloth restaurants have traditionally been the place where new ingredients, new dishes and new cuisines have been created, and it gradually filters down to the rest of the foodservice industry. That trend is continuing, but it is happening at an increasingly accelerated pace. “If you look at many of the menu

THE NATIONAL PROVISIONER | PROVISIONERONLINE.COM | NOVEMBER 2011

offerings in quick-service and fastcasual restaurants now, many of those items and preparation techniques were relatively recent in upscale service restaurants,” he says. Part of that development, he explains, is the increasing sophistication among consumers, particularly younger consumers. From a supplier standpoint, it means that companies that used to focus on a specific segment like fine dining should realize that the consumer’s knowledge of new products and expectation of having that product in different settings is growing. Joscelyn MacKay, securities analyst at Morningstar says that restaurants also should look to continually introduce innovative products at value prices — with an emphasis on “continually.” “Wendy’s revenues received a boost from the introduction of new fries last year, but this was short-lived,” she says. “Customers are always looking for the next new thing.” When it comes to restaurant segments, the fast-casual market has been one of the fastest-growing segments in foodservice, and Paul Damico, president of Moe’s Southwest Grill, says he expects that trend to continue. “That segment is gobbling up consumers from the full-service segment and the fast-food segment,” he says.

made products.

Retail merchandising

Photos courtesy of Moe’s Southwestern Grill

“We’ve got consumers continuing to trade down to fast-casual, and we’ve got consumers who, on a lot of occasions, want to trade up from fast food. We’re right in that sweet spot.” Damico says that Moe’s sales will end up being about 3.5 percent ahead of 2010 when the company’s fiscal year is completed (ahead of the industry average of 2.5 percent), and he is anticipating growth of about 2.8 percent in 2012. Part of the company’s growth plans lie in new unit development. “As we get into 2012, we expect to, at minimum, open one new restaurant per week,” he says. “We’re also seeing growth outside of our core market. Today we operate in 32 states domestically, and we plan to enter into five new states in 2012.”

Expanding into retail One of Moe’s other recent growth strategies has been to expand into the retail market through licensed products. Moe’s parent company, Focus Brands, has a consumer goods licensing business that has helped Cinnabon develop many retail products. Damico says that he was approached about an opportunity to introduce Moe’s-branded products into BJ’s Wholesale Club. Through a very aggressive development plan, Moe’s introduced 14 new products, including salsa, bean dip, guacamole and chicken empanadas, into BJ’s refrigerated foods department. “What typically takes 18 months to

get a licensed product inside a club store or supermarket channel, we got accomplished in about six months,” Damico says, adding that the products have outperformed all expectations. The Moe’s retail items are expanding into more than 800 stores nationwide, thanks to additional deals with Super Target, Price Chopper and other stores. The licensed products do not include products that Moe’s restaurants are known for, such as fajitas and burritos, as the goal of the project was to expand the company’s product line and not replicate it. It also assured the company’s 200-plus franchise partners that it was not looking to grow sales at retail at the expense of the foodservice sector. Damico says that expanding into retail is a desire that most restaurant brands have. “It is a very efficient way to grow revenue,” he explains. “In the BJ’s club store, we fit very comfortably in the refrigerated foods section with Panera and Legal Sea Foods and some other high-quality restaurant brands. “The single biggest challenge,” Damico adds, “is making sure the products produced in the licensing arena meet our specifications. We are going to control what our products look and taste like, and if we can do that, we are confident that the product is being well-represented to the consumer.” For that reason, Moe’s did not release any type of frozen Mexican entree, because that would not fit with the restaurant’s promise of fresh, hand-

While slower economic growth may lead to lower commodity costs going into 2012, Lash at Morningstar expects prices at retail to remain high for several months due to hedging contracts. “In our view, brand strength will be tested over the next several quarters [to see] whether these higher prices can be sustained without a significant hit to volumes,” she explains, “especially if bigger price hikes are needed to cover costs.” Lash notes that private-label manufacturers have taken market share over the past year, and she does not expect the consumer to trade up back to branded products anytime soon. Consumer product companies have the further disadvantage of having to spend on research and development, marketing, and advertising, while private-labelers do not. Rising feed costs have led to sizable increases in sales, but Lash says it is difficult to predict where input costs will be in 2012. “Commodity prices could be volatile, to say the least,” she says. “Futures have come off of highs, but they could easily go up again. If the rate of commodity inflation slows, it’s possible that some of the margin pressures that these meat-processing firms have faced could reverse.” Hiebert notes that deli sales continue to rise, though the growth is slower than years past. Consumers are searching for value — though “value” means different things to different people — quality, price, food source, menu trends, and benefits or drawbacks of consumption can all play a part. “Stores may need to deliver the value message in several ways,” he says. “The message of value can be conveyed through signage, packaging, verbal interaction, social media and merchandising, among others. I think stores and brands that do the best

NOVEMBER 2011 | PROVISIONERONLINE.COM | THE NATIONAL PROVISIONER

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ConsumerTrends jobs of conveying value stand the best chances of success in the next year.” One successful instance of using merchandising to increase sales has been Tyson Deli’s wing and tender merchandising. The company has found that using visible merchandisers for wings and tenders have helped those items go from tailgating/footballseason favorite to year-round sellers. Tyson’s research indicates that 25 percent of customers shop the deli area, but 43 percent shop mobile merchandisers in high-traffic areas. With the right wing and tender merchandising, retailers were able to increase sales by 40 percent, with nearly 60 percent of wing sales coming from impulse purchases. The key strategies to ensure a successful “wing bar” were quality wings, in-store merchandising, bundling wings with beverages, and hiring

dedicated staff who are trained and motivated to manage the wing bar. “Our experience in working with retailers shows that, when Tyson insights are put into motion, deli operators may see astounding results,” says T FuQua, Tyson Deli brand manager. “In fact, participating retailers have

seen sales lifts between 28 percent and 35 percent when utilizing Tyson Deli promotions.” Much like the foodservice sector, product innovation will play a factor in making retailers successful in 2012. Along with new-product development, Morningstar analyst Ken Perkins suggests that processors look at packaging as well. Some of the company’s research indicates that consumers are willing to pay more per ounce in order to lessen total dollars spent, and some processors have been adjusting package size in light of that trend. Hiebert adds that retailers will be particularly interested in packaging that can help reduce shrink, which eats into their profits. When it comes to new products, he says, “I see a bigger emphasis on new delivery methods — like food trucks or more streamlined home delivery — than on new products.”

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THE NATIONAL PROVISIONER | PROVISIONERONLINE.COM | NOVEMBER 2011

“Our new Vemag stuffer performs exactly as promised.” “At Maglio Sausage Company, we make a variety of sausage products – each with a very distinct look, bite and taste that our customers have enjoyed since 1947. When it was time to upgrade and automate our production line, we decided to look at Reiser and Vemag. We knew Reiser was well-respected throughout the industry and found them to be a company built on integrity. We were pleasantly surprised at the performance of the Vemag Stuffer during our tests. The Vemag was the only system that could consistently replicate the same look, bite and taste of our existing products. “With the Vemag stuffer, inline grinder, linker and link cutter, we now have the flexibility and reliability we need from our equipment. We’ve also discovered Reiser’s service and support to be second to none. For Maglio Sausage, partnering with Reiser has been a very pleasant experience.” Anthony L. Maglio Maglio Sausage Company, Philadelphia, PA

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Maglio Fresh Foods is a third generation company, with two generations shown (left to right): Gerald McNelis, Anthony L. Maglio and Anthony J. Maglio Jr.

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SustainabilityColumn CONSUMER TRENDS

Telling your sustainability story Three tips for more effective consumer-based sustainability communications. friend recently asked me what I do for Tyson Foods. While sharing a brief description of my various responsibilities, I noticed a confused look on her face as I was describing my role of sustainability manager. When I asked what was wrong, she said, “I have no idea what you mean when you say sustainability.” It was at this moment, I realized sustainability is a word and concept understood by corporations, academia, investors and other stakeholders; it’s not a commonly By Leigh Ann Johnston, used word or generally accepted Tyson Foods concept with consumers. Editorial Board Although ‘sustainability’ may Member not be an everyday word for consumers, they do place importance on the fundamental values associated with it. According to a 2010 report by The Hartman Group, titled “Marketing Sustainability: Bridging the Gap between Consumers and Companies,” when making a purchasing decision: ■ 82 percent of consumers believe it’s important a company offer quality products; ■ 79 percent believe it’s important a company provide safe working conditions for employees; ■ 72 percent believe a company should offer good wages and benefits to employees; ■ 71 percent of consumers feel it’s important a company minimize their environmental impact as well as treat animals humanely; and ■ 66 percent believe it’s important a company be involved in the community. The underlined phrases are values embraced by Tyson Foods and, I believe, those in the protein-processing industry. The challenge is communicating efforts associated with these and other values to consumers in a manner that is easy to access and remember, and that resonates with their personal values. When looking for opportunities to strengthen our company’s sustainability communication efforts with consumers, I’ve found the following tips and ideas helpful.

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THE NATIONAL PROVISIONER | PROVISIONERONLINE.COM | NOVEMBER 2011

Set your sights Communicating sustainability efforts to consumers requires setting your sights to a specific target audience. Be precise when defining your target consumer audiences (e.g., working mothers vs. all females; college students vs. working professionals under the age of 30). Each target audience communicates with, and thus will respond to, certain messages, tones and word choices. Engage in face-to-face dialogue with your consumers to identify: ■ What they value when making purchasing decisions; ■ The qualities and attributes they associate with a responsible company; and ■ What they know about your company and its sustainability-related efforts. ■ Tailor Your Message Numerous reports have concluded the average American is exposed to between 247 and 3,000 marketing messages daily. With this level of marketing activity, it can be difficult to capture and hold the attention of consumers. I recommend creating well-tailored sustainability messages appropriate to each target consumer audience. Develop unique, concise and compelling communications addressing the values of greatest importance to your target audience. Don’t explain your company’s entire approach to sustainability. Instead, focus on a single topic. Tell a story linking your sustainability efforts and performance to other issues such as community support, health and nutrition, and environmental conservation.

Look beyond the sustainability report Corporate sustainability reports are necessary when sharing sustainability performance with specific stakeholder groups. I suspect, however, consumers rarely review the contents of a sustainability report because it’s likely not relatable or engaging. Look beyond the all-inclusive report when developing plans to share your sustainability efforts with consumers. Evaluate opportunities to share sustainability accomplishments using point-of purchase communication. Product labeling, packaging, posters and displays offer avenues through which you can disclose and communicate sustain-

ability performance related to product attributes, operational efficiencies, product lifecycle, and global and community challenges. Several well-done corporate point-of-purchase examples containing substance rather than just marketing can be found if you pay attention. In addition to a direct link to a sustainability report, place call-outs highlighting sustainability initiatives on your company’s Internet homepage. At www.tyson.com you will find a link to our KNOW Hunger Campaign. Hunger relief is Tyson Foods’ primary philanthropic focus, and the KNOW Hunger Campaign is focused on helping more people understand and join the effort to eliminate hunger in America. Consider using video messaging to share your sustainability performance or insights on specific processes with consumers. Tyson Foods’ Media Room, available at www.tysonfoods.com, houses several video messages dis-

cussing key consumer topics such as, what’s really in a Tyson Branded Retail Chicken Nugget, as well as a video on a family farm that raises chickens for the company. Social media channels have radically changed the way people communicate. Sites such as LinkedIn, YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter offer an easy and inexpensive way to target consumer audiences with sustainability messages. Through social media channels, a company can share what it is doing to be economically, socially

and environmentally responsible in a manner allowing for true consumer participation and feedback. Poorly planned or misplaced communications are a waste of time and money, and will likely not reach the ears of consumers. Communicate more directly with consumers about your sustainability efforts. Clearly define your target consumer audience, and develop practical and personal messages appropriate to them. Maximize the use of both traditional and emerging communication channels to ensure your message has the greatest impact with consumers. Leigh Ann Johnston is part of a three-person team leading Tyson Foods’ sustainability efforts at the corporate level and is currently serving the co-chair of the American Meat Institute’s Sustainability Committee.To learn more about Tyson Foods’ sustainability efforts,review the company’s online sustainability report at http://www.tysonfoods.com/Sustainability/2010/Sustainability-At-Tyson-Foods.aspx .

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THE NATIONAL PROVISIONER | PROVISIONERONLINE.COM | NOVEMBER 2011

Processing

BACON to perfection By Elizabeth Fuhrman Not all bacon is created equal. From the farm to processing, the differences in bacons are vast with small dissimilarities in any area giving the products the attributes that they have. One of the biggest impacts on bacon quality comes down to fat. Bacon has changed significantly from years past because of the amount of fat currently in bacon and the quality of that fat. “We’ve seen a trend for leaner hogs, and since bacon is typically 50 percent lean and 50 percent fat, give or take, whenever you change that fat component, you change a lot of things downstream, from the raw materials in manufacturing to injection levels, thermo processing characteristics and slice yields,” says Jeff Sindelar, assistant professor and extension meat specialist at the University of Wisconsin in Madison. Pigs have been made leaner through genetics and husbandry practices, resulting in a pig today that is much different than a pig from 50 years ago, says Roger Mandigo, professor emeritus of the animal science department for the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. “Genetics, over the years, has put a lot of stress and pressure on trying to produce a leaner pig,” he says. “That has happened, and they have gotten rid of certain deficiencies in those pigs.” The quality of pork fat — specifically the use of ingredients that can affect the fatty acid composition or the amounts of saturated versus

unsaturated fat in a pig — has been another major change affecting bacon processing, Sindelar says. The use of dry distiller grains, a byproduct of the ethanol industry, is the main reason. Dry distiller grains have grown as live hog rations due to being a cheaper feedstock. “The downside of that is, if it’s used at too high of levels you can and do change the fatty acid profile, which results in a higher amount of unsaturated fatty acids that results in softer, greasier belly fat,” Sindelar explains. Mandigo agrees that nutrition has a great effect on pigs today. “We have pigs that are raised on high-corn, high-grain diets, and then we have hogs that are being fed other byproducts, which are nutritionally acceptable to the pig, but the firmness and the hardness of the fat in the bellies changes depending on how you feed the animal,” he explains. “The pig is a single-stomach animal just like the human, so the way you ingest your fats is the way your body deposits those fats, generally speaking. “In the pork market today, we’ve got some softer bellies that are a little harder to process, and bacon is one of those areas that can be quite difficult,” he adds. The market weight at which the pig is harvested also continues to grow due to financial efficiencies. “There was a time when maybe the typical market hog weight was about 230 or 240, and

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Photo courtesy of Jeff Sindelar, Univ. of Wisconsin-Madison

today it’s quite a bit higher because it takes a lot of feed and energy to produce that pig,” Mandigo says. “The pig is pretty efficient at it though.” As the live weight of the pig that is harvested continues to get larger, all the pieces of the pig also become larger. “You are getting bellies that are bigger, heavier, which now changes the dimension of a slice of bacon,” Mandigo says. Processing improvements Shortening bacon manufacturing has driven many of the innovations in the processing of the product. “If you look back in time, bacon processing has not been a fast process by any means,” Sindelar says. “It’s typically been an emersion or a dry curing process followed by a resting state or time for equilibrium of the curing ingredients and followed by slow thermal processing. Twelve to 14 hours plus has not been uncommon to thermal process bacon, and, of course, the slicing and packaging steps after that. Today, we are seeing more refinement in those areas, faster processing times and almost everybody uses some type of injection.” In regard to injection, equipment is now on the market that is able to isolate and improve injection percentages and improve uniformity of injection. “There are injectors that are being manufactured now that are able to distribute different amounts of brine in different parts of the belly,” Sindelar says. “If you look at a belly left to right like a bacon slice, from side to side typically there are variations in the thickness of those bellies. By being able to focus injection percentages on those different sides or different thicknesses of the belly, you are able to improve uniformity and improve processing time because then you don’t have to spend as much time doing a tumbling or a resting state, which is typically used to improve uniformity of injection ingredients.” The industry is also seeing shorter thermal processing 52

times — sometimes down to 4.5 to 5 hours of thermal processing — followed by more rapid chilling or tempering for slicing, Sindelar says. Bacon processing also is using more uniform high-speed slicing. Advancements in slicing equipment have helped increased the amount of the entire belly that can be sliced so that less ends and less waste has to be used for other purposes or lower value products, Sindelar says. A lot of energy is spent on getting the bacon slab the right temperature before it is sliced, so it slices better and more efficiently with more high-quality slices and less scrap, Mandigo adds. “That efficiency and that success is really tied to getting the belly just right, so that when it presses and when it slices, it gives the maximum marketable product,” he says. Many bacon slicers and presses used today have been around for a long time. The difference now, Mandigo says, is that most of the equipment is computer driven. Uniformity remains one of the greatest concerns for many bacon processors. Bacon processors deal “with a raw material that has a tremendous amount of variation and try to result in a product that is uniform for a consumer,” Sindelar says. “You’ve got bellies that are every shape and size. They are obviously broken down by weight, but a 12-pound belly can come in dozens of different shapes and sizes, even though the weights are essentially the same. Because of that, you’ve got a lot of widths and lengths and thicknesses and a lot of those types of things that you are trying to make as uniform finished product as you possibly can.” Bacon outlook With lower-fat bacon alternatives and low-sodium bacon offerings entering the market, bacon processors continue to bring innovation to retail and foodservice. “Bacon is an interesting category of products,” Sindelar says. “I have never seen consumers shy away from bacon

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SpecialReport because of the amount of fat that is in a bacon slice with the bacon that we are producing today.” Fat is essential to achieve bacon’s desirable flavor, frying performance and texture along with consumer acceptability of bacon, he adds. “When we get to too lean of a bacon, we end up with product that has a tendency to be more crumbly and will shatter more,” Sindelar explains. “It is typically less desirable by consumers, so I think there is definitely a balance that we have to maintain. We’ve gone through times where bellies have been extremely fat and then bellies became extremely lean, and I think we’re starting to slowly rebound where we’re starting to raise hogs that have a little bit more fat and subsequently have a little bit higher fat contents in the bellies and, of course, the bacon.” The lean meat in combination with the fat makes bacon the unique product it is when consumers taste it. “I’m not saying that everyone is a fanatic bacon eater,” Mandigo says. “There are some who don’t eat bacon, obviously, but there is a big demand for that flavor because beef bacon, for example, is still a product that people want to have more of even though pork bacon is the massive amount of the market.” While pork bacon is still the market leader, bacon processors are also making bacon out of animals including turkey, duck and chicken — and the sky is the limit, Mandigo says. “Basically bacon is lean muscle interspersed in a certain amount of body fat from that particular animal,” he explains. “If the animal has other unique properties, they either come across into the bacon or otherwise hopefully you can mask them or change them if it’s something that you don’t like.” Bacon also is an interesting food because typically it is a higher-sodium product. “When you manufacture bacon, most of the salt ends up in the lean portion,” Sindelar explains. “So when you are manufacturing bacon and you are adding 2 percent or 2.5 percent salt, you are really concentrating that salt. It becomes a little easier to reduce salt in bacon because you are starting with a fairly high-salt product and the function of that in bacon is almost primarily for flavor. You can reduce salt in bacon as long as you are not affecting consumer acceptance where the product is too bland.” Bacon processors have been lowering the salt content on a continual basis, Mandigo says. “You probably can never have it completely salt-free because salt is part of the flavor profile,” he says. “There are a lot of people with salt interests wanting less and less salt. Today, bacon doesn’t have nearly as much salt in it as it might have had 20, 50 or 100 years ago.” Although thick-cut and flavored bacons are still enticing to consumers, in recent years center-cut bacon has become more popular with consumers. Bacon processor are taking off part of the left and part of the right from the slice to produce a center portion. This creates a higher quality portion 54

Photo courtesy of Jeff Sindelar, Univ. of Wisconsin-Madison

because the bacon has more uniform thickness throughout the center portion of a slice and less fat, Sindelar says. “Because typically the fat-to-lean ratio varies from left to right on a bacon slice, you are essentially removing the greatest part of the fat-to-lean variation, resulting in a very uniform bacon slice that has a very uniform fat-to-lean ratio, so it would be considered a premium bacon slice,” he explains. On the financial side, bacon processors always are concerned with how much bacon they can get out of the belly from which they started. “Everybody wants to get another pound more, but by the same token, processors are more aware that consumers are pretty discriminating and they want a unique flavor or they want a unique size or they want a shape,” Mandigo says. Because of processors’ desire to generate the most value they can for the belly, the market is seeing all kinds of bacon byproducts, he says. For example, bacon bits used to be a novelty item — sometimes not even made out of meat — but with processing innovations and new packaging concepts, bacon bits have become a very convenient product for consumers, Mandigo explains. Bacon-processing equipment also is being refined and improved to make it more efficient and accurate to produce less scrap or mistakes of little pieces that can’t be sliced and made into a package of bacon, he says. “Remember there are all those little pieces that can’t make it into a full slice,” Mandigo explains. “Finding a better market for each of those components of that belly becomes a real challenge. People are always looking for a new and a unique way to find something that someone really wants.” Today, in some cases, bacon is drawing in more value than ham and even more value than pork loin. “If you look at the dollar value, that dollar value says you better have a real strategy on what you are going to do to those bellies and for the bacon that you can make from them,” Mandigo says.

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ADVERTORIAL

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