Meat + Poultry - January 2004 - 84

Over herd
I gave her
everything she asked
for - mayonnaise,
no mustard, onions,
everything I could
possibly do for this lady.
- Sherry Jenkins, a McDonald's
manager, commenting on an incident involving her attempts to appease a demanding customer wanting mayonnaise on her burger. Jenkins was subsequently run over by the customer in the restaurant parking lot, suffering a broken pelvis.

Turnaround time
During an annual conference put on by the Farm
Journal, a Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., executive recently said the company plans to halve the time
it currently takes to process orders of meat from
its suppliers. After placing an order for meat,
the turn-around time now is 96 hours, said Ken
Stettmeier, Wal-Mart's merchandise manager
for fresh meats. "That's not good enough," he
told attendees, saying 48 hours is the goal the
company is shooting for. "We're working on systems that will shorten that lead time."
With lofty goals like these we figure the next
step in Wal-Mart's efficiency efforts might include
a fleet of delivery trucks with on-board butchers.

Clear eye for the small guy
A recent article published in the American Association of Meat Processors AAMPlifier
newsletter caught our attention. It outlines the advantages smaller companies have
when it comes to gathering intelligence regarding market trends and product introductions.
While the bigger companies have the money to do consumer research, hire focus
groups and probe for what customers may want, smaller companies may have an advantage because they deal with their customers directly.
Small firms have a distinct advantage when it comes to new product introductions. They
get a chance to see their customer eyeball to eyeball and are talking to the person with the
dollar in their hand. It's called feedback, intelligence gathering or just plain listening.
It's the greatest advantage of the small business operations. But often, the frontline
employee is too busy to provide feedback to the owner who makes decisions about product offerings. There is a treasure-trove of information every employee has about a company's customers at the retail level.

Dining out - a lot!
The National Restaurant Association, Washington, D.C., has unveiled its 2004 Restaurant
Industry Forecast. According to N.R.A., the restaurant-and-foodservice industry remains
strong and is projected to reach a record $440.1 billion in sales next year.
"With sales expected to reach over $440 billion in the coming year - equal to 4 percent
of the U.S. gross domestic product (G.D.P.) - 2004 will be the 13th consecutive year of real
growth for the restaurant industry," said Steven Anderson, president and C.E.O. of N.R.A.
Among the major segments, sales at full service restaurants are projected to lead the
way with sales growth of 4.6 percent. This segment is expected to reach $157.9 billion in
2004, a $6.9-billion increase over 2003. Sales at limited-service or quick service restaurants - defined as those chain and independent establishments without wait staff service - are expected to increase by 3.9 percent with sales totaling $123.9 billion in 2004
(up $4.7 billion from 2003).

Primeribbing

Brought to you by
MEAT&POULTRY Magazine.

Cartoon by Bob Bliss

Carb unloading
Hardee's and Carl's Jr., fast-food chains owned
by CKE Restaurants, Inc., Santa Barbara, Calif., have taken a super-size leap of faith to appease the Atkins crowd. This past month, the
restaurants launched a bread-free burger.
Hardee's calls their lettuce-wrapped, one-third
pound Angus beef entrée the low-carb "Thickburger" (420 calories, 32 grams of fat and 5
grams of carbs), while Carl's Jr.'s is known as
the half-pound "Six Dollar Burger" (490 calories,
37 grams of fat and 6 grams of carbs).
It is hardly a coincidence that the low-carb
options are introduced at such a time that they
will be well positioned for the annual post-holiday diet craze. Did we mention that most Hardee's and Carl's Jr. stores are open on New
Year's Day? Go figure.
86

MEAT&POULTRY

Cheeseburger - Fries - Soda - 30-min. workout

www.MEATPOULTRY.com

JANUARY 2004

http://www.MEATPOULTRY.com

Meat + Poultry - January 2004

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Meat + Poultry - January 2004