1998 Annual Report
Consistent Quality Important as Menus Adopt Global Flavors
Since the earliest restaurants spread a cloth on a table and served a meal,
chefs have relied upon their butcher or produce vendor to procure an especially
tender leg of lamb or the sweetest of carrots to please customer palates.
In turn, diners have come to expect consistent quality and a variety of
delicious menu items.
Today's consumers enjoy tasty traditional foods, such as hamburgers and pasta, but there is an ever-growing demand for more ethnic, spice-infused dishes based on fresh ingredients from around the globe. Three out of five menus include at least one ethnic dish, and the availability of ingredients that have their origins in distant lands makes any cuisine possible. SYSCO distributes thousands of national brand products and also works with global suppliers and specialty firms that manufacture SYSCO Brand products according to SYSCO's strict specifications for consistency and quality. Representing 36 percent of total sales, SYSCO brands are tiered in four quality levels: Supreme, Imperial, Classic and Reliance. Each addresses specific foodservice requirements - less mature sweet peas for plated dishes, for example, and more mature, full-flavored peas that retain their flavor for buffet service on a steam table. Like the butcher or produce vendor of old, SYSCO's Merchandising Services Department selects the highest quality products for discerning chefs. In fact, the quality and freshness of ingredients in foods prepared away from home generally exceed that available in supermarkets. As the largest "outsourcer" of foodservice products in the world, SYSCO provides great variety - vinegars from France, Cajun sausage from Louisiana and king crab legs from Alaska, for example. Consumers often recall a particularly satisfying meal with such delight that they order the same item on return visits. SYSCO's specifications call for a level of consistency that usually is higher than that for competitors' products, and items such as diced tomatoes accompanying the chef's signature pasta entree will have the desirable full flavor and slightly firm texture from meal to meal. To assure that the many SYSCO Brand products meet customers' expectations, SYSCO maintains a staff of more than 180 quality assurance professionals. They develop product specifications, then work on-site with suppliers, perhaps inspecting the fat-to-lean ratio of bacon as it comes off the production line, or tasting and measuring strawberries as they are picked in the fields. This close relationship with suppliers has an additional benefit: SYSCO
is able to work with chefs and suppliers to develop and market new products
and recipes for menu items that appeal to consumers' changing tastes and
eating patterns.
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