Visions - Fall 2012 - (Page 10)

L I V I N G R E L AT E D B U S I N E S S G R O U P Smithfield Foods 19 r s! Yea W ith a great concern in protecting its people, Japan has always had very strong regulations on food products imported into the country. Sumitomo Corporation of America’s Food Business Unit, a part of the Living-Related Business Group, has built trust and gained the loyalty of Japanese food suppliers by maintaining its pristine reputation of adhering to these rigorous standards. In 1993, SCOA began a relationship with pork supplier Smithfield Packing Company to ship pork and pork-related products to Japan, and in the nineteen years that followed, SCOA built its name as an important supplier in the Japanese food business. Today, Smithfield Foods Group exports millions of pounds of pork to Japan and has recently launched initiatives that help fulfill sustainability goals. “There is no real secret to our long relationship, other than trying to be more than just a part of the buy/sell relationship, and we credit a supply system that guarantees accountability,” said TadashiYamashita, Head of SCOA’s Food Business Unit. “The unique point of our business model is our ‘farm to fork’ benefit. Some suppliers sell to a large number of distributors without controlling the end users to whom they sell, but we do not. We take responsibility all the way down the line because we have traceability all the way back to the farm. We can develop great tasting meat, but our customers feel comfortable and safe too.” Current customers in Japan include 7/Eleven Japan, the Ito Yokado group, Aeon, Seiyu (sometimes called the Walmart of Japan), the food service companies Ootoya and Skylark, Denney’s Japan, Nippon Ham, Marudai Ham, and others. “A majority of others in the business buy from the open market to find the cheapest ones, but our supplier Smithfield Packing Company is involved differently. The priorities are comfort, safety, and great taste,”Yamashita said. Back in 1993, Smithfield Farms was the number eight supplier of pork in the United States. Currently, Smithfield Foods is the largest export pork supplier in the world. SCOA still maintains an exclusive agreement with Smithfield Packing Company as the only exporter of Smithfield Brand pork to Japan. One reason that the unit’s pork export sales have doubled in the past six years is our well-cultivated relationships. “When SCOA knocked on the door of Smithfield in 1993, it was not as big as it is today,” Yamashita said. “We continue to supply their products because they believe in the integrity of the product. Our supplier is involved in the farming, in the transporting & delivery, and Smithfield even has special procedures for breeding pigs; the theory is that good mothers and good fathers make good products, and they have special feed programs which makes them taste better as well.” Because of the recent introduction of a new hybrid pork product, SCOA is enjoying healthy profits from sales to 10 v i s i o n s F a l l 2 0 1 2

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Visions - Fall 2012

Visions - Fall 2012
Contents
Trust: The Foundation Of SCOA’s Longstanding Businesses
Union Pacific & Canadian National Railway
Chicago Metra
Treadways
Smithfield Foods
SMS Equipment Inc.
Robroy Industries
Osaka Titanium
Hamilton Sundstrand

Visions - Fall 2012