Snack World - August 2015 - (Page 20)

A Fortune 500 Mindset T BY TRACI DAWN CARNEAL he concept of a family-owned business brings visions of a tight-knit group of employees who know each other by first name, not a team of 400 that does business globally and strives to follow the principles of Lean Six Sigma. Meet Wyandot, Inc., Marion, OH, a leading manufacturer of high quality, grain-based snack foods, cereals and better-for-you offerings for the world's largest food marketers, restaurants and retailers. Started in 1936 by Ohio farmer W. Hoover Brown and his wife, Ava, Wyandot Popcorn Company evolved from 100 acres of corn plantings to a full-service snack-food manufacturing operation with a penchant for excellence. "The Brown family created the philosophy of being family-owned but professionally managed, leading to our nearly 80 years of success," said Rex Parrott, Wyandot president. Mr. Parrott credited Wyandot's customers for the opportunities to improve the business. "It's a two-way street. Many of our customers are larger than we are, so while we help them turn their concepts into reality, they show us new practices for quality and excellence that we otherwise wouldn't know about," he said. "Wyandot meets and supports the needs of customers who are careful and exact about the snack products they sell," Mr. Parrott said. "We deliver products that meet customer specifications and provide a wide range of superior services on a consistent, reliable, trustworthy and confidential basis." The company prides itself on having the flexibility to meet its customers' unique needs. While most product offerings use primarily corn, Wyandot also uses rice, wheat, beans, potatoes and other grains, allowing it to not only offer national brand matches but also create new ones across its nine production platforms. 20 Snack World August 2015 www.sfa.org The company's sophisticated line of equipment, which includes single- and twin-screw extrusion machines, makes products for private label and foodservice. Wyandot also offers four control labels: Munch Rights Veggie Crisps, Munch Rights Veggie Puffs, Munch Rights Fruit Puffs and Munch Mates. Wyandot can move quickly through the new product introduction cycle - from ideation to launch - providing the level of support each customer requires. "Some need little assistance other than commercialization of a product they have developed internally," he said. "Others have only an idea and need the full range of services we provide." Wyandot offers extensive technical support with a team of food scientists and engineers that manages projects from ideation through development, commercialization, and then onto processing and packaging. Customer service specialists monitor order entry, scheduling and distribution, resulting in a 99.5% order fill rate. Another example of Wyandot's ability to solve complex problems involved a customer with six products made on the company's twin-screw machinery. The customer wanted to expand its product line, so Wyandot's R&D team developed four new items produced on other platforms that fit right in with the current brand. "We provide sophisticated inventory management tools for both raw materials and finished goods," Mr. Parrot said. "Those tools create a high level of customer interaction and partnership," he added. "We also partner with a wide range of material suppliers, which allows us to collaborate with our customers to ensure their products remain current to ever-changing market environments." Wyandot's philosophy is to create an atmosphere where good people can excel. "We work continually on alignment of goals and processes, and then allow each http://www.sfa.org

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Snack World - August 2015

Snack World - August 2015
Table of Contents
Letter from SFA - GMO Free
Top-Level Education
News - Younger consumers fuel the healthy snacking trend
Gluten-free remains a viable, growing segment
Clean label attracts older consumers
Supplier Insight - The SFA ROI: Supplier’s Perspective
Legislative Summit - SFA Takes to the Hill
Business Profile Member - A Fortune 500 Mindset
Associate Profile Member - Customer-Centric in Every Sense
Snack Trends - Sorting Out the Snacks Segment
Non-GMO on the rise?
Products & Services
Ad Index

Snack World - August 2015