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Chef’s Table

Change the manufacturers' landscape

I know many chefs who are struggling to decide whether “buy local” is a national trend worthy of major foodservice play or an altruistic concept that is embraced only by single or smaller operators. But the reality leans to the latter at this point in time. The examples below include a varied spectrum, from the American iconic celebrity Chef Alice Waters at Chez Panisse in Berkeley, Calif., to a small local brew pub in Crystal Lake, Ill.

On Alice's latest menu she calls out several manufacturing sources like Niman Ranch grass-fed beef and Becker Lane Farm pork loin. Chef Zak at Duke's Alehouse in Crystal Lake, Ill., notes on his regular menu and blackboard daily specials with locally sourced items such as produce, meats and dairy. What about the larger foodservice chains? Obliviously the national chains are competing for a diminishing market share due to the economy. But what if consumers began to pressure these chains to call out where their products came from? What and how would manufacturers respond?

There was a study done at a restaurant abroad that tracked consumer preferences before and after they began to post their source and carbon footprint. Surprisingly items that were popular before the information was posted lost a substantial percentage of sales after the information was posted. Consumer preference was swayed by how much of an impact each item incurred in its processing. The lower-impact items’ percentage of sales then increased. Do I think this is an applicable or realistic scenario for foodservice operators here? I'll add in my two cents here: uh, no. And sadly I don't think the average consumer is truly cognizant of these issues.

Yes, there is a small, discerning percentage of the public who make their buying selections in foodservice and retail not solely based on price or brand but by their national and global effects. This segment is not enough to drive a change for the manufacturers’ industry or to take those factors into consideration. Cheap, affordable, quick, easy-to-use — these are the mantras of the masses, be it foodservice or retail. It is my belief that the private segment of the foodservice industry, at least at this point in time, has a greater propensity and opportunity to educate and cater to those questions with their existing clientele. Will the foodservice consumer make manufacturers address these questions in the near future?

I see myself as an optimist, but also a realist. Only time will tell.

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