Food and Beverage Manufacturers

A.g.v. Products Corp Ahjikan Company Limited AURORA FOODS Ayala Land Inc Bestfoods Chia Hsin Food And Synthetic Fiber Company Cie D'Agricult. D'Indust. & De Commerce Compagnie Agricole DE LA Crau SA Conagra Foods Inc. Del Monte Royal Corporation Ltd Del Monte Royal Foods Limited Del Monte Royal Holdings Limited Eurexia Fuji Foods Inc. General Mills Inc Great Wall Enterprise Hain Celestial Group Inc. Hap Seng Consolidated Berhad

HERO Hershey Foods Corporation Hormel Foods Corporation House Foods Corporation Ishigaki Foods Co., Ltd. John Keells Holdings Limited King Consolidated Holdings Limited Kumpulan Fima Berhad Lancaster Colony Corporation Lohmeyer Corp Mamee-Double Decker (m) Berhad Mecaniver Sa Molinos Rio DE LA Plata SA Nestle Deutschland Ag New Century Group Hong Kong Limited NORTHERN FOODS PLC Orior Holding Sa Pokka Corporation (singapore) Limited

Qaf Limited Reliv' International, Inc. Rfm Corporation Rfm Corporation - Adr Rock Field Co., Ltd. S & B Foods Incorporated Sara Lee Corporation Sara Lee/de N.V. Shenzhen Shenbao Industrial Company Limited Suiza Foods Swift Foods, Inc. Top Glory International Holdings Limited Toyo Suisan Kaisha Ltd Tradewinds (m) Berhad Universal Robina Corporation Warabeya Nichiyo CO., Ltd. Wei-Chuan Foods Corporation Yeo Hiap Seng (malaysia) Berhad

Guide to Organic Food and Beverage Manufacturers

Expand your food and beverage offerings by tapping into the organic trend
By Yvette Pryce

Within the last few years, organic foods have moved firmly out of their position as niche products and into the mainstream. No longer are these products just for consumers who frequent natural food stores. With big box stores like Wal-Mart now stocking a full selection of both national brand and private label organic foods and beverages, consumers are buying more organic products than ever, with over half of all consumers purchasing at least some organic foods each year and over a quarter purchasing organic beverages.

Food and beverage manufacturers release over 1,000 new organic products annually. To compete as a seller of foods and beverages, you need to stay on top of the trend and stock a good selection of organic items for your customers.

As you’re choosing which food and beverage manufacturers from which to buy, keep the following in mind:

1. US food manufacturers must follow the USDA guidelines to be marked as such, but import products are certified by their home country’s standards. US food and beverage manufacturers must also have their product certified as organic by a third-party certifying agent.
2. Though major US food manufacturers like Kraft Foods and Nestle USA offer organic products, brands that are purely organic may offer more cache.
3. Organic products are more expensive than conventional products. Because of their new awareness of what “organic” means, consumers will pay more for organic than conventional, so you'll recoup your additional spending for organic.
   

Action Steps

The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Understand what you're getting when you choose organic Before you expand your offerings into the organic market, you should understand the USDA labeling practices for US food manufacturers. Without this knowledge, you may end up with products much lower in organic ingredients than you'd hope.

I recommend:  Review organic standards for food labeling at the USDA for an overview of labeling practices that food manufacturing companies must follow. You can also review a food manufacturer directory of accredited organic certifying agents by state on their website, as well.

Stay on top of organic trends in food manufacturing You need to know the market to best serve your customers. Knowing what products food and beverage manufacturers will be releasing helps you do this.

I recommend:  Keep in touch with the latest in organic foods and beverages by attending trade expos like the Organic Products Expo. This expo draws together a number of organic food and beverage manufacturers under one roof to help you select the best organic products.

Keep in touch with organic suppliers and food manufacturing trends Build a network of suppliers and distributors. Determine which food and beverage manufacturers' products you want to stock.

I recommend:  The Natural Food Network provides a listing of organic food and service suppliers so you can have the tools you need to stock your shelves. Here, you can also buy The Certified Organic Food Directory, an annual listing of organic products.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• Expand into organic lines one product type at a time. This way, you can test out the food manufacturers you think your customers will be drawn to. It's easier to phase out one product type than to remove a number of them from your shelves.
• Many food and beverage manufacturers that supply organic foods label their non-organic foods as 'natural.' This label has no legal meaning and isn't related to the organic status of the product.