National Culinary Review - November/December 2010

“The mechanics of food manufacturing are complicated,” says Lang. “To succeed you must blend inspiration with knowledge. I call it, ‘informed passion.’” Here are some real-life lessons to kick off your education.

Barbara Lang, a former restaurant owner/chef, is a food product development and marketing consultant. She recently retired from teaching at Cornell University’s School of Hotel Management. Her book, From Restaurant to Retail: A Handbook for Food and Hospitality Professionals (Ronjon Publishing Inc., 2006), is a must-read for any chef considering a move into food manufacturing. It’s a one-stop tutorial with step-by-step instructions and exercises for developing an effective action plan, available at www.restauranttoretail.com. LANG’S LIST

Here are some key concepts:
•;Define;your;goals
•;Analyze;what’s;already;on;the;market
in your category
•;Decide;how;products;will;be
produced, stored and sold
•;If;using;a;co-packer,;confirm;in;writing
that;you;own;the;final;formula
•;Research;federal;and;state;regulations
•;Don’t;work;in;a;vacuum—talk;with;co-
packers, distributors, retailers
•;Make;a;strategic;plan
•;Get;educated;before;you;get;started

FIND THE RIGHT FORMULA
Initially, Evans wanted to bring more
efficiency and consistency to his operation
by pre-blending seasoning combinations in
gallon containers for his kitchen staff. He
enlisted the help of Dion Tsevdos, whose
company, Chef Cube—a wholesale dry foods
and spice supplier based in Cleveland—
already had a U.S. Department of Agriculture-
inspected facility. It was a logical next step
to create 6-ounce jars for home cooks, but
required multiple go-arounds to make a
consumer-friendly version. “We altered the
methodology so the mixture wouldn’t cake
up,” says Tsevdos, “and added salt and pepper,
because they prefer simplicity. Each of the
four recipes contains 12-15 ingredients.”
value. “I’m looking at two new and different
concept opportunities. If I get my products
in local, independently owned, high-
end grocers, I can begin building brand
recognition before I even cook a meal.”
“What I was doing didn’t make sense from
a business perspective,” Susser explains.
“It wasn’t a good use of my time, or cost-
efficient, and proved tough to sustain
at the necessary level without a real
distribution network.”
Allen Susser’s first foray into the food-
manufacturing business began in 1995
when he started bottling mango ketchup,
a customer favorite at Chef Allen’s, his
popular Miami restaurant. “At first, I was
doing everything myself, cooking and
packing in the restaurant kitchen,” he says.
Interest was strong. Other condiments,
dressings and marinades were added
to the product line. “I spent $80,000-
$100,000 to take the next step, moving
the operation to rented space at a small
production facility.”
He sold most of the line to the co-
packer. The products are available at the
restaurant and via a link on the website,
and he also sells them at his cooking
classes, food festivals and events where
Chef Cube handles the packing and
packaging in shrink-wrapped custom-
cut boxes, currently producing 10,000-
12,000 units annually. Evans buys the sets
wholesale, determines the retail price, sells
them at the restaurants and gives them
away as thank-yous. But five years into it,
he’s rethinking the details.

“The steak and pork crusts are very popular,
and will be available in plastic pints, too,”
says Evans. “The blackening and barbecue
dusts are not a hit, so Dion and I are
working on replacements.” And, he sees a
whole new way to leverage the products’
Susser set up a separate company for what
had become a cottage industry, and joined
forces with a co-packer while continuing
to be involved in everything from quality
control to label design. But unable to
benefit from economies of scale, it wasn’t
possible to generate sufficient revenue.
After a few years, he decided to scale back.