On 6 July 1922, Foodstuffs founder J Heaton Barker called together members of the Auckland Master Grocers' Association. He had the idea that forming a co-operative buying group would be good for business. He was right.
Foodstuffs has grown to become New Zealand's biggest grocery distributor, and one of the country's largest organisations. It employs more than 30,000 people nationwide and remains 100% Kiwi owned and operated.
There are two regional Foodstuffs co-operatives: Foodstuffs North Island Limited covers the entire North Island and Foodstuffs South Island Limited, the entire South Island. Each is owned by its retail members, and operates independently with its own board and management.
Loscam is Asia Pacific's leader in returnable packaging solutions.
Foodstuffs North Island and Loscam are natural partners. Now they have created a joint initiative to deliver a best-in-class packaging solution for their fresh produce supply chain.
The standardised packaging solution provided by Loscam includes its Active Lock produce crates and innovative rising floor bins that enable produce to be handled less through the supply chain and allow fresh produce to be replenished in-store with maximum efficiency.
All of Foodstuffs' suppliers will now have access to state of the art technology with the potential to enhance supply chain efficiency, safety and flexibility. This solution is one of many collaborative initiatives by the Foodstuffs North Island organisation to streamline supply chain activities so that shoppers receive the freshest produce in New Zealand.
General manager supply chain, Vaughan Grant, Foodstuffs North Island, explained, “Standardising packaging within our fresh supply chain has been a priority for us. We see opportunities to drive efficiency by reducing the amount of different packaging within the network. Ensuring we present the freshest produce in the fastest and safest manner possible to our customers is a factor that will position us to stay at the forefront in this sector."
“We are very much looking forward to investing in the innovative crate solution, simple administrative processes and crate wash facilities across the country to deliver a world class returnable crate solution,” added David Edwards, Loscam’s corporate head of development.
“Our crates and bins will enhance the supply chain process and we see lots of opportunities to bring choice to the wider produce sector over the coming years.”
