Balancing locally grown produce promotion while ensuring that shelves are stocked with consistent volumes of high-quality fruits and vegetables 52 weeks of the year is the name of the game for many produce buyers and retailers.
Consumer demand for small, local producers is stronger than ever, with 56% of consumers seeking more locally and regionally grown fruits and vegetables in their produce departments, according to FMI’s 2022 Power of Produce Report. Paradoxically, small producers with 2-acre to 20-acre farms are not typically able to sell to grocery chains due to their limited size. For produce buyers and retailers, offering customers the produce they want while still supplying full cases is a constant dance.
Perishable food supply chain platform iTradeNetwork is trying to the crack the code on this challenge. Partnering with local food platform Big Wheelbarrow, the food-focused tech company is strategically consolidating locally sourced products from small and mid-sized producers on its platform to compete for business with grocery stores across the U.S. and Canada.
“This partnership is a significant move for iTradeNetwork to support hyper localization in the fresh supply chain,” Amer Akhtar, CEO at iTradeNetwork, said in a news release. “With this exciting collaboration, our retail customers can meet consumer demand for local, more sustainable products, reduce shrink and food waste, and hedge against supply chain shortfalls. Providing value to our smaller suppliers is equally important to us. Our networks will enable them to expand their business with existing customers and build net new trading relationships with large retailers that they wouldn’t otherwise have access to. This is incredibly powerful.”
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The partnership is just one step making it possible for grocers to offer local and hyperlocal products that are tailored to specific cities, regions and even neighborhoods. For producers, access to nearby stores of grocery chains can be a significant step toward growing their perishable food business.
“Big Wheelbarrow solves the challenges that smaller producers like me are facing when working with food retailers and help retailers efficiently meet the demand local food,” Wendy Oakes Wilson, general manager of LynOaken Farms in New York, said in the release.
With the Big Wheelbarrow partnership, iTradeNetwork customers can now trade with nearby farms and producers that wasn’t previously on its radar. For grocers, the Big Wheelbarrow platform eliminates the additional overhead to work with smaller producers. Purchased products can be delivered directly to stores or to a distribution center, often the next day or sometimes the same day, according to the release.
“One key thing about this partnership is that it helps eliminate the silo between the DSD and warehouse functions inside grocery chains,” Sam Eder, CEO of Big Wheelbarrow, said in the release. “Those functions sometimes compete unintentionally because they often don’t know what the other is doing. Our platform handles local DSD inventory and purchase data in real time, with iTradeNetwork’s incredible suite of procurement solutions handling the important back end.”
