J. Kings Foodservice Professionals Inc. has been in business since 1974 when it was founded by John King, and has been processing fresh-cut fruits and vegetables for the last nine years. In that time, demand for value-added products that provide convenience and safety has grown so much that the company recently expanded to a new facility that provides four times more space.
The company had $160 million in sales last year, with produce accounting for 35 percent of sales, Panagakos said. The company’s fresh-cut operation, Kitchen Cuts, has been in existance for the last nine years and the recent expansion is focused on continued growth. J. Kings started the process in it’s new building in Holtsville, on Long Island in New York, in 2000 and the new facility was completed last fall on a site about six or seven miles from the company’s headquarters. The new plant handles the Kitchen Cuts line and other food preparation operations. The company employs 330 and has an HACCP program, is approved by the American Institute for Baking and is certified by USDA in the meat-processing plant. The company is a member of PRO-ACT, the nationwide foodservice distributor, so third-party audits also are regularly conducted.
"Waxay naga caawinaysaa dhinaca badbaadada cuntada si weyn," ayuu yiri Joel Panagakos, madaxweyne ku xigeenka Westbrook Produce ee J. Kings Foodservice.
Each day, J. Kings not only prepares fresh-cut produce and meat products and packs whole produce; it also has an on-site kitchen that prepares meals for the more than 300 employees. The company didn’t start out feeding employees, but chefs working on new menu items were giving the meals to the night crew, and eventually an area in the building was turned into a dining area. That idea has been expanded to the day crew with a sit-down café that provides free lunch to all employees. On a recent workday, J. Kings employees had the chance to try a filet mignon recipe that the chefs were developing for a high-end client, Panagakos said.
Goynta Jikada
The new fresh-cut area is about 11,000 square feet and currently does 70,000 to 80,000 pounds a week, Panagakos said. The fresh-cut program does about 350 items for a wide range of customers, from hospitality and medical customers to white tablecloth restaurants.
The new supporting room was designed to prevent any foreign materials from entering the processing area. All of the produce is removed from bins or boxes onto a conveyor system, which takes the raw product into the cutting area. The waste is carried out in a flume system, then compacted and sold to nearby farms.
Cutting is done primarily by machines. About 75 percent of the fresh-cut items go through Urschel machines, and the remaining are cut by hand for special requests from customers. The hand-cut requests typically come from high-end restaurants – chefs looking for a specific profile – Panagakos said, but that’s dropped off a little bit with the recent downturn in the economy.
But one area that has been growing is foodservice to the healthcare industry. Because of the many dietary requirements of patients in hospitals or long-term care facilities, meal preparation can exceed the capabilities of hospital staff, so companies like J. Kings have filled that niche. Soups, for example, may have anywhere from three or four ingredients up to eight, depending on the dietary restrictions of the patient.
"Daryeelka caafimaadka, dhinaca badbaadada cunnada ayaa qayb weyn ka ah, laakiin sidoo kale waa dhinaca shaqada," ayuu yiri Panagakos.
The new space and all-new equipment line has allowed the Kitchen Cuts division of J. Kings to develop new products, adding to its already long list of fresh-cut items. The company is working on new coleslaw blends and a line of fresh-cut fries.
Suuqgeynta Shirkadda
One way J. Kings helps its foodservice customers is by having an executive chef, Chris Neary, on staff. He helps restaurants develop new menu items and is an integral part of the sales process by working with the executive chef of a restaurant to determine exactly what cut or flavor profile is needed for a menu item.
“There’s more credibility. I’ll always give the best suggestions, but a chef can go in and talk to a head chef and they speak the same language,” Panagakos said.
Makhaayadaha kale ee xoogga wadista iyo macaamiisha kale ee adeegga cuntada ay raadinayaan waa sii jiritaan, taas oo inta badan lagu qeexo inay tahay deegaanka.
"Gaar ahaan wax soo saarka, waxaa jira dareen aad u weyn oo ah 'tag maxali ah," ayuu yiri Panagakos.
Local growers – from Long Island and the region – have fresh harvested product picked up by a Kings truck in the afternoon and is shipped to customers the next morning. The local movement is just one way the company is “going green” – there’s even a Go Green checklist that lets customers know the various ways the company is focusing on sustainability. Items on the checklist include:
• Dib-u-warshadaynta kartoonada, waraaqaha, kartoonada caanaha iyo dhalooyinka iyo dhalooyinka aluminiumka.
• Kordhinta waxtarka tamarta iyadoo la damiyo laydhka iyo kombuyuutarrada habeenkii.
• Yaraynta gaasta iyo sii daynta kooxda iyadoo jadwal hufan loo samaynayo, baabuurta GPS ku qalabaysan iyo u rogida raxan baabuurta Dodge Sprinter, kaas oo hela 22 mayl gallon.
• Yaraynta gaasta iyo sii daynta shaqaalaha iyadoo la siinayo cuntada qolka qadada iyo bixinta ATM-ka goobta, qalabaynta baabuurta iibka GPS iyo isku dubaridka shirarka ee goobaha dhexe si loo yareeyo safarka iyo ka soo noqoshada xafiiska dhexe.
• Yaraynta qashinka waraaqaha iyadoo la samaynayo ganacsi intarneedka intii suurtogal ah - laga bilaabo bangiyada ilaa codsiyada shaqada.
Intaa waxaa dheer, shirkaddu waxay eegaysaa inay u beddesho gawaarida iibka ah ee baabuurta isku dhafan, ku rakibida qalabka tamarta qoraxda iyo dabaysha ee xafiisyadeeda, sii yaraynta warqadaha iyadoo la isticmaalayo hababka elektaroonigga ah iyo inay siiso shaqaalaheeda koobabka shirkaddu leedahay iyo dhalooyinka biyaha si loo yareeyo weelka qashin
J. Kings also has hired consultants to help restaurant customers make the most of their menus. The consultants helped develop the right portions and types of offerings, as well as how items were arranged on the plate to bring out the taste profile of the main dish, Panagakos said.
Last year, J. Kings launched a new campaign to benefit its restaurant customers that was very successful, Panagakos said. The company launched a new Web site, www.greatrestaurantsNY.com, that gives site visitors a searchable database of restaurants on Long Island as well as links to menus and restaurant Web sites. Some of the J. Kings trucks also had signage for customers’ restaurants on them instead of the J. Kings logo.
"Waxaan u xayaysiin jirnay macaamiisha," ayuu yiri Panagakos.
The program has been expanded five-fold this year. Between 150 and 200 restaurants already have signed on for the program.
"Way ku adag tahay nimankan inay xayeysiiyaan, laakiin marka la isku geeyo agabkooda waxay heli karaan magacooda halkaas," Panagakos ayaa yidhi.
As a full-line distributor of fresh produce and meats, a full-line processor of fruits and vegetables, J. Kings has expanded to include a marketing department that benefits customers. By helping bring diners into restaurants, Panagakos said he’s helping his customers succeed and helping the J. Kings business in the long run.