Ch. 12: Marketing Channels and Supply Chain Management

Meet Tom Mello, Manager of Organic Agriculture at Amy’s Kitchen! Tom works with growers and processors to ensure the quality of all the agriculture products needed to make Amy’s foods.


It all starts with fresh, organic ingredients at Amy’s Kitchen and organic sourcing is of top priority to them. Generally the organic supply chain is not a difficult road but it does require diligence on the part of the purchasing professionals and research and development departments. This is because they have to ensure that outside suppliers comply with organic regulations. For an ingredient to be deemed certified organic they have to meet very specific criteria that have been fine tuned over time. With the increasing popularity of organic foods many companies are adding organic to their product mix, increasing volume and strengthening the organic food supply chain.

In order to insure that regulations are being honored, strong relationships between suppliers and purchasers are necessary. Amy’s Kitchen takes pride in knowing most of the farmers, (many being family farms) that grow their ingredients, by name and have developed long and trusting relationships with them. Some of their growers have been with them since the start of their business. Over 50% of the vegetables are grown within 200 miles of Amy’s headquarters.

In this field of production, scheduling is less about meeting inventory demands, and more about meeting the demands of “mother nature”. Amy’s uses produce managers and tirelessly dedicates time to assure that harvesting is done according to the natural rhythm of nature. This brings about the best corn, broccoli and onions for the best pot pies, enchiladas, and veggie loaf. For example, broccoli has only a 2-day window during each harvest that it is at its peak flavor and quality. Harvesting organic broccoli within this strict timeline is one of the strategic moves taken very seriously by farmers and Amy’s Kitchen.

Rachel Berliner, founder of Amy’s Kitchen compares the distribution of their products with throwing a dinner party and though she can’t make a place setting for every Amy’s customer they do set the standards high. They have developed a reputation for having very rigid standards within the farming community. Amy’s has maintained solid relationships within the supply chain in order to consistently serve up the best that nature has to offer.