Why is it important for the owners to maintain accuracy when planning for purchasing a food product, especially their meat products?

FOOD SUPPLY CASE STUDY

Farm Burger is a farm to table burger joint that was opened by George Frangos and Jason Mann in April 2010. Farm Burger seeks to create a superlative burger experience that directly connects the consumer to the producer. Farm Burger partners with local farmers, ranchers and butchers in order to maintain an organic, sustainable and Humane system of beef production from pasture to processing and then directly to the restaurant period the burgers are made from 100% grass fed beef.

This means that the cattle roam freely through the pasture, grazing at their leisure, and they are never fed antibiotics, hormones, or grain. Farm Burgers dedication to their craft and practices sustains a high-quality product for their customers.

There are currently 2 farm burger locations in the Atlanta area. The first location was opened in Decatur, Georgia, which is dominated by residential urban communities. the second location was opened in Buckhead, Georgia, just 18 months after the Decatur property proved to be viable the Buckhead location is positioned in a very active business district that drifts into the city of Atlanta . Although its sales are approximately 30% lower than the Decatur property, Buckhead sees a heavy lunch crowd Monday through Friday that predominantly consists of business professionals working in the area.

Farm Burger's philosophy for success lies in several universal values comma which the owners believe are mandatory at every Farm Burger location. Heavy emphasis is placed on a strong sense of integrity with their food product, namely their beef, which is always held to a high standard of quality. There is a strong culinary base behind their menu items, which combined flavor, uniqueness and authenticity. The owners strive to educate and train their staff to be friendly, outgoing, and knowledgeable with a goal of continuously exceeding customers expectations. With all the success they have achieved in such a short amount of time, there are still many challenges faced both short term and long term.

Challenges

One of the biggest challenges they face is controlling the price of their beef product. Because they are committed to serving 100% grass fed beef that is high quality, George and Jason must pay a higher price to their farmers than what many others pay for regular beef that comes from a feed lot. Generally, farmers will keep their cattle on grass for one year, and then sell the cattle to a large feed lot, which will pay an average price of $0.60 per pound. At the same time, Farm Burger offers to pay a premium of $0.80 per pound for the farmers to keep their cattle on grass. The biggest challenge comes when the demand for beef rises, because the price rises along with it. When this happens, farmers know they can get more for the steer. If the purchase price for the steer rises 30 to 40%, the farmer can expect to get approximately $0.90 per pound at the feed lot. this would require Farm Burger to raise the premium they pay to $1.10 per pound to get the bid for the one steer. This is an ongoing challenge that requires constant negotiation, as the price of beef fluctuates throughout the year.

Goals

Although there are continuous challenges at their current properties, the owners feel that as long as their ventures are successful, they will continue to expand the concept. Consequently, they are in the process of finalizing plans to open a third location in Dunwoody, Georgia period the location combines a strong residential community with a business district comma which is basically a hybrid location with features of each of the other two properties period their philosophy for opportunities to present themselves.