Menlo to manage new warehouse for snack foods company

Kettle Foods new warehouse operation — 50 percent larger than the previous one — opened in early August near the company’s Beloit manufacturing plant. It is Menlo’s first logistics operation in the state of Wisconsin.

The Trucker News Services

8/13/2008

SAN MATEO, Calif. — Menlo Worldwide Logistics reports the company has expanded its relationship with Salem, Ore.-based Kettle Foods to include management of a new 105,000-square-foot dedicated warehouse in Beloit, Wis.

Menlo previously provided warehouse management for the premium natural snack foods company at a multi-client facility in Illinois. The new warehouse operation — 50 percent larger than the previous one — opened in early August near the company’s Beloit manufacturing plant. It is Menlo’s first logistics operation in the state of Wisconsin.

Menlo said it is providing the staff, systems and equipment for the new facility, where activities include receiving, storage, inventory management and outbound distribution. The food grade warehouse is operating under the Lean philosophy of waste elimination and continuous improvement followed at Menlo facilities worldwide. Food grade certification requires meeting American Institute of Baking (AIB) rigorous standards for protection of the safety of the food supply chain.

Kettle Foods’ Beloit potato chip manufacturing plant was awarded Gold-level certification for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) by the U.S. Green Building Council in 2007, in recognition of the company’s efforts to minimize the environmental impact of the facility. Other Kettle Foods initiatives at the location include offsetting 100 percent of electricity use through the purchase of wind power and use of on-site wind turbines, recycling of used cooking oil into biodiesel to fuel some company cars, and filtering and reusing potato wash water.

Menlo Worldwide Logistics LLC is a subsidiary of Con-way Inc., a $4.7 billion freight transportation and logistics company.