Comments on: Whole Foods Invests in Mobile Slaughterhouses http://www.triplepundit.com/2009/11/whole-foods-invests-in-mobile-slaughterhouses/ Business, Better. Since 2005 Fri, 10 Feb 2012 07:33:00 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Janethttp://www.triplepundit.com/2009/11/whole-foods-invests-in-mobile-slaughterhouses/comment-page-1/#comment-101961 Janet Sat, 07 Jan 2012 02:40:00 +0000 http://www.triplepundit.com/?p=20159#comment-101961 1/2012  Hello Chris   IS this venture still going?  Hudson Valley Area Farmer/BakerJanet 1/2012  Hello Chris   IS this venture still going?  Hudson Valley Area Farmer/Baker

Janet

]]> By: Former Ag Teacherhttp://www.triplepundit.com/2009/11/whole-foods-invests-in-mobile-slaughterhouses/comment-page-1/#comment-21566 Former Ag Teacher Fri, 27 Nov 2009 22:12:15 +0000 http://www.triplepundit.com/?p=20159#comment-21566 Whole Foods is moving toward becoming a vertically integrated animal protein purveyor. They are controlling the animal production decisions from conception to harvest and taking the product to retail. That puts them in pretty much the same boat as Tyson, Perdue Farms, Smithfield and several others. The difference here is that Whole Foods is not picking up much of the financial risk, like the other vertical integrators. Whole Foods is leaving the risk with the farmer. Whole Foods is moving toward becoming a vertically integrated animal protein purveyor. They are controlling the animal production decisions from conception to harvest and taking the product to retail. That puts them in pretty much the same boat as Tyson, Perdue Farms, Smithfield and several others. The difference here is that Whole Foods is not picking up much of the financial risk, like the other vertical integrators. Whole Foods is leaving the risk with the farmer.

]]> By: chrishttp://www.triplepundit.com/2009/11/whole-foods-invests-in-mobile-slaughterhouses/comment-page-1/#comment-21536 chris Fri, 27 Nov 2009 12:04:39 +0000 http://www.triplepundit.com/?p=20159#comment-21536 Mobile slaugter facilities look attractive but have major drawbacks as well.Attractive: circumvents traditional capital costs to comply with wastewater regulations and so reduces capital costs for a slaughter facility; facility that moves to the birds rather tnan the other way around.Unattractive: cost to the operator of moving the unit and the employees to each new location. This adds much cost to the business model.The unit in VT took well over a year to find an operator and now mostly sits idle for lack of use.Like any processing operation, they still require a high and consistent throughput to make them work as a business. Depending entirely on various small producers for that, year-round, is extremely hard to make work. Mobile slaugter facilities look attractive but have major drawbacks as well.

Attractive: circumvents traditional capital costs to comply with wastewater regulations and so reduces capital costs for a slaughter facility; facility that moves to the birds rather tnan the other way around.

Unattractive: cost to the operator of moving the unit and the employees to each new location. This adds much cost to the business model.

The unit in VT took well over a year to find an operator and now mostly sits idle for lack of use.

Like any processing operation, they still require a high and consistent throughput to make them work as a business. Depending entirely on various small producers for that, year-round, is extremely hard to make work.

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