Sweet Harvest Foods produces honey, peanut butter and syrup for the food industry. It also provides a private labeling service for companies across the United States and Canada. A family owned enterprise, Sweet Harvest Foods prides itself on its corporate responsibility, donating a percentage of its profits to charity and actively raising money for a variety of local and global initiatives. When Sweet Harvest Foods moved to update its business management software, it looked closely at several solutions and solution providers before selecting Sage X3 and The Answer Company.
Sticky Challenges
“We have three distinct lines of business: honey, peanut butter and syrup,” explains Tim Harder, CFO at Sweet Harvest Foods. “We needed software that could adequately support the unique workflows involved in the manufacture and distribution of each of these. The Answer Company was able to show us how Sage X3, with its process manufacturing strengths, would work for us.”
Safety and Quality are Paramount
As a food producer, the most critical elements in Sweet Harvest Foods’ operation are food safety and traceability. “It goes beyond compliance with the various regulations that food manufacturers must adhere to,” says Harder. “The quality and safety of the products we produce and sell is paramount to us. Therefore, the ability to track our raw ingredients from the point of purchase through to final sale is critical, as is the ability to track the results of the quality testing we perform on every lot. Sage X3 is designed for food manufacturers, so it offers the precise tools we need.” Sweet Harvest Foods maintains a rigorous Level Three Food Safety and Quality Certification through the Safe Quality Food Institute (SQFI). The company utilizes the quality control feature set in Sage X3 to record and maintain its quality testing records to ensure its continuing compliance. “Only lots that meet our quality standards are approved for sale,” says Harder. “Having this functionality built right into the software saves us time and helps us continue to maintain our high standards of quality and consistency.”
Access to Decision-Making Data
Harder says that the overall biggest benefit Sweet Harvest Foods is realizing from its move to Sage X3 is better access to better data. “We have visibility and insight into areas of our business that were hidden before. Sage X3 makes it very easy to access our data through reports, quick queries and desktop dashboards. We’re able to make this data available to the employees who need it, without the need to have them go through IT.” The ready access to data has improved management’s ability to make faster and more confident decisions. “We have the facts to help us make quicker decisions, and since we trust the data we’re collecting, we have a high level of confidence in those decisions,” says Harder.
Boost Efficiency and Accuracy
Daily processing is also benefiting from the power inherent in Sage X3. “Tasks from ordering through receiving and invoicing are more streamlined,” adds Harder. “And our inventory accuracy has grown, along with better visibility into the entire supply chain. A Partner that Delivers “What makes The Answer Company a good business partner is their ability to understand and attend to the project details, while keeping the focus on the larger picture—a successful end result,” says Harder. “The Answer Company set realistic expectations for what they could do and what the software could do, and then they delivered on those expectations. You can’t ask for much more than that.” He concludes, “The Answer Company has impressive bench strength. They’ve got a team that is skilled in many disciplines, and they are all good at what they do.”.