It’s no secret that in the information age, grocery store customers are becoming more discerning than ever before about what they feed their families. Luckily, working with the right wholesale dairy supplier turns this from a worry into an opportunity to help your brand shine.
Let’s get inside the minds of your customers and show how you can choose the best butter supplier to serve their needs.
What Grocery Store Customers Look for in Butter Products
Product Quality
Over the last decade or two, butter has seen a resurgence in popularity with home chefs and professionals alike as they become more educated about the differences in healthiness, flavor profiles, and other factors between real butter and substitutes.
Customers know to look for high-quality products when they’re shopping for butter. Therefore, it pays to work with a supplier that has a AA rating from BRC Global Standards. Ratings like that show you and your purchasing team that you’re getting a product that is high quality.
In short, while you may be saving a few pennies in the short term by using a cheaper product, you’ll ultimately be more likely to lose your most discerning customers, who will look for the quality products they want elsewhere.
Flavor Variety
Just like its standard, high-quality counterpart, compound butter has also seen a renaissance in both home kitchens and restaurants alike. However, for as lovely as a good finishing butter can taste, it can also be somewhat labor-intensive to make at home.
That’s where offering custom flavored wholesale butter for your grocery store brand has its benefits. Whether you’d like to upscale the flavor of your fresh meats, add it to your prepared meals, or include it as an offering in your deli or bakery, you’ll be able to stand out with a delicious, quality product that speaks for itself.
We work with restaurants, food manufacturers, and grocery stores across the country to provide custom flavor options for your products.
Our product innovations include dozens of custom flavors we’ve developed over the years, from apple herb butter to steakhouse-style seasoned butter. Working with us allows you to provide delicious, premium butter flavors to your customers in a more efficient manner without sacrificing quality and giving your store brand a competitive advantage by boosting flavor in key perimeters.
Whole Ingredients
Your customers are also smarter than ever about reading ingredient labels and looking for visual quality indicators. For example, they know to keep an eye out for additives like canola oil or food coloring. They also know to look for a rich, yellow color—which is typically an indicator of pasture-raised cattle who have had plenty of chances to munch on grass and other greens.
They also know to watch for any preservatives that are designed to increase the shelf life of your product, like diacetyl, or ingredients that are specifically designed to improve spreadability, like added oils. While some of these can legally be labeled as “natural flavors” in your ingredient list, some customers are more likely to be skeptical when they see that listed—because they’ll think you have something to hide.
Ingredient Sourcing
In addition to knowing more about the types and quality indicators of their butter products, customers are also becoming more mindful of where their food comes from. They now know not only to look for manufacturers who are local—some will even look into the creameries who supply your milk.
Transparency goes a long way here. Showing which states, regions, or counties your butter comes from can tell customers a lot about who you are as a grocery store. It also says a lot about your wholesale butter supplier.
Finding a Wholesale Butter Supplier for Your Business
What to Look for in a Supermarket Supplier for Flavored Butter
Just like how your customers know what to look for when they’re purchasing butter products to use at home, you should know what to look for as the buyer for your grocery store or supermarket chain.
Searching for a wholesale butter supplier is a subjective process that depends on your market’s needs. However, there are some criteria to follow that will help you ensure you’re offering the best products available to your customers:
- Size and quantity capabilities: Is your supplier able to offer individual butter pats and dollops, or can they only supply butter in tubs? Having low minimums for ordering, small batches, and small individual portions allows you greater flexibility for the versatile uses of your butter in-store.
- Experience and certifications: Look for suppliers who have experience and connections with local creameries going back generations. It also helps to look for safety standards and certifications such as BRC Global Standards, among other awards and accolades.
- Personalized customer service: Your wholesale dairy supplier should be there to help you no matter how long you’ve been in business. Look for suppliers who can provide personalized attention that addresses your needs.
Grocery Store Suppliers with Customization Options
If your butter supplier isn’t willing to at least work with you on flavor experimentation, you may be with the wrong company. Look for a supermarket supplier that is open to your custom flavor ideas and is willing to work with you on product development for your business so you can upscale flavor.
As more people search for alternatives to traditional butter, it’s also helpful to work with a wholesale dairy supplier that can provide options for vegan and kosher customers. Make sure your supplier offers margarine, ghee, and plant-based butter as a branding option as well. This not only benefits your brand’s perceived accommodations for any customer needs but also allows more types of customers to purchase from your chain with peace of mind.
White Labeling for Customer-Facing Products
When you’re looking for a wholesale dairy supplier, it’s also good to search for distributors that offer white label services for your butter products. Otherwise known as private labeling, this allows you to enhance your meal products and ingredients under your own brand. Add new flavors and products under a logo your customers already love and trust.
Make Butterball Farms Your Grocery Store Supplier
Ready to start working with us to bring better wholesale flavored butter to your customers? We work with some of the best innovators to let you upscale flavor in your perimeter. Connect with us and tell us your ideas, and we’ll work with you to elevate your custom compound butter options for your customers.