Peas, corn, beans and much more at Lakeside Foods

Company changes CEOs, creates diversified products in its 121st year

By: Charlie Mathews, Herald Times Reporter

MANITOWOC — The founding father of Lakeside Foods couldn't possibly have anticipated microwaveable meals when he started canning peas in 1887.

Albert Landreth also might have found unfathomable gasoline priced at more than $4 a gallon.

"Less than 20 years ago, I couldn't have dreamed of shelf-stable dinners that wouldn't require refrigeration or freezing," said Dave Yanda, 57, the new chief executive officer of the Manitowoc-based international food processor with 15 plants and eight distribution centers in Wisconsin, Minnesota and Ohio.

On June 30, at the annual shareholders meeting of the privately held company, Yanda was elected to replace Doug Quick, 62, who continues to serve as chairman of the board.

"Hormel Compleats" is the brand name of the ready-in-90-seconds meals featuring chicken, beef, turkey or tuna, as well as vegetables and-or grains, such as pasta, potatoes or rice.

Produced at Lakeside's Plainview, Minn., plant, they exemplify the diversity and innovation of "private label" or "store brand" products sold in most of the 50 states and in 17 countries by its corporate customers, the two executives said Tuesday.

Canned and frozen vegetables — peas, beans, and corn are the big three — continue to be the core of Lakeside Foods' business.

At Piggly-Wiggly, the vegetables would be in cans with the "Food Club" label. On Tuesday, stand-up bags of minced onions were rolling off the production line at Manitowoc's 30th Street distribution center under the "Kroger" label.

In about a month, truckloads of green beans will rumble through the streets of Manitowoc en route to the original plant a few hundred yards from the shore of Lake Michigan near the car ferry dock.

Later this summer, carrots and corn will arrive for canning, or for cold storage and future bagging.

Later this fall, Wal-Mart will roll out in self-heating containers cappuccinos and lattes, hot chocolates, teas and soups produced by Lakeside Foods and its San Diego partner, OnTech Delaware.

Self-heating containers allow the contents to be heated to 145 degrees within minutes at the press of a button.

Lakeside also produces health beverage supplements, nondairy frozen dessert toppings, salsa and other sauces, including the "Not-So- Sloppy-Joe" for Hormel.

'People shouldn't go hungry'

"What I'm most proud of is that all the products we produce are healthful," said Quick, a Chicago-area native who joined Lakeside in 1971.

"Our (vegetable) products are preserved with heat, like grandma used to do with her own Mason jars, and not chemical preservatives. Our products are low in calories and low in fat," said Quick, who will spend more time traveling with his wife, Karen, and serving as a volunteer for different projects.

"At Lakeside, we have a passion that people shouldn't go hungry," said Quick, who serves on the board of America's Second Harvest, a hunger-relief organization.

"We give away a lot of food," he said of Lakeside's continuing support of food pantries. "Children develop and learn better if they're not hungry," said Quick, who also will have time to pursue his various industry and philanthropic passions now that he no longer in charge of day-to-day operations.

He told the corporation's approximately 60 shareholders, "Government mandates are dictating diversion of corn from food usage into alternate energy production … 33 percent of corn production is targeted for ethanol production in the next decade."

"(This is) bad news for U.S. food consumers and for hungry people in the developing world," Quick said.
He advocates exploring the feasibility of developing other biofuels, for example, from prairie grasses and animal fat.

Costs skyrocket

Now, it will be up to Yanda and his team to deal with field corn prices from contract farmers that have doubled in three years, with similar increases in soybeans and wheat.

Escalating energy prices of gasoline and fuel add to the cost crunch, along with an 11 percent increase in the price of steel cans, and other increases in the oil-based polypropylene bags.

In addition to those fiscal pressures, Yanda said June's heavy rains resulted in 47 inches of water in its Reedsburg plant. "There was severe crop damage in that region, with about a 40 percent loss of acreage devoted to peas," said Yanda, a Manitowoc County native, who joined Lakeside in 1973.

Will consumers see higher prices for their canned and frozen vegetables? "Yes, we'll see inflation in all categories, including vegetables," he said. "We've had to pay 45 percent more for our raw produce."

Lakeside's new CEO said innovation would continue to be a critical element in future success. The company has several in-house graphic designers who help clients develop packaging that will create an advantage versus their competitors.

Yanda said he's not happy the U.S. dollar is weak against foreign currencies, but it does work to Lakeside's advantage as it helps clients sell products overseas.

He was able to tell shareholders the company had achieved a new record in net sales revenue for the previous fiscal year.

Despite the increases in different operational expenses, Yanda expressed long-term optimism, a commitment to capital equipment reinvestment, and pursuit of growth opportunities, like organic vegetables.

"An advantage of being privately held, is we can do our planning over a five-year cycle," Quick said. "We can live with ups and downs, and not overreact because some analyst is not happy with our quarterly numbers."

Perhaps, the ultimate strength of Lakeside Foods is reflected by the continuing interest of potential suitors, pursuing the Lakeshore area company, which is in the top three of U.S. producers of frozen and canned vegetables.

Quick said shares of Lakeside Foods can be bought and sold, but rarely are, "as we have very loyal shareholders who encourage us to stay private."

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