Wendy'sWendy’s is about to turn over a new leaf. The American fastfood restaurant chain has committed to using only vine-ripened, greenhouse-grown tomatoes by 2019 in its North American locations.
Tomatoes will sourced from all over North America, with the majority coming from Canada and the US.
“We’re making this change for a variety of reasons that will benefit our customers, but taste and quality are the top factors and we are excited about the superior flavors we can achieve with this change,” said Dennis Hecker, senior vice president of quality assurance for Wendy’s. “Additionally, greenhouse farms provide supply predictability and quality assurance benefits—including continuity of supply; protection of crops from harsh weather; safe, indoor growing conditions; and a significant reduction of chemical pesticides used on the plants.”
This initiative is also expected to support local economies.
“We’re working with geographically dispersed partners throughout North America and our goal is to source tomatoes as close to our restaurants as possible,” says Liliana Esposito, chief communications officer for Wendy’s. “Our goal is to supply each restaurant from the same supplier nearly year-round, while balancing the replanting timing for each supplier to ensure assured supply throughout the year.”
The transition to greenhouse tomatoes has started at Wendy’s locations in Canada and the US, with completion slated for early 2019.
Interested Canadian growers can contact Wendy’s Quality Supply Chain Co-op, their independent purchasing cooperative: contactus@wqscc.com.
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