Unifine Richardson
Unifine Richardson Case General Comments
HONEY CHOICES
It appears to be nearly unanimous in terms of choice of honey among the nine groups in the class. Five groups recommend pure Canadian honey, two of which also recommend U.S. honey as a secondary source. Three groups recommend pure U.S. honey, contributing largely to the fact that the teams did not convert the U.S. honey price quoted in U.S. dollar to Canadian dollar in which the other alternative honey price are quoted. One team recommend 50-50 Canadian-Argentina blend.
The main advantages and disadvantages of each honey choice are as follows:
Honey Choices |Advantages |Disadvantages | |Continue with Chinese-Canadian honey |Cost - $1.08 per pound
Taste
Relatively large product availability (world’s largest producer) |Probable product recall
Liable for poor quality product
Customer dissatisfaction
Possible loss of customer
Possible fines | |Purchase Canadian-Argentine blend |Cost - $1.42 per pound
Canadian supplier base already existed |Taste
Possible product recall due to potential use of veterinary drugs
Limited product availability (world’s 3rd largest producer) | |Purchase pure U.S. honey |Taste
Safe
Low probability of recall |Expensive - $1.79 per pound (in Canadian dollars)
Limited product availability (world’s 2nd largest producer, but capacity far smaller than China) | |Purchase pure Canadian honey |Same as pure U.S. honey, plus:
Local sources
Supply base used for Chinese-Canadian blend already existed |Expensive - $1.75 per pound
Most limited product availability (world’s 10th largest producer) | |
Given the advantages and disadvantages of each honey choice, honey selection must be such that the major honey customer—a large franchise retail operator, representing 80% of Unifine’s honey sales—will accept it. Since its main customer used this product as a “give-away” dipping sauce for its fried chicken pieces, the main focus for the customer is to manage cost, although
HONEY CHOICES
It appears to be nearly unanimous in terms of choice of honey among the nine groups in the class. Five groups recommend pure Canadian honey, two of which also recommend U.S. honey as a secondary source. Three groups recommend pure U.S. honey, contributing largely to the fact that the teams did not convert the U.S. honey price quoted in U.S. dollar to Canadian dollar in which the other alternative honey price are quoted. One team recommend 50-50 Canadian-Argentina blend.
The main advantages and disadvantages of each honey choice are as follows:
Honey Choices |Advantages |Disadvantages | |Continue with Chinese-Canadian honey |Cost - $1.08 per pound
Taste
Relatively large product availability (world’s largest producer) |Probable product recall
Liable for poor quality product
Customer dissatisfaction
Possible loss of customer
Possible fines | |Purchase Canadian-Argentine blend |Cost - $1.42 per pound
Canadian supplier base already existed |Taste
Possible product recall due to potential use of veterinary drugs
Limited product availability (world’s 3rd largest producer) | |Purchase pure U.S. honey |Taste
Safe
Low probability of recall |Expensive - $1.79 per pound (in Canadian dollars)
Limited product availability (world’s 2nd largest producer, but capacity far smaller than China) | |Purchase pure Canadian honey |Same as pure U.S. honey, plus:
Local sources
Supply base used for Chinese-Canadian blend already existed |Expensive - $1.75 per pound
Most limited product availability (world’s 10th largest producer) | |
Given the advantages and disadvantages of each honey choice, honey selection must be such that the major honey customer—a large franchise retail operator, representing 80% of Unifine’s honey sales—will accept it. Since its main customer used this product as a “give-away” dipping sauce for its fried chicken pieces, the main focus for the customer is to manage cost, although