“My search for the secrets of American ketchup began in a sun-baked field near Los Banos, Calif,” writes Dan Charles in their recent NPR article entitled “Meet The Man Who Guards America's Ketchup.”
“The field didn't look like much at first. Just a wide, pale-green carpet of vines. Then Ross Siragusa, the head of global agriculture for the company Kraft Heinz, bent over, lifted up some of the vines, and revealed a mass of small, red fruit, too many to count,” shares Charles.
According to Charles, “Each acre of this field, Siragusa tells me, will produce about 60 tons of tomatoes. That's up from about 40 tons per acre just 15 years ago. The tomatoes themselves are a mix of tomato varieties that are specially bred to produce red, thick ketchup.”
“A mechanical harvester approaches at the pace of a brisk walk. It's a giant machine, a factory on wheels. It collects a swath of tomato plants, shakes fruit loose from the vines, and sends a stream of bright red tomatoes into a big truck driving alongside. The scale and speed of the operation boggles the mind,” the NPR piece continues.
Charles explains, “Within a day, a processing plant in Los Banos will turn these tomatoes into paste. Weeks or even months later, the paste will become the central ingredient in ketchup.”
“Nothing in this scene, from the tomato varieties to the mechanical harvester, existed when the Heinz company created the classic version of American ketchup many decades ago,” Charles continues.
“And I wonder, has ketchup's taste changed, too?” asks Charles.
According to the article, “Siragusa says that he doesn't know. But he knows somebody who would. A man named Hector Osorno. They call him the ketchup master, which is actually a formal title at Kraft Heinz.
"He's completely obsessed [with ketchup]. He's got secrets that he won't divulge," Siragusa tells Charles in the article.
“A few hours later, I meet Osorno. He's smiling the way people do when they're hiding delightful secrets,” shares Charles.
"What makes you a ketchup master? Is it your skill? Your knowledge?" Charles asks Osorno.
Osorno tells Charles in the article, “I like to think that it is my skill. But it's probably my stubbornness more than anything else. I'm obsessive to do the right thing the first time."
DO IT RIGHT THE FIRST TIME
Osorno’s obsession with getting the ketchup right the first time is something to respect.
We wouldn’t want to tell you to become so obsessed that it could affect your wellbeing and health.
But…
We can get behind striving for perfection to achieve excellence.
Your property and the people you’re responsible for protecting are that important.
And having the right strategy, infrastructure, and technology in place to guard your property will pay off.
Trust us.
Let’s be stubborn for a moment like Osorno.
You love your property and your role to keep it humming.
Don’t let anything slip through the cracks – no exceptions!
But how do you accomplish this?
What do you do to guard your property?
You become a master of Proactive Operations – the methodology that helps you guard your property.
That’s how you’ll be able to do it right the first time and continue to optimize from there.
MEET YOUR METHODOLOGY
Over the years, we’ve worked with many experts in various industries to help them improve the efficiency and effectiveness of their operation.
We admit; we’re obsessed – like Osorno – in our pursuit to understand what’s needed to help our customers achieve success.
From Corporate to Transportation operations, we’ve always worked to discover ways to contribute to the success of every operational function.
- What are the fundamental needs of the industry?
- What’s important and relevant to the experts in each field?
- What are the collective strengths and weaknesses that they all share?
- What’s missing?
That’s when we had an epiphany.
Operations across every industry must move away from the reactive mindset they’ve had for years.
It’s time for a proactive approach – one that will evolve with the demands of the environment.
We’ve done just that.
And while our long-term relationships with industry experts have shaped Proactive Operations, it’s their participation and contribution that has ignited a movement.
With Proactive Operations, you have the advantage of maximizing your performance, creating memories, and keeping your customers coming back to your property.
Go here to learn about each pillar of your Proactive Operations methodology.
OVER TO YOU
We’re obsessed like Hector Osorno, Heinz’s ketchup master, in our pursuit to understand what’s needed to help our customers achieve success.
That’s what led us to the creation of Proactive Operations. It’s the methodology you’ll use to achieve maximum performance and guard your property.
