Tyson CEO: “There Has Never Been a Better Time to be More Transparent”

17 Mar 2016 --- Donnie Smith, President and CEO of Tyson Foods, has a wealth of knowledge and experience in the American protein industry. Since joining Tyson Foods in 1980 and being appointed as president and CEO in 2009, Smith has created a culture which focuses on innovation driven by the consumer.

Speaking at the World Food Innovate 2016, London, Smith strongly believes that when it comes to food innovation; the pipeline begins and ends with the consumer. He says: “Today, food is as much about an experience as what is it you are actually putting in your mouth. No wonder consumers ask about the social aspects of food production: How is it made? Where was it produced? Where the people who produced it responsible? Is the food that I am eating producing a carbon footprint so large that I feel guilty about eating it?”

Smith accepts that consumers are now looking for a guilt free eating experience: “A recent Harris Poll suggested 8 out of 10 women and 7 out of 10 men suffer from food guilt,” he claims.

“Food experience is just as valuable in culture as fashion, music and film. People today express themselves through their food, we find that often the phrase “you are what you eat” has never been more expressive of consumer values.”

Smith highlights the redefining of health and wellness: “Today the definition of health and wellness means so much more that the nutrient density of the food we are eating. It also says something about how it was produced and whether or not the animals raised were fed GMO,” he says, “All these are now involved in the definition of health and wellness to the American consumer.”

“Most people today don’t know how their food is made, using the word “natural”, is the cause of many marketing claims, what we can do as innovators is to speak to these consumers and listen to these insights – there has never been a better time to be more transparent.”

For instance, the efforts of Tyson Foods to operate responsibly and with more transparency are outlined in the company’s first comprehensive sustainability report since its 2014 acquisition of The Hillshire Brands Company.

The online report is being issued in segments over five weeks, beginning with today’s release of an update on the company’s animal well-being efforts. Upcoming segments will cover corporate giving, environmental stewardship, product development and workforce.

Each segment is designed to highlight the company’s performance in an open, honest and understandable way, which reflects Tyson Foods’ commitment to share its successes and challenges in a meaningful and relevant manner.

“Our newest report shows we’re committed to being more transparent about how we do business and our desire for continuous improvement,” said Leigh Ann Johnston, director of sustainability for Tyson Foods. “We’re providing more details – from how we’re reducing antibiotic use and auditing animal well-being on farms to our management of water and workplace safety – than ever before. We recognize that today’s consumers expect access to a new level of information so they know the food they buy is produced responsibly.”

Shaping the way we see food

“In America consumers eat 4.9 times a day,” Smith says, “As we know it used to be three times day, but since snacking is a huge phenomenon in the US, we understand the need for smaller meals more often during the day.” In order to answer to this evolutionary change, Tyson recently launched a snacking line, the Hillshire Snacking brand, which has healthy components, such as gourmet cheese which is full of protein and gives consumers what they want from an elevated, on-the-go snacking experience.

According to Smith, 54% of consumers today are deliberately increasing protein in their diets in the US and 78% will tell you that protein is a key component to a healthy diet.

The world is undoubtedly changing, since the start of Smith's career the population has grown by 2 billion people and food production has doubled. Tyson ensure that they can keep up with this demand in food production. Smith explains: “At Tyson, we have two great R&D facilities, embedded chefs from several of our ingredients suppliers to create the great food ideas, we can go from concept right through to production line, which leads us back to creating a culture of creativity.”

“This idea of creating a culture that listens to consumers to understand what is changing is incredibly important and being transparent equally as important because when we are transparent, consumers feel like they can trust us,” says Smith.

“Everything we do at Tyson is purposeful, we celebrate not just being creative but being caring towards our consumers, we deliberately try and speak to our people how important being creative and innovative is, we aren’t perfect but we continue to grow and our products that are on the edge between cool and crazy are the ones that the consumers really like.”

“People at Tyson are not afraid to fail and can learn from this, we all make mistakes and what we want to do is continue to move forward, we believe what you positively reinforce we will also anchor back to your vision purpose,” Smith adds.

by Elizabeth Kenward