A Q&A with Central Products & Foods Ltd: Built on Tradition

When you walk into Sausage Makers store front delicatessen at 630 Nairn Avenue in Winnipeg’s east end, the wafting aroma of fine deli meats makes your mouth water. Customers have more than 70 products of in store made sausages and meats to choose from, all served by friendly and experienced staff

by Cam Patterson – Canadian Meat Business

It’s the kind of reputation Central Products & Food Ltd. – the parent company of Sausage Makers Delicatessen – has enjoyed for over 60 years. With its trademark cow statuettes perched on the roof, the store has become something of a tradition in Winnipeg. But the simple fact is that the adherence to the principles that built those traditions is the hallmark to the continued success of the brand.

Mike Watson has made sure of that and has been the owner of the company for the past two years.

“It has always come back to the farm for us, and now, the same can be said for our customers because they know when they come to us for their meat, we guarantee very good quality at a reasonable price”

 

“I was in the hospitality industry for many years before I bought the company a few years ago now,” he explains. “I am, in fact, the third owner and was fortunate to be able to acquire the company when Jerry Derzko who was looking to retire. He was hired by the original six who started Central Products in 1958. They brought Jerry on as general manager, and he bought out each of the original owner’s shares when they were looking to retire. His daughter Christina is our manager, and has been here since she was 12 years old.”

It was that linage that attracted Mike in the first place. His dad was a butcher in Europe and when his parents immigrated to Canada his uncle took over the butcher shop. His dad worked in Canada as a butcher at Eaton’s. You could say it’s in Mike’s blood.

“When you grow up in the industry, a shop like Central Products just makes sense,” he says. “I was working in the hospitality industry for some years before finding the opportunity here at Central Products.”

The secret to his success after taking the reins and being his own boss is simple as far as Mike is concerned. “Anyone in the hospitality industry knows success is completely dependent on good product and good service. The reputation was already firmly established, so all I had to do was continue that tradition.”

Mike is quick to credit his team. “We have a wonderful staff. Some of our sausage makers have been with the company in excess of 20 years. And that’s very important because that experience and know-how is the reason our products have had good consistency. Our recipes go back to 1958 when the company started and have been handed down since then in a time honored tradition that reflects in the taste of our meats.”

As he walks through the shop, proud that the store is pretty much the same, with the exception of modern tech having to be upgraded. And, of course, machinery needs replacing. “This year we needed a new sausage stuffing machine,” he says. “So I went to the markets and started searching for a larger capacity machine. There are only a couple companies that produce them. I found that Reiser’s Vemag sausage stuffer checked all the boxes.”

With the Vemag sausage stuffer, Central Products can produce 25% to 30% more product per hour. It was a significant increase to their volume. “What I appreciated with Reiser was they not only sell you the machine, but they follow up that relationship, guaranteeing it’s running at optimum. They also assisted us with streamlining some our process efficiency. As I run my own business the same way, I appreciate that dedication to customer service.”

That tradition has been the cornerstone to Central Products since 1958. Originally the company started as a wholesale outlet by the original six owners. A few years later the delicatessen was added and the store front name changed to Sausage Makers Delicatessen. “We have a successful 61-year-old history here in Manitoba making and selling our sausages derived from our Eastern European heritage,” Mike states proudly. “We carry a wide range of meat products and some of our most popular is our blood & buckwheat sausage. Our coarse garlic sausage is our number one seller, but our farmers and 14 different smokies are very popular as well.”

Central Products is more than a wholesaler and delicatessen. The shop on Nairn with the two statuette cows on the roof is a full process meat processing operation, handling their own cutting, grinding, and mixing.

To meet their growing demand, the Vemag HP10L was the right contemporary solution for Central Products. With Central’s unique mix of specialized products, satisfying the demand for both high-speed production with quick changeovers made the upgrade choice easy for Mike. Whether its Central’s signature Kubasa, Garlic Sausage, Pepperette’s or fine European wieners the Vemag HP10L with world standard double screw technology offered unmatched flexibility. It was a main contributor to Mike’s decision to partner with Reiser. Future plans to enhance Central’s ground portioned products is easily satisfied with the exclusive Vemag inline grinder system complement.

“We deal with several Manitoba family-run producers, including BJ Packers in Beausejour, Country Meat & Sausage out of Blumenort, and Prairie Abattoir from Portage La Prairie,” Mike explains. “All our pork is Manitoba Pork, and the majority of the beef is Manitoba raised, but we do get some from Alberta; but all Canadian for sure.”

They also carry a full line of Eastern European food products from cheeses to sauerkraut and pickles, tea and coffee, perogies, cabbage rolls, and even chocolate. Though the majority of their sales are over the counter, the company has built a large distribution network of grocers, restaurants, and hotels in and around Manitoba.

“We are proud that we are primarily Manitoba home grown with our meat products,” he adds.

Mike is keenly aware of changing trends in consumer awareness when it comes to the food they buy. But for his shop, it is still business as it has always been.

“Over the last 3 years I’ve seen a real return to how people purchase their meat,” he says. “Customers are more educated today, and they pay attention to the ingredients on the packages, and preferring their meat not be loaded with nitrates and salt. But, in all honesty, we haven’t changed a lot, even though consumer awareness is vastly different with respect to ingredients.”

Central Products & Foods has been making gluten free sausages and deli meats since the beginning of the company, which means they don’t use any wheat fillers in their sausages. “We have always been low salt and no MSG added in all of our meats and we’ve built our brand on these principles over these many years.”

Which brings Mike back to the very principle of tradition. Combined with Reiser’s unmatched expertise and support, Central Products maintains the high quality traditions it founded years ago and is well positioned for the future business goals.

“I believe our customers have returned and supported us over the years because they know that the meat they’re taking home is Manitoba grown. They appreciate that.

“It has always come back to the farm for us, and now, the same can be said for our customers because they know when they come to us for their meat, we guarantee very good quality at a reasonable price, good customer service, all backed by our reputation of 61 years in the market.”