SMOKEHOUSE DRAW

AMY I. STICKEL

APPLETON, Wis. -- Premium quality, low-sodium smokehouse meats are one of the main draws to the meat department at Copps Corp.'s newest store here.

Copps, based in Stevens Point, Wis., launched the new smokehouse line with the opening of the store June 26. It includes about a dozen products, according to Jeff Farnsworth, director of meat and seafood.

The line, which is generated by a third-party processor, was rolled out to Copps' other stores at the same time, he added.

"What is unique about this is that it addresses the issue of reduced or eliminated sodium and nitrates, and no MSG," he said.

"It almost looks like it's produced in-store, because it has a folksy packaging, rather than the slick, multivac stuff most private-label product is packaged in."

The line, which currently includes smoked chicken, smoked turkey, Canadian bacon, regular bacon, butt bacon and half picnic hams, is doing so well that it may be expanded in the coming months.

"It's a premium quality product," Farnsworth said. "I don't really want to say 'pricey' because it isn't, really, when you compare what ham is to different people. You can go out and buy hams that have up to 42% added substances. I think it's a good fit with the types of stores we have."

The new line fits well indeed into Copps' latest, more upscale store, which places its primary emphasis on fresh foods. In the Appleton store, the meat and seafood department is positioned along the back wall, behind produce, natural foods, deli and bakery departments.

The department features fresh and frozen meat and seafood. Larger than Copps' typical department, it has a four-deck self-service fresh meat section taking up 56 feet along the back wall. There is also a 24-foot fresh meat service case and 16 feet of seafood divided evenly between fresh and frozen; and 56 linear feet of lunch meat. The department also uses four 20-foot dual temperature bunkers, and a 24-foot multideck frozen case.

The Appleton store is the third Copps unit to have a frozen seafood service counter, which allows the department to maintain mass displays of shrimp, crab, scallops and lobster.

"Even on slower days of the week, you've got mass displays out there with relatively little exposure in terms of shrink or purge or any of that type of thing," Farnsworth noted.

"The mass displays are working out very well," he continued. "Managers in the stores are reluctant to put out a big display of lobster tail at almost $20 a pound, knowing there's going to be some shrink loss. So, by going with this you're able to keep large quantities on display. And mass sells mass." The meat and seafood departments at this store offer both self-service and full-service merchandising, unlike the bakery department, which is completely self-service.

"We think it's really important to offer that service counter to our customers," Farnsworth said of his department. "My guess is that 20% to 30% of our customers who come into the meat department with the intention of buying meat are using our service counter.

"From a cost standpoint, it certainly would make sense to eliminate labor wherever you could. In fact, good quality people are hard to find. But we are a service-driven organization."

While self-service in the bakery may equal convenience, in the seafood and meat department it can mean confusion, Farnsworth added.

"I don't know that a customer really has the same comfort level when it comes to steaks and chops and seafood," he said. "They feel a little bit more comfortable asking someone, 'How much do I need? How long do I need to prepare it on a per-ounce or per-serving or per-pound portion?' " Of course, convenience is still an important consideration in meat and seafood. The Appleton store maintains a "Single Select" section that specializes in small portions, such as single pork chops or two drumsticks.

Farnsworth said the Single Select section is geared toward smaller families. "We think that addresses a growing segment of people who shops our stores."

The meat counter includes value-added and prepared items, like kebobs, stuffed cutlets, Mexican entrees and ready-to-serve products, Farnsworth said. The department is looking at adding new items, like a Cajun shrimp that is already skewered for the grill.

"These aren't new, but it's got our largest exposure [here]," Farnsworth said.