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2021 Shipper of Choice profile: Kraft Heinz

Food and beverage producer emphasizes consistency, collaboration with carriers

Kraft Heinz is making investments so drivers can spend less time at the company's facilities. (Photo: Kraft Heinz)

Presented by FreightWaves, in partnership with ArcBest, the Shipper of Choice award recognizes the manufacturers, distributors and retailers who do the best job of keeping the American economy moving by fighting driver detention, providing accessible facilities and understanding what it takes to remove inefficiencies from the supply chain.

Among the Top 25 Shippers of Choice for 2021 is … Kraft Heinz, coming in at No. 16.

About Kraft Heinz

NASDAQ tickerKHC
HeadquartersChicago
2020 revenue$26.18 billion
2020 net income$1.03 billion
Top 25 Shipper of Choice appearances2021, 2020, 2019

Nomination notes for Kraft Heinz

As a FreightWaves Shipper of Choice for the third year in a row, Kraft Heinz continues to win over transportation partners despite the challenges of operating in a pandemic. Even as one of North America’s largest food and beverage producers, the company approaches its carrier relationships with an emphasis on consistency, transparency and collaboration. 

“We’ve heard from our carriers that they appreciate the consistency we provide in terms of how we time our RFPs, our key KPIs and day-to-day expectations,” Erin Mitchell, the head of U.S. warehousing, and Kevin Wille, the head of U.S. transportation, said in an email to FreightWaves. “We also recognize the need to work collaboratively and be open and transparent about our challenges and the challenges our carriers are facing, and work together to try and find the best mutual solution.”


Kraft Heinz has also been making investments at its facilities to allow drivers to get in and out faster. The company is expanding yard management capabilities, warehouse operational visibility and 24/7 autonomous trailer unloading. 

“We recognize the importance of keeping drivers and equipment on the road,” Mitchell and Wille stated.

View the Shipper of Choice top 25 winners here

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About Shipper of Choice partner ArcBest

With a relentless focus on meeting customers’ needs and unique access to guaranteed transportation capacity, ArcBest creates solutions to even the most complex supply chain challenges. The company focuses on providing the best customer experience possible with seamless access to a broad suite of logistics capabilities, including truckload, LTL, ocean and air, ground expedite, managed transportation and warehousing.

Nate Tabak

Nate Tabak is a Toronto-based journalist and producer who covers cybersecurity and cross-border trucking and logistics for FreightWaves. He spent seven years reporting stories in the Balkans and Eastern Europe as a reporter, producer and editor based in Kosovo. He previously worked at newspapers in the San Francisco Bay Area, including the San Jose Mercury News. He graduated from UC Berkeley, where he studied the history of American policing. Contact Nate at [email protected].