Podcast appearances and mentions of Ben E Keith

Heaping Spoonful began as an idea -- and a name -- created by Rusty Mathis, general manager at Ben E. Keith Foods Mid-South Division. And after nearly 100 episodes, the podcast series ends with an interview with Rusty, who tells listeners about his background and how BEK works to differentiate itself in a crowded marketplace.

When most people think of what a food service company like Ben E. Keith does, warehousing and delivering food is certainly at the top of the list. But having an executive chef like Shane Henderson on staff to help customers in almost countless ways is also part of the equation. And Chef Shane came upstairs from his demo kitchen to tell listeners all about it.

Guest: Chef Shaun Vaughn, SAGE Dining To learn more about SAGE Dining, visit their website or download their Touch of SAGE app. Parents - encourage your students to TRY the incredible variety offered by SAGE Dining at PCA SAGE prepares food for 1700 people every day at PCA - and they take into account the varieties of allergies or food sensitivities. SAGE sources from four different vendors including Hardies, Crystal Creek, Labatt, and Ben E. Keith. SAGE goes through about 200-300 pounds of protein every day! About 80% of all the food is made from scratch - prepared fresh here in the kitchen! Everyday there is a salad and deli bar for students to make their own salad or sandwiches! Everyday there is fresh cut fruit offered! What do you do with the leftovers? SAGE uses “batch” cooking so that the meals are being prepared as fresh as possible and it cuts down on leftovers! SAGE employs nutritionists and dietitians who prepare the recipes and Chef Vaughn and his team follow - they can take an item out of the recipe, but they can't add to it!

Our guest for this episode of The Litigation Psychology Podcast is Punam Kaji, Assistant General Counsel for Ben E. Keith. Punam is focused on employment and litigation matters for the company and is the 2021 winner of the Outstanding Young Lawyer Award of Tarrant County (TX) Young Lawyers Association. She shares with Dr. Steve Wood some of her background as a young attorney and how her experience has benefited from working in a law firm as well as in-house.  Punam talks about how young attorneys can help their firm's litigators assess how strong their case is for trial, particularly by conducting witness interviews early in the case. Young attorneys can also gain great experience by helping to work up the details of a case. They can make themselves valuable in managing the case by knowing all of the details of the case, understanding the case inside and out and looking at the case from the opposing side's standpoint to bring that perspective to the trial team.  Punam also emphasizes the importance of young attorneys learning about the business of their clients, how they operate, their culture, vocabulary, etc. and how valuable that knowledge can be when working with their clients. Lastly, she shares her thoughts on how young attorneys can build a book of business and the importance of the critical step of asking for the work. Watch the video of this episode: https://www.courtroomsciences.com/r/p3X

On this episode of MarketScale's Run the Pass, host and Executive Chef Andre Natera brought in Patrick Mitchell to talk about the American Culinary Federation, the mindset that goes into competitions, how to get into food challenges, and the certifications for chefs.Mitchell is an “Executive Chef/Culinary Advisor for Ben E. Keith Foods based in Ft. Worth, Texas. He is a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America with 41 years experience in the industry. Patrick is an American Culinary Federation Certified Culinary Judge and a member of the American Academy of Chefs since 2005; in 2004, he was awarded the ACF's Chef Professionalism award.”“Usually, these judges and chairs at the competitions are more than willing to help someone understand what's going so someone can get into it." - Patrick MitchellHe started competing in 1979 while he was transitioning to culinary school. He got the bug, so to speak. Thirty-eight years ago, he ended up in Dallas with a team competing in the Culinary Olympics. Then it went international. In 2016, he competed for U.S. Chef of the Year and won. This qualified him for the international level, where he competed in the Global Chef's Challenge in Kuala Lumpur in 2018.After competing for all these years, he pivoted into coaching. Now, when he talks to chefs that want to compete, he asks them what they want to do. Then find a competition, go and observe and talk to the folks running the show.“Usually, these judges and chairs at the competitions are more than willing to help someone understand what's going so someone can get into it,” Mitchell said.Mitchell believes that certification under the ACF is important for chefs. The certifications allow chefs to be able to show that they have met specific standards when it comes to cooking. Everything from how to make specific cuts to sanitation is included in the certification process, so when a chef moves and wants a new job, the hiring manager will know they can fulfill specific skills.

Cole Wadsworth is a cowboy and rodeo competitor who never thought he’d work outside the agriculture field. With degrees in agricultural science and animal science, his plan was always to teach agriculture — until his wife applied for a compliance job at Ben E. Keith, a food and beverage distributor, on his behalf. “I had no idea. She just used my consultant references and some friends of ours that let them know what I did,” Cole says in this episode of the No Accident podcast, presented by TRUCE. “ I thought Ben E. Keith was somebody who wanted me to ride a horse for him. I'm not even kidding. So I went up there and interviewed … and it paid a heck of a lot more than the ag teaching job I was about to take.”While he was working his way through school at Texas A&M University, Cole’s friend taught him auditing as a side hustle. Civilian auditing is much different than shoeing horses — what Cole was doing before he got into compliance — but it helped prepare him for his work at Ben E. Keith, where he was responsible for over 180 drivers and 190 trucks.Because his dad was a commercial vehicle enforcement officer, Cole also knew the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration regulations like the back of his hand. But he still had plenty to learn before he got to his current position as Vice President of Health Safety Environment at Smart Chemical Solutions.In this episode, Cole discusses the importance of testing new safety technology, how a good safety program helps retain employees and why his approach to safety is to work alongside those in the field to gain their input rather than utilizing a “gotcha” mentality.“If there are too many flaws at a field level, then who cares about what I think?” Cole says of the safety procedures he implements. “Remember, I just sit behind a desk and I drive around and teach classes. So if it doesn't work at a field level, what's the point?”Featured Guest

Innovation comes in all shapes and sizes, from listening to your employees for the little tweaks that make their workdays more productive, to be a test fleet for new logistics systems and autonomous platoons, to leading a digital transformation at one of the country’s biggest truckload carriers. Heavy Duty Trucking's Truck Fleet Innovator awards, presented annually since 2006 and sponsored this year by ConMet, recognize fleet executives for their leadership role in fostering innovation in their companies and the industry. This episode features a conversation with Darrel Wilson, CEO of Wilson Logistics of Springfield, Missouri. Deborah Lockridge did the original Innovator interviews and joins Jim Park to discuss Danny Lilley, vice president of fleet systems and technology at Werner Enterprises of Omaha, Nebraska and Roy Markham, vice president of operations and transportation at Ben E. Keith Foods of Fort Worth, Texas. The other three Innovators are featured in episode 3. Read about all of the HDT 2020 Fleet Innovators Follow HDT on social media: Twitter Facebook LinkedIn

On this week's episode, Olivia Winter (The Fort Worth Club) joins the podcast to discuss her growing interest in the culinary arts and her first place finish at the Ben E. Keith Foods Show Student Chef Competition. Photo by James Creange. "Punch on the TV" performed by Bruno Freitas on www.hooksounds.com. Check out our website: www.fwfoodstories.com/ For more information about The Culinary School of Fort Worth's programs, visit: www.csftw.edu/

The December 2007 DSR Radio show includes guests from Kraft Foodservice, Ben E. Keith distributors and many operators and succesful sales reps.  We even feature our most radical promotion yet... skinny dipping for profits!