The distributor purchases, stores, sells, and delivers those products, providing food service operators with access to items from a wide variety of manufacturers.
These wagon-jobbers will purchase food in bulk and deliver small quantities to independent retail stores keeping their shelves stocked.
It is estimated by food industry research firm Technomic that approximately 225 million meals are eaten away from home each day in the U.S.
[2] Food service distribution companies can range in size from a one-truck operation to larger corporations.
Individual distributors (typically smaller in size and service area) can then purchase items across multiple manufacturers' on one easy to place order from the redistributor.