The foodservice dairy supply chain is a complex and sometimes chaotic thing. There are hundreds of suppliers, thousands of distributors and countless operators moving untold varieties of product every day. IPAP plays a unique role in simplifying and streamlining the flow of information, product and funds so that all participants enjoy improved profitability compared to going at it alone. IPAP’s success is due to the proven value of our system for both distributors and suppliers. Both parties report that they routinely seek opportunities to expand their volume through IPAP, demonstrating their appreciation for the business benefits IPAP provides. Although the Venture Partners who own IPAP compete with one another on the street, they work together to maximize the overall value of the IPAP program.

Distributors who source dairy products from IPAP generally do so to gain two benefits:

• To consolidate and simplify operations
• To lower total costs to the distributor

IPAP offers distributors the opportunity to combine ordering, receiving and payables from multiple suppliers into a single set of transactions with IPAP. The result is streamlining and reduction of activity and costs for many departments, and a freeing up of dock space and time.

IPAP also provides distributors with the freedom to order exactly what is needed, when it is needed. This is possible because IPAP does not require a minimum order for any particular supplier but still makes frequent deliveries to distributors. As a result, distributors enjoy the rare combination of faster turns, lower inventory carrying costs and improved service levels versus direct sourcing from multiple suppliers. In addition to the financial benefits, faster turns means better quality dairy products for consumers, which is good for foodservice operators, distributors and suppliers.

Distributors who optimize the use of IPAP can often receive favorable pricing in comparison to dealing directly with a dairy supplier. While high-volume suppliers may ship in full truckloads and offer “best possible” pricing, many others ship less than truckload (LTL) orders with related price premiums to the distributor. By consolidating these LTL shipments into a single IPAP shipment, the distributor may very well find lower pricing. As you will see, IPAP can provide value to the distributor even on full truckload shipments from a single supplier.

Faster Turns	Longer shelf-life
Consistent Lead Times	Less attention to the various lead times of many suppliers
More frequent deliveries	Limits inventory needed on hand
No minimums per supplier	Can order exactly what is needed
Efficiency of one order, one delivery, & one invoice for multiple suppliers	Operational efficiency for the distributor