Belfonte
Added September 14, 2009
For the past ten years, CarterEnergy has supplied fuel to Kansas City’s first locally-owned ice cream and cultured dairy products producer, Belfonte. The company, founded in 1969, manufactures and distributes more than 190 products in more than 550 supermarkets and convenience stores and other locales throughout the Midwest region.
CarterEnergy provides bulk fuel delivery service to the Kansas City fleet, which is made up of approximately 100 vehicles. Fuel is delivered daily to two 2,000 gallon tanks, allowing drivers to fuel their vehicles on-site.
“Having our tanks on-site benefits our operational efficiency in several ways,” said Jason Castle, Fleet Manager for Belfonte. “First, our drivers have easy (and quicker) access to fuel so they can get on the road to make their deliveries instead of having to pay attention to street pricing. Next, it allows us to purchase our fuel based on our needs and consumption. Finally, we have immediate access to red diesel fuel, which very few retail stations carry.”
CarterEnergy facilitates “keep full” program for the company, which has kept Belfonte from experiencing run-outs. In addition, their year-round premium diesel program has helped extend the life of their equipment, including fuel pumps and fuel injectors.
Why CarterEnergy?
“I’ve always had first-rate service from CarterEnergy,” he stated. “Whenever there are issues, my rep is quick to jump on it and make things right for us. I’ve worked with other vendors who are not like that—and it cost them the business. That level of professionalism is important to me.”
“I have also referred other operators to CarterEnergy because of their service, image and reputation. They have a good fuel program, a good fleet and clean trucks,” he continued.
When asked about future plans, Jason said that all of Belfonte’s distributors are getting into the private label business, manufacturing cottage cheese, sour cream and yogurt with labels such as “Great Value” and “Best Choice.” With today’s economy, it is turning into a profitable aspect of their business and they see that trend continuing.
