Mapping the Anatomy of a ShackBurger

M A P P I NG the A N ATO M Y of a

ShackBurger LOCATIONS

where can I get a ShackBurger? --- at any SHAKE SHACK

Russia

United Kingdom

Russia

Moscow, Russia (2) London, England

United Kingdom

United States

opening in 2016

Japan Tokyo, Japan

Turkey

United States

Japan

Middle East Kuwait City, Kuwait (3) Jabriya, Kuwait Beirut, Lebanon (2) Doha, Qatar Jeddah, Saudi Arabia Istanbul, Turkey Abu Dahbi, UAE (3) Dubai, UAE (6) Al Ain, UAE

PS MA LE OG

Lebanon Kuwait Qatar

United Arab Emirates

Saudi Arabia

map sou rce ed ite df

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New York City (13) Saratoga Springs, NY Boston, MA (4) New Haven, CT Westport, CT Philadelphia, PA (3) Paramus, NJ (2) Washington D.C. (5) Chicago, IL Baltimore, MD Las Vegas, NV Miami, FL (3) Orlando, FL

There are 5 Shake Shack locations scattered about the relatively dense fabric of Washington D.C., one being situated at the corner of a high-traffic pedestrian area near Dupont Circle. Of course different menu items are cooked and prepared in the restaurant’s kitchen, but none of the necessary ingredients are actually produced in DC and must be sourced from elsewhere around the country and world. Thankfully a comprehensive interstate highway system as well as shipping networks of ships, trains, and planes, allow Shake Shack to have access to the highest quality foods.

Without this infrastructure, urban areas would not conveniently enjoy cuisines from around the world, even though the people living there play no role in the production of that food.

Shake Shack

N

WASHINGTON D.C. image source: http://iamafoodblog.com /best-burger-recipe/

ON THE MENU Angus Beef

American Cheese

Bun

salt + pepper

Plum Tomato Lettuce

butter

ShackSauce $5.19 $7.99 logo & menu source: https://www.shakeshack.com/location/dupont-circle/

image source: http://aht.seriouseats.com/archives/2009/10/the-burger-lab-the-fake-shack-how-to-make-shake-shack-burger.html

Shake Shack’s story began from a roadside food cart in Madison Square Garden in New York City between 2001-2003. In 2004, it opened it’s first permanent location at that site and has proliferated. There are now dozens of franchises around the globe from the United States, to the Middle East, and by 2016, to the far East. Compared to other burger concoctions, the ShackBurger is a classic, with the typical toppings of cheese, lettuce, and tomato plus the addition of the original ShackSauce (mayonnaise, ketchup, yellow mustard, dill pickle, garlic powder, paprika, cayenne pepper); however the quality of ingredients and how the burger is prepared makes it stand out amongst other burger, hotdog, fries, and shakes joints. Despite the apparent simplicity of this dish, there is a lot more going into the creation of this mouth-watering burger than the identifiable components. The actual complexity of bringing all of these components together is rarely perceived by the average city-dwelling customer who is removed from processes of production, processing, and distribution. After analyzing only the bun and beef, the two most fundamentally required elements of any ‘burger’ it already becomes clear that every single ShackBurger is a tiny part of a massive, long, and complicated commodity chain in an even larger global food system.

mp on # 1 M Y of a the M A P P Ico NG AeNnt ATO

ShackBurger the BUN the perfectly soft and squishy...

produced & distributed by:

POTATO ROLL INGREDIENTS: Wheat Flour (flour, Ferrous Sulfate, Niacin, Thiamin, Riboflavin, Folic Acid) Nonfat Milk Reconstituted Potatoes (from potato flour) Real Cane Sugar Yeast Wheat Gluten Sunflower Oil

Martin’s has recently made changes to some of the ingredients it uses due to consumer concerns. One example is the use of Tumeric and Annoatto instead of artificial yellow dyes to give the bread it’s distinct golden coloring to match their motto “The Taste is Golden!” Other ingredients also promote going in the direction of providing a non-GMO product. Martin’s now uses sunflower oil not only for the flavor quality, but also because sunflowers are not available in genetically engineered forms like soybeans are.

The same is true of wheat and wheat gluten, as well as sugar cane. Martin’s claims that it also sources non-GMO potatoes. This is significant not only from a marketing perspective, but also because there are many public health, environmental, and social concerns related to GMO’s. This can include allergies or other reactions, trans-genic ‘superweeds’, herbicide/pesticide resistance, reduced biodiversity, and monopolies that inhibit food sovereignty. Consequently, Shake Shack uses Martin’s potato rolls because of taste, texture, and quality, but also because they support the use of non-GMO, natural products.

(2% or less of: salt, butter, Sunflower Lecithin, Dough Conditioners, Monocalcium Phosphate, Calcium Propionate (preservative), Soya Flour, Guar Gum, Ascorbic Acid, DATEM, Calcium Sulfate, Enzymes, Tumeric Color, Annoatto Color, Sesame Seeds) The majority of raw ingredient inputs necessary to manufacture the ingredients for Martin’s Famous Potato Rolls are grown hundreds if not thousands or miles away from the company’s plants. And, for all of these raw inputs, other processing must occur at different locations to become the ingredient purchased and used by Martin’s. The food system is finely orchestrated, mandating tremendous management, money, labor, and technology, little of which is perceived by the consumer who simply goes to a Shake Shack and waits in line to order a burger, or even an east-coast shopper who picks up a bag of rolls in his/her local grocery store.

WASHINGTON 108,460 WASHINGTON 9.3

OREGON 1.9

MONTANA 209,470

IDAHO 93,717

NORTH DAKOTA 51%

SOUTH DAKOTA 25%

IDAHO 11.5

US production of

RAW INPUTS NORTH DAKOTA MINNESOTA 2.3 NORTH DAKOTA 66,468 347,068 MINNESOTA 2.O SOUTH DAKOTA 131,260 MINNESOTA 3%

WISCONSIN 2.9

MAINE 1.5

MICHIGAN 1.5

Chambersburg, PA NEBRASKA 2% COLORADO COLORADO 5% 89,812 KANSAS COLORADO 9% 2.3

CALIFORNIA 1.5

NEBRASKA 71,050

Martin’s headquarters and original plant

100 miles

Washington D.C. Dupont Circle Shake Shack

KANSAS 246,400

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KEY WHEAT

TEXAS 174,000

(production in 1,000 bushels)

SUGAR CANE (production in short tons, raw value - S TRV )

TEXAS 2%

SUNFLOWER SEEDS

TEXAS 67,500

(production percentage of national total)

Valdosta, GA Martin’s manufacturing plant

LOUISIANA 1.38 million FLORIDA 1.8 million

POTATO (production in billion pounds)

states where Martin’s products are distributed

HAWAII 238,000

(or can order online to ship anywhere)

WHEAT

SUGAR CANE

SUNFLOWERS

Raw grain is delivered to mills by covered trucks and hopper rail cars; in most cases it goes through a series of aggregate steps before arriving to the mill (farmer, terminal elevator, etc.). Before unloading, grain is inspected for safety and quality (moisture content, test weight, unsound kernels, and foreign material); there are specific US Grain Standards and even stricter commercial specifications. After inspection, the grain is moved via conveyor to be stored in large bins or silos that maintain certain atmospheric conditions (moisture, temperature, and ventilation) to prevent mildew, sprouting or fermentation depending on the type of wheat and it’s protein level. Milling the grain involves a number of procedures that include: cleaning, magnetic separation, separation, aspiration, de-stoning, disc separation, scourering, the impact entoleter, color separation, and tempering. Finally the wheat kernals are ground into flour. The process continues with sifting, bleaching, enrichment, malting, and leavening before the final product is tested and approved for use.

Since the 1990s, the production of sugar cane in the US has been increasing due to a substantial investment in new processing equipment, the adoption of new technologies, the use of improved crop varieties, and acreage expansion. The plant is one of the most essential raw material sources of manufactured sugar. Once harvested, it must be processed quickly before its sucrose deteriorates. The first processing phase is extraction of the cane juice, followed by evaporation and boiling. The final raw sugar is stored as a sticky brown mountain and creates a byproduct of molasses that can be used in cattle feeds. Once the raw sugar has been delivered closer to the area of consumption, it is refined which involves processes of affination, carbonatation, decolorization, boiling, and recovery. Then it becomes the granulated sugar or other sweeteners consumers recognize.

Sunflower oil is derived from sunflower seeds that come from sunflowers that have been grown with specific ideal characteristics for oil yeild. Seed processing involves crushing to separate oil from the meal. There are two common technologies/steps for doing this: using a continuous feed expeller that squeezes out oil using mechanical pressure, followed by a solvent extraction process where the remaining meal is washed with a hexane solution to dislodge nearly all the remaining oil. Sunflower oil consumption is increasing and has many applications for frying foods, cooking, and baking. Many food producers like Martin’s are willing to pay a premium for sunflower oil over soybean oil, not only because of it’s taste and durability, but also because unlike soybeans, growing sunflowers does not involve GMOs that could lead to herbicide/pesticide resistance.

POTATO Potato Rolls don’t use actual potatoes, but rather dehydrated potatoes that can be reconstituted with cold water. Therefore, processing at multiple facilities takes place before the dried potaoes get incorporated into the potato rolls. First, raw potatoes shipped from farms need to be cleaned, peeled, washed, and inspected. The next steps include: cutting, blanching, cooling, cooking, mashing, and dosifaction to the drum dryer where the mash is spread into a thin layer to be dried. The last phases of the production process include: drying, transporting, sifting, and packaging.

Ultimately, this is a very energy intensive process, but preserves the potatoes for later use and eaiser distribution.

mp on # 2 M Y of a the M A P P Ico NG AeNnt ATO

ShackBurger the BEEF tender, fatty, flavorful...

raised & fattened by affiliated small farmers of:

ANGUS BEEF the Shack Blend: 50% sirloin 25% chuck 25% brisket

The original Niman Ranch is in California, but the company expanded and now works closely with 50-70 cattle ranchers (it’s main industry however, is pork). In exchange for agreeing to comply with specific protocols for raising and treating their cattle (such as all animal feeds are vegetarian and free of antibiotics and hormones or other supplements or that animals should be able to express natural behaviors and be treated humanely), ranchers are paid a premium over commercial wholesale prices.

Only Angus, Hereford, and Shorthorn cattle are raised; they graze on pasture for 14-18 months and after reaching 900 pounds they are ‘finished’ on a diet of barley, corn, wheat, soy, molasses, and hay. Some farmers are able to produce these inputs themselves and use manure for fertilizer.

Niman Ranch also processes and distributes it’s meat. Most beef is processed at a slaughterhouse in Utah. Then they are transported to be butchered at a company-owned facility in Oakland, CA. However, since 2006, the company has also used meat processors near Atlanta, Boston, and Washington DC to better serve national distribution agreements.

short loin

rib

chuck brisket chuck

short plate

rump sirloin

heel

flank

[Niman Ranch]

BEEF

Niman Ranch had to switch from the Simplot slaughter plant in Nampa, ID that slaughtered 400 head per day to the Swift plant that kills 400 head per hour

Nampa, ID

KEY B beef chain 1 All Niman Ranch livestock are born, raised, slaughtered, processed, and distributed in the United States.

beef chain 2 states with [Niman] family- owned cattle ranches

Caldwell, ID

Boston, MA meat processing

feedlot

Swift (slaughter) plant

Chicago, IL cow/calf operation (ranch)

Bolinas, CA original Niman Ranch & headquarters

Oakland, CA

UTAH

meat processing

slaughterhouse

350 mi

grocery store (Whole Foods)

processing plant meat processing

According to Niman Ranch spokeswoman Drew Calvert, ranchers who raise Niman ranch cattle are within 350 miles of the processing plant they use.

Washington D.C. Dupont Circle Shake Shack

Niman Ranch has it’s own small butchering facilities in Oakland, but also uses meat processors in Massachusetts, Georgia, and near DC to better reach markets

Atlanta, GA meat processing

KEY A

N

none (0-1,999) (2,000-7,999) (8,000-19,999) (20,000-500,000)

(data from 2007)

Although Niman Ranch is not considered industrial agriculture, it does not produce grass-fed beef and still uses grain feeds to fatten/finish cattle. This is because Angus beef is certified based on the beef grading system (prime, choice, select...) which is all about marbling which is accomplished with grain-based diets, not just grass. Even though Niman Ranch currently doesn’t operate at an industrial scale, it still can use inputs produced at an industrial scale such as corn (which most likely also are GMOs or were grown with synthetic fertilizers and pesticides). Niman Ranch also sometimes uses industrial-scaled processing facilities since they themselves do not have the means to process all of their meat to certain specifications.

The proliferation of the brand, through the aggregation of small operations, also faces the challenge of CONVENTIONALIZATION. Currently, Niman Ranch is viewed as an alternative to industrial beef, but in order to produce at a large scale and to compete with industrial competitors, it is slowly becoming only a slightly different version of industrial beef. With the transition of ownership in the company this is becoming more apparent as farmers are not being held to protocols as strictly, GMOs are included in feeds, and some rumors even suggest the company gets some of their cattle from feedlots.

CATTLE DENSITY LEVELS (# of cattle per county)

CATTLE FEED INPUTS OIL

wheat

corn

soy

hay & alfalfa

molasses

oil

water