Sysco is an American
multinational corporation
A multinational corporation (MNC; also called a multinational enterprise (MNE), transnational enterprise (TNE), transnational corporation (TNC), international corporation, or stateless corporation, is a corporate organization that owns and cont ...
that sells, markets, and distributes food products to restaurants, healthcare and educational facilities, sports stadiums, and other venues that serve food. It also sells foodservice supplies and equipment. The company is headquartered in the
Energy Corridor
The Energy Corridor is a business district in Houston, Texas, located on the west side of the metropolitan area between Texas State Highway Beltway 8, Beltway 8 and the Texas State Highway 99, Grand Parkway. The district straddles a stretch of ...
district of
Houston
Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...
,
Texas
Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...
.
Sysco was founded in 1969 by Herbert Irving, John F. Baugh, and Harry Rosenthal. The company became public on March 3, 1970.
Sysco is the world's largest broadline food distributor. As of June 2024, the company has approximately 76,000 employees and serves 730,000 customer locations. It operates 340 distribution centers in 10 countries. In 2019 Sysco entered the UK market by purchasing Brakes and forming Sysco GB
''
Fortune
Fortune may refer to:
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* Fortuna or Fortune, the Roman goddess of luck
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* ''The Fortune'' (19 ...
'' magazine has consistently included Sysco in its annual
Fortune 500
The ''Fortune'' 500 is an annual list compiled and published by ''Fortune (magazine), Fortune'' magazine that ranks 500 of the largest United States Joint-stock company#Closely held corporations and publicly traded corporations, corporations by ...
rankings of the largest companies in the United States based on total revenue.
In 2024, Sysco placed 54th in these rankings.
History
Founding and early history
In 1966, Zero Foods owner John Baugh initiated discussions with the leaders of eight other food distribution companies about the prospect of forming one large corporation.
The nine companies agreed to terms and formed Sysco in May 1969. At the time of the merger, the total sales of the nine companies were approximately $115 million.
In March 1970, Sysco held its
initial public offering
An initial public offering (IPO) or stock launch is a public offering in which shares of a company are sold to institutional investors and usually also to retail (individual) investors. An IPO is typically underwritten by one or more investm ...
.
Sysco made its first acquisition in 1970, purchasing Arrow Foods Distributor.
Between 1970 and 1980, the company continued to grow through the acquisition of 25 small food distributors.
It also expanded its trucking fleet and constructed refrigerated warehouses for food storage.
In 1980, Sysco recorded $1.2 billion in annual revenue. The following year, it moved its stock from the
American Stock Exchange
NYSE American, formerly known as the American Stock Exchange (AMEX), and more recently as NYSE MKT, is an American stock exchange situated in New York City. AMEX was previously a mutual organization, owned by its members. Until 1953, it was known ...
to the
New York Stock Exchange
The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE, nicknamed "The Big Board") is an American stock exchange in the Financial District, Manhattan, Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. It is the List of stock exchanges, largest stock excha ...
.
In 1985, Sysco was described in a ''
New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...
'' report as "the nation's leading food service marketing and distribution company."
Acquisitions and expansion
In 1988, Sysco achieved nationwide coverage through its acquisition of the food distributor
CFS Continental.
By 1996, Sysco was the third-largest company in
Houston
Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...
and had over 30,000 employees.
[Hassel, Greg.]
Sysco goes to court vs. RioStar/Chapter 7 sought for Ninfa's parent
" ''Houston Chronicle
The ''Houston Chronicle'' is the largest daily newspaper in Houston, Houston, Texas, United States. it is the third-largest newspaper by Sunday circulation in the United States, behind only ''The New York Times'' and the ''Los Angeles Times''. ...
''. Friday October 18, 1996. Business 1. Retrieved on February 6, 2012. Sysco acquired Newport Meat in 1999, which at the time had sales of approximately $100 million per year. This was the company's first acquisition of a
California
California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...
company.
Between 1995 and 2000, Sysco's annual sales increased from $12 billion to $19 billion.
In 2002, Sysco expanded into the Canadian market by purchasing SERCA Foodservices for $278 million.
SERCA's business was similar to Sysco's, with the Canadian company supplying food products and foodservice supplies to approximately 80,000 customers at the time of the acquisition.
The following year, Sysco acquired Asian Foods, which was then the largest Asian food distribution company in North America.
In 2009, Sysco made its first acquisition outside of North America, buying the Irish food distributor Pallas Foods.
Further expanding its footprint in Ireland, Sysco purchased the food distributor Crossgar Foodservice for an undisclosed amount in 2012.
In December 2012, Sysco acquired Appert's Foodservice, Buchy Food Service, Central Seafood Company, and Distagro.
On December 9, 2013, Sysco announced they were planning to acquire
US Foods
US Foods Holding Corp. (formerly known as U.S. Food service) is an American food service distributor founded in 1989. With approximately $24 billion in annual revenue, US Foods was the 10th largest private company in the US up until its IPO. ...
, their closest competitor, for a total of $3.5 billion.
However, on June 24, 2015, US Federal Judge
Amit Mehta ruled that the combined Sysco-US Foods would control 75% of the U.S. food service industry and would stifle competition. As a result, on June 29, 2015, Sysco terminated its merger with US Foods.
In February 2016, Sysco announced that it was purchasing the
Brakes Group for $3.1 billion. At the time, Brakes was serving about 50,000 restaurants, hotels, and schools across Europe.
In October 2017, Sysco acquired HFM FoodService, and later changed its name to Sysco Hawai'i in 2019.
In February 2018, Sysco acquired Doerle Food Services, a Louisiana-based foodservice. In March 2018, Sysco acquired Kent Frozen Foods. In 2020, Sysco acquired a 50% stake in Pacific Star Foodservice.
In May 2021, Sysco acquired Greco and Sons, a distributor of Italian specialty food products.
In the September the same year, Sysco acquired Medina Foodservice. In November 2021, FreshPoint, a division of Sysco, acquired Paragon Foods. Later that year, Sysco purchased the fresh produce distributor The Coastal Companies for the purpose of supplementing both its fleet and its specialty produce business.
In October 2023, Sysco announced that it was purchasing Edward Don & Company, a food service supplies and equipment distributor.
This acquisition gave the company additional office and distribution space, as well as the ability to design and build kitchens for its customers.
In December 2023, Sysco Ireland announced plans to acquire Ready Chef Ltd.
In October 2024, Sysco acquired
Scotland
Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...
-based meat and fish supplier, Cambell's Prime Meat.
Products and services
Sysco sells and distributes food and non-food products to businesses that serve food, such as restaurants, healthcare facilities, sports stadiums, and schools.
These goods include ingredients such as meats and produce, as well as frozen foods and prepared meals.
Sysco also provides its customers with dining room supplies, kitchen equipment, and eating utensils.
Within its broader business, Sysco provides customers goods and expertise through its specialty divisions. For example, its FreshPoint division supplies produce to customers. In 2021, Sysco acquired Greco & Sons, an importer and distributor of Italian food products. Greco & Sons operates as an independent division within the company. Sysco offers custom kitchen building for its restaurant customers.[ The company also aids these customers with tasks such as menu design and the development of marketing campaigns.]
Sysco owns Sygma, a subsidiary it founded in January 1984. Sygma is a food service supplier specializing in large chain restaurants. As of February 2023, Sygma was operating 15 distribution centers and delivering goods to 13,000 chain franchises throughout the United States.
Since 2009, Sysco has worked with the World Wildlife Fund to set targets on the volume of seafood it procures from sustainable fisheries. In January 2021, Sysco announced plans to increase purchases of sustainable seafood, particularly from fisheries certified by the Marine Stewardship Council
The Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) is a non-profit organisation which aims to set standards for sustainable fishing. Fisheries that wish to demonstrate they are well-managed and sustainable compared to the MSC's standards are assessed by a tea ...
and the Aquaculture Stewardship Council
The Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC) is an independent non-profit organisation and labelling organization that establishes protocol on farmed seafood while ensuring sustainable aquaculture. The ASC provides producers with a certification of ...
. Sysco's "One Planet. One Table." assortment of products, which includes approximately 3,000 food items backed by at least one of 20 sustainability certifications and standards, launched in November 2023.
In 2016, Sysco committed to a 10-year plan to use 100% cage-free eggs in its US supply chain by 2026.
In December 2021, Sysco announced its intention to cut its carbon footprint by 27.5% by 2030. In May 2022, Sysco committed to the purchase of 800 Freightliner eCascadia electric trucks
Electricity is the set of physical phenomena associated with the presence and motion of matter possessing an electric charge. Electricity is related to magnetism, both being part of the phenomenon of electromagnetism, as described by Maxwel ...
. The first vehicles in this order were delivered in November 2022. In August 2022, Sysco's UK division launched its first electric delivery truck. In April 2023, the company announced the construction of an electric vehicle hub in Riverside, California
Riverside is a city in and the county seat of Riverside County, California, United States. It is named for its location beside the Santa Ana River. As of the 2020 census, the city has a population of 314,998. It is the most populous city in th ...
. As of September 2024, the company operates 130 heavy-duty electric tractors across the US, Canada, Sweden, and the UK.
In February 2024, the company's UK division partnered with the foodservice technology firm Nutritics to develop a system that helps food businesses quantify the carbon footprint of the food they serve.
References
External links
*
Asian Foods Inc.
The SYGMA Network, Inc.
{{Authority control
Catering and food service companies of the United States
Multinational companies headquartered in the United States
Food and drink companies based in Houston
Food and drink companies established in 1969
1969 establishments in Texas
Companies listed on the New York Stock Exchange
Companies in the S&P 500 Dividend Aristocrats
1970s initial public offerings
Wholesalers of the United States