Ten questions
- Who mills the flour and where is the plant?
- Do you issue a specification with a batch number for every shipment?
- Which figures do you guarantee: gluten, ash, moisture, protein?
- What happens if a batch does not meet the figures? Who replaces it, and at whose cost?
- How much stock is sitting in the country right now?
- Where is your nearest warehouse to us, and what is the delivery window?
- Is the transport your own or hired?
- Can a specific grade and batch be reserved for our site?
- Payment terms: when does deferral open and on what criteria?
- Who is my contact, and what happens when they are on holiday?
How to read the answers
The mark of a mature supplier is specifics and a willingness to put them in the contract. The warning sign is vague talk about quality, no specifications, and the phrase «we will find a truck».
The first order
Do not start with a large volume. Take a small batch, run a test mix, and watch how the supplier behaves in the small things: did the delivery arrive on time, was the batch number on the paperwork, did the manager reply. Those small things are what the working relationship will feel like.