McDonald's USA recently announced that it has selected Dean Foods, a leading dairy supplier for many of McDonald's restaurants, as the 2011 U.S. Supplier of the Year. McDonald's revealed the U.S. Supplier of the Year Award at the recent U.S. Supplier Summit, an annual gathering of key U.S. McDonald's suppliers and distributors, held in Schaumburg, near its Oak Brook, Illinois, headquarters.

As a trusted McDonald's supplier for many years, Dean Foods won the Supplier of the Year Award for implementing innovative products, initiating management programs, including playing a leading role in corporate quality assurance, and the development of long-term sustainability technologies. This is the first time Dean Foods has been honored as McDonald's Supplier of the Year.

The McDonald's U.S. Supplier of the Year Award is presented annually to the food, paper or product supplier that makes the most significant impact on, and contribution to, McDonald's U.S. business results from the previous year. The award criteria include commitment to quality and food safety, product, equipment and process innovation, exemplary customer service and value. PD

—From Marketwire