Layoffs at Munchery as food delivery industry struggles
1of8Reyna Sigoran, left, transfers sauce into a container at the plating station at the Munchery kitchen in San Francisco, Calif. on Tuesday, April 19, 2016.Stephen Lam / Special to The ChronicleShow MoreShow Less
2of8A worker places a container of oliver chickpea stew into a bin at the Munchery kitchen in San Francisco, Calif. on Tuesday, April 19, 2016.Stephen Lam / Special to The Chronicle 2016Show MoreShow Less
3of8Jose Garcia, center, tosses a half-peeled potato at the Munchery kitchen in San Francisco, Calif. on Tuesday, April 19, 2016.Stephen Lam / Special to The Chronicle 2016Show MoreShow Less
4of8A worker adds cheese to a tray of potato wedges at the Munchery kitchen in San Francisco, Calif. on Tuesday, April 19, 2016.Stephen Lam / Special to The Chronicle 2016Show MoreShow Less
5of8Tri Tran, co-founder of Munchery, stands for a portrait at the company's kitchen in San Francisco, Calif. on Tuesday, April 19, 2016.Photos by Stephen Lam / Special to The Chronicle 2016Show MoreShow Less
6of8Racks full of prepared meals at Sprig an on-demand food delivery service in San Francisco, California on Thurs. April 21, 2016.Michael Macor/The ChronicleShow MoreShow Less
7of8Teresa Chable, a kitchen worker at Munchery, pours olive chickpea stew into a container at the company's kitchen in San Francisco, Calif. on Tuesday, April 19, 2016.Stephen Lam/Special to The ChronicleShow MoreShow Less
8of8Steven Levine, resident chef at Munchery, works on his computer at the company's kitchen in San Francisco, Calif. on Tuesday, April 19, 2016.Stephen Lam / Special to The Chronicle 2016Show MoreShow Less
San Francisco food delivery service Munchery recently laid off 30 employees, a move that new CEO James Beriker said was necessary to streamline its operations.
The layoffs, all of which took place at Munchery's Mission District headquarters, come on the heels of Bloomberg reports that the company has struggled with food waste and has had difficulty finding a profitable business model.
Beriker came to Munchery in November after time at search engine Simply Hired. Before taking the job, he said, he was a customer of Munchery, using it to provide quick dinners for his four kids. He said the company is in a position to expand to other parts of the country, despite rumors to the contrary.
"We think there's demand for our product across the whole U.S.," Beriker said.
"We have no intention of making any further layoffs," he added. "It's a hard decision to reduce the team." He did not specify which positions were cut.
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Munchery prepares meals in four giant kitchens: in Seattle, Los Angeles and New York, as well as the 35,000-square-foot flagship in San Francisco.
Munchery, operational since 2010, has roughly 900 employees at all its sites. It both cooks and delivers meals to customers.
But the layoffs are another indicator of how food delivery companies are adjusting to difficult times. Bloomberg News reported that Munchery's two founders will leave the company this month.
SpoonRocket closed last year when it failed to raise enough capital to continue operating.
Recipe provider Din made its final delivery in October.
Bento, a Bay Area food delivery service started in 2015, shut down in December. In a letter posted on the company's website, founders Jason Demant and Vincent Cardillo said the closure was due to a number of factors, including their decision to sell their meal boxes wholesale.
The volatility in the industry doesn't seem to concern Beriker, who repeatedly has said that he's confident with the Munchery's direction.
"We're moving forward in 2017 from a position of strength," he said.
The numbers, according to Beriker, show that the company was profitable in 2016, outpacing at certain points its profitability in 2015.
That year, Menlo Ventures, one of Munchery's two main financial backers, led an $85 million funding round for the company.
For now, the company will focus on addressing factors that have bedeviled other fledgling food delivery services, such as finding ways to balance the number of meals that get prepared on a daily basis with actual demand.
Ultimately, Beriker said, the 30 layoffs don't represent the direction and future potential of the company.
"This is an extraordinary platform. I'm extremely bullish and very excited for the future," he said.
Justin Phillips is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email jphillips@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @JustMrPhillips