PMG Foodservice Insight

Blue Apron sells operational assets to FreshRealm

Wed, 17 May 2023 13:48:08 GMT

Blue Apron has reached an agreement that will transfer the company’s operational infrastructure to fresh packaged meal provider FreshRealm for up to $50 million. The nonbinding deal is set to close June 9, 2023.

As a result of this transaction, Blue Apron’s business will move to an asset-light model, focused on its core direct-to-consumer business. Blue Apron does not expect changes to its existing revenue streams because of the sale, according to a statement from the company.

Moving forward, Blue Apron says it plans to focus on growing its brand, adding new convenience product options and broadening its customer base. The transaction is expected to bolster the company’s balance sheet, drive efficiencies and support overall company value, according to the release.

“Over a decade ago, Blue Apron pioneered the U.S. meal kit industry and remains a leader in offering delicious, chef-curated meals to thousands of customers every week,” Blue Apron President and CEO Linda Findley said in the release. “As we continue to evolve, we believe there is an opportunity to simplify our direct role in the fulfillment of our product, allowing us to focus on growing our brand, our customer base and revenue in the long-term.”

Finley said the company is confident that it can continue to deliver the same product while increasing efficiency and accelerating profitability.

Leveraging expertise to expand ready-to-cook meal sales

The proposed transaction builds on Blue Apron’s current relationship with FreshRealm, the manufacturer of Blue Apron’s popular line of “Heat and Eat” meals. Once the deal closes, Blue Apron expects to be able to accelerate product innovation with faster development and commercialization, according to the release.

Additionally, Blue Apron expects to leverage FreshRealm’s expertise and full product capabilities of ready-to-heat and ready-to-cook meals. Over time, this relationship is also anticipated to open additional sales channels.

“Today’s meal industry is focused on profitability and expanded product offerings. From the beginning, FreshRealm has believed this is best achieved through organizations staying within their core competencies. This announcement positions Blue Apron to focus on the customer experience; while FreshRealm continues the path to be the leading platform to support retailers across multiple channels with a broad and efficient solutions offering,” FreshRealm’s founder and CEO Michael Lippold said in the release.

FreshRealm expands infrastructure and operations

Because of the deal, FreshRealm will be able to expand its national operational and production footprint to almost 1 million square feet and confirm strategic investments in three new leading-edge facilities, which includes the purchase of the operational infrastructure of Blue Apron, according to the release.

This increased capacity will allow FreshRealm to continue to address the growing omnichannel retail environment and rising consumer demand, according to the release. FreshRealm partners with retailers, which include Amazon Fresh, Blue Apron, Everytable, Kroger, Publix, Marley Spoon, Meijer and Walmart, to deliver customized meal solutions.

At the closing of the transaction in June, Blue Apron is set to transfer its operational infrastructure to FreshRealm, which includes fulfillment centers, equipment, expertise and personnel.

Related news: K-12 School Foodservice Partner X-Change connects produce suppliers with school menu planners

“The investments in facilities and infrastructure are part of our company’s strategic growth, which we announced during our most recent $200 million capital raise in July 2022,” Lippold said in the release. “FreshRealm is the only fresh meals provider to deliver a national platform that simplifies how fresh ready-to-heat, ready-to-cook and meal kits are delivered through the supply chain and brought to consumers’ tables.”

In consideration of the transaction, Blue Apron expects to issue to FreshRealm warrants in an amount equal to 19.9% of the company’s then-outstanding common stock with an exercise price of $.01 per share on the closing date of the transaction, according to the release.

Square Roots, Gordon Food Service open Wisconsin indoor farm

Tue, 15 Nov 2022 07:27:37 GMT

Hydroponic, indoor leafy greens grower Square Roots and Gordon Food Service opened a climate-controlled, indoor farm in Kenosha, Wis.

First harvests are scheduled for spring 2022, reaching local consumers in Kenosha and the broader Chicago and Milwaukee metropolitan areas, according to a news release.

“Our partnership with Gordon Food Service, combined with our modular, smart-farm platform, means we can rapidly deploy new indoor farms in strategically located cities like Kenosha,” Square Roots Cofounder and CEO said Tobias Peggs said in the release.

The new farm makes more locally-grown food available, all year round, to new consumers in nearby Chicago and Milwaukee, which expands Square Roots’ reach in the Midwest.

(Farm Journal)

“This new farm in Kenosha also accelerates our shared vision to build indoor farms together across the continent,” Gordon Food Service CEO Rich Wolowski said in the release. “Together with Square Roots, Gordon Food Service is enabling local food at a global scale, meeting increased demand for produce that is fresher, responsibly grown, and traceable from seed to shelf.”

Kenosha is the fourth Square Roots farm in North America and the largest farm the company has built to date. The farm has the capacity to produce more than 2.4 million packages of herbs and leafy greens annually. Square Roots operates two commercial-scale indoor farms in Michigan and another in Brooklyn, N.Y.

The new farm in Kenosha uses Square Roots’ smart-farm technology platform and software-controlled hydroponic growing systems that uses less water than outdoor farming does and features repurposed urban infrastructure. Growing climates are created within refurbished upcycled shipping containers stacked vertically to reduce the company’s impact on the land.

By deploying a network of local farms in cities such as Kenosha, Square Roots also reduces the supply chain, which means less distance between people and their food, reducing food miles and minimizing food waste.

(Farm Journal)

The Kenosha farm will soon harvest basil , cilantro , dill and parsley , as well as salad mixes and microgreens. All Square Roots produce has a shelf life of at least 14 days.

Learn more: Salad greens and salad mixes

Founded by serial entrepreneurs Kimbal Musk and Tobias Peggs, Square Roots fresh produce is available in more than 250 retail stores nationwide, including Whole Foods Market, FreshDirect, Fresh Thyme Market, Meijer’s market format stores, Morton Williams, Busch’s Fresh Food Market, SpartanNash corporate stores and Gordon Food Service Stores.

The partnership with Gordon Food Service is part of the shared mission to build commercial-scale, climate-controlled indoor farms nationwide — enabling local food at a global scale, year-round.

Gordon Food Service started in 1897 as a butter-and-egg delivery service, and now works with foodservice operators in the Midwest, Northeast, Southeast and Southwest regions of the U.S. and coast-to-coast in Canada. The company also operates more than 170 Gordon Food Service Store locations in the U.S.

Healthy Family Project zeroes in on retail dietitians, school nutrition directors

Tue, 15 Nov 2022 07:27:03 GMT

Millions of consumers benefitted from Healthy Family Project’s annual Mission for Nutrition initiative — and so did produce brand partners.

During the month of March, Healthy Family Project aligned with health-conscious brands and more than 400 retail dietitians at 52 retailers, as well as school nutrition directors in more than 100 schools for this year’s annual Mission for Nutrition, according to a news release.

This was the first year school nutrition directors were included to receive the benefits of this initiative.

The digital, in-store and in-school program focused on the importance of eating nutritious foods and the value of meal planning, reaching more than 219 million consumers in March, according to the release.

A cause marketing organization, Healthy Family Project creates programs, like Produce for Kids, that provide easy, fun and inspiring recipes and healthy ideas. Since its creation in 2002 by Shuman Farms, group has raised more than $7 million to benefit children and families and provided 12 million meals through Feeding America, according to the release.
In mid-February, retail dietitians and school nutrition directors received a resource kit filled with health-focused items from Healthy Family Project and partners of Mission for Nutrition.

Related: Listen to Healthy Family Project’s Amanda Keefer talk budget-friendly meal ideas on the Tip of the Iceberg podcast .

The kit included a mini magazine published by Healthy Family Project, featuring internationally inspired recipes and a shopping list featuring the partners. The magazine reached 22,000 shoppers and 5,000 students over the course of the month, according to the release.
“We felt confident adding school nutrition directors to our Mission for Nutrition efforts this year after several years of positive results with retail dietitians,” said Healthy Family Project Vice President Trish James said in the release. “This was a very natural addition to the program as we recognized the resources created for retail dietitians could also make an impact in nutrition education in schools.”
Brand partners donated $12,000 to the Foundation for Fresh Produce to increase accessibility to fruits and vegetables in schools, including: Crispy Green; Taylor Farms; Envy Apples and Jazz Apples by Oppy; Nature Fresh Farms; Shuman Farms RealSweet Onions; and True Made Foods.
Mission for Nutrition earned more than 17 million social media impressions with initiatives including a Live Facebook cooking class, Twitter party, regular giveaways, video on Instagram and Tik Tok, and sharing of recipe content throughout the month.
In March, visitors to themissionfornutrition.com could download a free digital copy of the mini magazine and access an additional 600 registered dietitian-approved recipes. More marketing efforts for Mission for Nutrition included targeted e-newsletters, influencer outreach and promotion on The Healthy Family Project podcast .
Retail dietitians were encouraged throughout the month to share their in-store events and displays using the kit components for a chance to win a $1,000 continued education scholarship. This year’s winner is Julianne Gallo, registered dietitian at ShopRite of Lodi, N.J.
“We know the impact retail dietitians can make in a shopper’s purchase decisions and the health of their communities,” James said in the release. “We are excited to offer this continued education scholarship again this year to support ongoing advancement in this space.”

Jersey Mike’s adds portabella sub to menu; The Mushroom Council rejoices

Tue, 15 Nov 2022 07:26:52 GMT

Jersey Mike’s Subs, Manasquan, N.J., assigned the Grilled Portabella Mushroom and Swiss Sub the No. 64 spot on its permanent menu — and The Mushroom Council is thrilled.

The mushrooms, all grown in the U.S., are picked, transported and delivered to stores within days of coming from the growers, according to a news release.

Jersey Mike’s worked closely with mushroom growers across the country to ensure a steady supply, said Chief Operating Officer Michael Manzo, in the release.

The council is comprised of fresh market producers or importers that average more than 500,000 pounds of mushrooms produced or imported annually. The mushroom program is authorized by the Mushroom Promotion, Research and Consumer Information Act of 1990 and is administered by The Mushroom Council under the supervision of the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service.

Learn more about portabella mushrooms.

The sub, introduced in February 2021, features fresh grilled portabella mushrooms, green peppers and onions with melted Swiss cheese. This sandwich was named best healthy fast-food sandwich in the 2022 Eat This, Not That! Food Awards.

“Our customers loved the Grilled Portabella Mushroom and Swiss Sub from day one,” Manzo said in the release. “In addition to those who craved a new savory meatless option, customers also quickly started adding portabella mushrooms to their cheesesteaks.”

That interest prompted two other new menu items: The Portabella Cheesesteak will be assigned No. 66 and the Portabella Chicken Cheesesteak will become No. 65.

For the fourth consecutive year, mushrooms have been named a top trend by food industry trend spotters, including “Ingredient of the Year” by The New York Times.

The council touts that mushrooms are one of the most sustainably produced foods in the U.S. by the way they’re grown in agricultural byproducts and several other characteristics.

The nutritional benefits are many, as well: Mushrooms support a healthy immune system with micronutrients of Vitamin D, Vitamin B and selenium.

Making Jersey Mike’s menu board is no easy task. The last sub sandwiches to receive official numbers were six chicken cheesesteaks added back in 2015, according to the release.

Originally, numbers were assigned to help customers order their favorite sub quickly without listing all the ingredients. The numbers are not chronological — and some carry secret meanings. For instance, the No. 43 is Jersey Mike’s founder’s old football jersey number and No. 56 represents the year the first store opened.

Jersey Mike’s Subs has more than 2,200 locations nationwide.

Slideshow: Who and what were at NYC's 2022 Baldor Bite show

Tue, 15 Nov 2022 07:26:56 GMT

NEW YORK — About 3,000 people attended the 2022 Baldor Bite show in downtown Manhattan, compared to about 1,750 at the last show, held every two years, except for 2020.

There were 170 exhibitors, 20 more than last time. There were panel sessions, including keynote speaker Chef Massimo Bottura, chef patron of three Michelin-starred Osteria Francescana and founder of food nonprofit Food for Soul.

Chef Brian George of the French-American Reserve restaurant sampled the green apple sorrel from the Fresh Origins microgreens booth.

“It really tastes like sour green apple, and it’s juicy,” George said. He uses edible flowers sometimes at his restaurant.

IFPA honors standout exhibitors at the 2023 Foodservice Conference

Fri, 11 Aug 2023 14:03:10 GMT

International Fresh Produce Association celebrated four standout winners at its Foodservice Conference Expo on July 28.

“The energy on the floor this year was unmatched,” IFPA Director of Trade Shows Kyle McMillan said in a news release. “Much of that was influenced by the passion, creativity and excitement brought by our many exhibitors. We are so happy to be able to celebrate a few of these exhibitors who stood out to our judges. Congratulations to our winners and to all our exhibitors who made the judging such a difficult job.”

The annual contest highlights Best of Show winners (first and second place) as well as Best Product Promo winner. Foodservice award-winning chefs also chose the winner of the new Chef’s Choice Award. Booths are judged on staff performance (engagement, professionalism and communication), booth attraction, and products and messaging delivery, the release said.

“Our exhibitors are a critical part of growing produce consumption through foodservice,” McMillan said. “As always, we’re floored by the creativity, the passion and the fun our exhibitors have sharing their products each year in Monterey.”

This year the exhibitors were encouraged to get creative and showcase innovative ways to incorporate produce into their menus. The Chef’s Choice Award was judged by the winning chefs of the Excellence in Foodservice Award. The chefs loved exploring the floor, walking away with a list of new menu ideas, and were able to provide real menu-developer feedback to the exhibitors, according to the release.

Best of Show (first place): Rijk Zwaan

“We had a wonderful experience at the Foodservice Conference this year. There was a buzz in the air, and you could feel the energy walking through the show floor. Encouraging exhibitors to have tastings in their booth lifted the bar and everyone came out to play,” Alyssa Wilson, Rijk Zwaan’s marketing communication specialist, said in the release. “It felt amazing to win Best in Show! We wanted to create a colorful space to show the many possibilities of cauliflower. We received great feedback on our white Romanesco and green and purple varieties. We are excited to see what comes of all the interest!”

Best of Show (second place): Sun Orchard

“The opportunity to exhibit in the Foodservice Conference, meet with customers, connect with old friends or make new ones in Monterey is always amazing! To me it’s a vital part of who we are as ‘foodservice people,’ we want to create an experience, a memory, an opportunity for people to connect with each other and build relationships,” Sun Orchard Chief Commercial Officer Jeff DeBoer said in the release. “It always feels good to win, no doubt. We have a great team that wanted to create a fun environment where they could connect with customers. I am very proud of them and happy they were recognized.”

Best Product Promo: Califresh — Fresh Green Chickpea Hummus

“This show was, as always, a success in that we love to see the positive reactions to the flavor profile and unique texture using Fresh Green Chickpeas gives to our hummus,” TJ Risco, Califresh vice president of sales and marketing, said in the release. “What we didn’t expect was to hear our name announced as the 2023 Best Product Promo award winners! This was a great way to wrap up this year’s conference, and it gave us great joy to be recognized! We invite all to visit our booth next year, where ‘Good Taste Always Matters!’”

Chef’s Choice: Ocean Mist Farms — Baby artichoke risotto

“The IFPA Foodservice Conference is one of our favorite events each year. It’s our industry’s only conference that focuses on and connects the foodservice channel with the fresh produce business. The conference attracts the very best foodservice distributors and operators in the industry. And the relaxed, yet professional atmosphere of the conference gives us plenty of time for quality engagement with our customers and potential customers,” Joe Angelo, Ocean Mist Farms director of sales, said in the release. “When it comes to fresh artichokes, we know that many consumers will taste artichokes for the first time in restaurants, so we see our foodservice customers as a vital partner in expanding awareness of — and appreciation for — fresh artichokes.”

The next IFPA Foodservice Conference is scheduled for July 25-26, 2024, in Monterey, Calif., according to the release.

Exploring fresh, not fried (yet) potatoes for foodservice

Wed, 25 Oct 2023 12:42:58 GMT

IDAHO FALLS, Idaho — For many of the foodservice buyers on a recent harvest tour hosted by the Idaho Potato Commission, there was one aspect of Idaho russet potatoes that they kept returning to as they explored the dusty fields of potatoes and gazed at John Deere tractors and harvesters under the great blue open skies.

It was all about the emergence of the norkotah variety of russet, when for decades the favorite has always been burbank russets.

“I’m taking away how we can use norkotah now and don’t have to wait for the burbank variety,” said Eric Meisel, produce culinary specialist for the greater Ohio region for Gordon Food Service.

“I’m learning that my traditional customers used to using burbank can have that option,” he added.

He was happy to see specifically how the potato goes from field to storage or customer.

These produce buyers ducked around hand trucks in the warehouses where potatoes rolled by on conveyor belts, being washed, graded, sorted and packed.

Growers indicated that volume of the potato crop was up this year, and they’re holding out hope that prices don’t drop too much. They’re adjusting their mix based on what customers want, what tastes the best and has the best texture and what is easier to grow and ship.

“Right now, we’re doing norkotahs. We’re moving toward more of those like other growers,” said Sven Sutton who, with his father, Kent Sutton, helps run Rexburg-based Bench Mark Potato, a cooperative of five potato growers. “Norkotahs are less stress on growers; we can get them in soon after the last snow; they mature a little faster.”

About 85% of Bench Mark’s customers are foodservice and 15% are retail. They harvest about 4 million pounds of potatoes a day, a harvest expected to end by mid-October.

Kent Sutton said they’re one of the smaller operations.

At Rigby Produce in Rigby, about 80% of the russet crop is norkotah, said Bryan Mickelsen, whose father started the company with his brother in the mid-1970s.

“We’ve drifted toward norkotahs over the years,” Mickelsen said. “It really is performing the same or better than burbanks.”

For foodservice, the growers go for size. The smaller potatoes are for retail, he said. They’re trying out some new traceability coding lately called RFID on all the trucks.

Of the 40% of Idaho potatoes that go to the fresh market, about half of that goes to foodservice, according to the Idaho Potato Commission. That includes schools, hospitals, military and correctional facilities.

“We mainly run norkotahs until May 1, as they don’t store as long, and then burbanks. We’ve always run more norkotahs than burbank,” said Eric Wahlen, who handles operations for Pleasant Valley Potato in Aberdeen, Idaho. “Our focus in this shed is foodservice.”

Kevin Naze, who is in charge of sourcing produce for Chef’s Warehouse, also enjoyed seeing the process of potato harvesting and sorting.

“I’ve been in produce 30 years, and until now, I always thought potatoes came from a box,” he joked.

In all seriousness, Naze, as well as the others, explored the storage sheds, fields and warehouses, asking questions, taking notes and absorbing the information. They said they will use it to better serve their foodservice customers.

How retail foodservice can navigate sustainability challenges

Fri, 02 Feb 2024 13:21:50 GMT

The retail foodservice sector faces a critical juncture in contending with a substantial waste issue.

“According to the National Restaurant Association , between 4[%] and 10% of all restaurant food is wasted before it reaches the consumer. This does not include the food that is discarded from people’s plates or as leftovers at the end of the day,” Savannah Seydel, vice president of sustainability and impact at Better Earth , told The Packer. “In addition to food waste, the foodservice industry contributes to plastic pollution. Most business models built around rapid service, such as quick service or fast-casual restaurants, rely on plastic foodservice containers, dishes and utensils for servicing customers.”

A recent assessment from the United Nations Environment Programme revealed that the annual production of plastic exceeds 430 billion tons, and approximately two-thirds of this amount is discarded after a single use.

“While this number is the total tons of plastic produced annually, the foodservice industry is a big player,” Seydel said. “Per the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, the foodservice industry was responsible for 37.3 million tons of plastic foodservice packaging in 2019, with that number continuing to rise in recent years as takeout increased in popularity, thanks especially to the global COVID-19 pandemic.”

Food and packaging containers account for almost half of the materials landfilled in the U.S., according to the EPA.

Compostable packaging presents a robust and sustainable alternative to the current norm. Serving as a literal conduit for food waste to the compost bin, this type of packaging provides a dual solution by simultaneously decreasing food and plastic waste in landfills and the environment. Instead, it facilitates the recycling of these nutrients back into the soil.

“Consumers are more conscious than ever about the environmental and health implications of plastic production and pollution. We see excess packaging in the products we purchase, food and product delivery services we use, and out in our environment every day,” Seydel said.

According to the 2021 Global Sustainability Study, 85% of individuals report a shift in their purchasing habits towards greater sustainability over the last five years. Notably, millennials and Generation Z consumers are placing a strong emphasis on choosing sustainable products and packaging.

Taking action

Seydel provided ways for the retail foodservice industry to enhance its understanding of sustainability practices.

“The Better Earth Sustainability Team is here to support the foodservice industry in meeting and exceeding their sustainability goals,” Seydel said. “Our primary focus is in supporting foodservice operators in designing circular, zero waste operations through a combination of sustainable packaging procurement, helping them secure composting partners, offering legislative support and providing education to their staff and community.”

A plastic usage audit can help the retail foodservice industry understand and address their plastic footprint.

“We follow an outcomes-driven approach to circular, zero waste operations,” Seydel said when asked about the approach. “With the final goal being 100% of waste diverted from landfill, we must first confirm that all controllable inputs are compostable, and when necessary, recyclable.”

A packaging audit helps an organization understand its current plastic usage while identifying opportunities to consolidate to streamline operations and reduce redundancy and identify sustainable alternatives.

“This step is also critical for securing composting partners, as some composters may hesitate to collect post-consumer food scraps due to concerns of contamination from non-compostable packaging and other non-organic materials,” Seydel said.

The Foodservice Packaging Institute conducted a study in Chicago to investigate this specific scenario. Its findings revealed that the adoption of compostable foodservice packaging at the forefront of operations led to increased diversion of food waste into compost streams. Additionally, the approach reduced the risk of contamination, and customers experienced a smooth and hassle-free disposal process at the waste bin.

“Using an all-compostable suite of foodservice items like plates, trays and cutlery creates a simpler sorting experience for consumers in front-of-house situations,” Olga Kachook, director of bio-economy and reuse initiatives at the Sustainable Packaging Coalition, said within the final “CompostAble Chicago” report. “This translates to less consumer confusion about what goes where and leads to more food scraps going into the compost stream instead of the landfill.”

Integrating composting into retail foodservice industry operations is considered a game-changer by enhancing sustainability, reducing food waste, minimizing contamination risks and providing customers with a seamless waste disposal experience.

“The foodservice industry is the largest producer of food waste, and therefore it has an outsized opportunity and responsibility to make an impact,” Seydel said. “Composting will help foodservice operators divert food waste from the landfill, close the loop within their community, especially when sourcing from local farmers that receive the finished compost and demonstrate their commitment to sustainability with their customers.”

To launch a seamless and successful composting program in the foodservice industry, operators should follow a strategic approach, Seydel said. First, initiate composting of food scraps back-of-house to familiarize and train staff with the process. Before introducing front-of-house composting, transition to 100% compostable packaging to minimize plastic contamination, ensuring consistency in compostable materials like lids, utensils and containers.

Consider incorporating reusable dishware and bulk condiments when possible to further reduce contamination risk and overall waste. Consult with local composters to understand their packaging preferences, whether it be unbleached molded fiber or PLA, before finalizing the compostable product purchasing list. Clearly communicate composting guidelines with well-designed signage using green and brown, the universal colors for organics waste.

Opt for compostable packaging with explicit labeling, coloring or visible third-party certifications to aid consumers and composters in easy identification, while avoiding greenwashing terms like biodegradable. Once a curated suite of 100% compostable packaging is identified, with clear labeling and bin signage, operators can confidently roll out front-of-house composting.

Consider adding educational customizations on packaging, such as messages encouraging customers to dispose of items in the green compost bin or showcasing the environmental impact achieved through composting, to actively engage customers in the program.

“Connecting with a local composting hauler or composting facility can help you compost your food waste and compostable packaging,” Seydel said. “That finished compost can then go back to local farmers who grow produce that you can purchase and use in your food service establishment. Altogether, this system manifests a regenerative, circular economy where everyone and everything adds value.”

Food Waste makes up roughly one-third of landfills, and foodservice packaging is another massive contributor to landfills, with grocery stores and restaurants being some of the biggest culprits.

“By making some operational adjustments, like better produce storage methods, portioned plates, reducing bulk cooking, integration of sustainable packaging, and smart waste collection, foodservice operators can experience the dual benefit of a lower environmental footprint and stronger market value,” Seydel said.

In the realm of cost savings, operators stand to benefit when they minimize food waste directed to landfills, potentially enabling negotiations for reduced waste disposal bills. Moreover, sustainability efforts have the potential to enhance customer loyalty. Research indicates that consumers are inclined to pay a premium for products, services or brands that prioritize sustainability, with 43% of surveyed U.S. consumers emphasizing the significance of environmental impact in packaging decisions.

The impact is staggering, with the retail foodservice industry responsible for millions of tons of plastic packaging. In response, compostable packaging emerges as a robust solution, diverting food and plastic waste from landfills and contributing to a circular economy.

The push for sustainability is not only an environmental imperative, but also a strategic business move, as studies show a growing consumer preference for sustainable products. Initiatives such as packaging audits, composting programs and educational outreach can empower the retail foodservice industry to align with sustainability goals, reduce costs and strengthen customer loyalty.

Tree to Table: Hudson River Fruit Distributors to Heritage Food + Drink

Tue, 15 Nov 2022 07:25:34 GMT

MILTON and WAPPINGERS FALLS, N.Y. — Four generations of Albinders have run Hudson River Fruit Distributors , a smidge more than an hour’s drive from New York City.

These days, the fourth generation is taking on more as Alisha Albinder Camac, the vice president of sales and marketing, is a partner in ownership of restaurants with her husband, Jesse Camac. One restaurant, Heritage Food + Drink, has an Apple Crisp for Two dessert featuring local apples — including Hudson’s. Marcus Albinder, Alisha’s younger brother, has recently taken on the role of operations manager and gave us a tour of the orchards and the packing house.

Related news: Marcus Albinder takes leadership role at Hudson River Fruit Distributors

This video was shot during New York’s peak harvesting season in the Lower Hudson Valley in mid-September. The company’s apples are stored in cold warehouses for differing times depending on the variety and best-tasting times. The company also has farms elsewhere and packs and ships apples from other farms.

These apples, from macintosh to SnapDragon, also end up in supermarket shelves, sometimes in totes with Apples from New York labels.

Ride along with us as we take this apple journey.

Other news: Variety show of Eastern apples, now and coming next

Video: Chef, humanitarian José Andrés delights crowd at IFPA

Tue, 15 Nov 2022 07:25:39 GMT

ORLANDO, Fla. — Chef José Andrés believes in longer tables.

Speaking for almost an hour to more than 1,000 people at International Fresh Produce Association’s Global Produce & Floral Show, Andrés said food — handled in a better way — has the power to heal the body, the spirit and the community.

“You are going to be solving many of the problems we are facing where food is at the middle, and we need to say, food needs to stop being the problem,” Andrés told the produce industry. “And actually, food is going to be the solution.”

Twice named one of Time’s “100 Most Influential People” and awarded “Outstanding Chef” and “Humanitarian of the Year” by the James Beard Foundation, Andrés is an internationally recognized culinary innovator, New York Times bestselling author, educator, television personality, humanitarian and chef.

Andrés and his partner, Rob Wilder, formed ThinkFoodGroup, which created almost three dozen dining concepts in Washington, D.C., Las Vegas, Miami, the Bahamas, Orlando, New York City and Chicago — from food trucks to world-class tasting menus, including the two-Michelin-starred minibar by José Andrés in Washington, D.C.

He established World Central Kitchen in 2010 to feed the masses — using culinary training programs to empower communities and strengthen economies, as well as provide food disaster relief after natural disasters and other emergencies around the globe.

Since then, they’ve served nearly 4 million meals to the people of Puerto Rico following the devastation of Hurricane Maria and responded to dozens of worldwide disasters, distributing tens of millions of meals in the process.

“And in response to the pandemic that we’ve all just lived through, his organization has partnered with restaurants, small farms and community leaders around the country to try to combat food insecurity,” IFPA show emcee Michael Jackson said. Andrés is a naturalized U.S. citizen, originally from Spain, and is renowned as a tireless advocate for immigration reform.

Some of the inspiration for World Central Kitchen came from watching the horror of thousands of people sheltering in the Superdome, yet going hungry after Hurricane Katrina flooded New Orleans.

“They were in the arena without food and water. You know how far away are the main food warehouses of New Orleans from the arena — 0.4 miles! You and I could go walking, under the water, grab bags of food — fruits and vegetables — bring them to the arena and problem solved in 10 minutes,” he said.

“I began to realize that actually, even restaurant people like me, people like you, if we can come together, we could do, in the middle of the emergency, very well,” Andrés said.

Now, a dozen years after forming the global organization, the process is well organized, time-tested and proven.

During the ongoing Ukraine-Russia war, World Central Kitchen has set up kitchens at 48 border crossings, Andrés said.

“And we began making hot meals with 550 restaurants, almost half a million meals a day. But that was not enough,” Andrés said. “We had to increase. We got 40 warehouses, four of them will make vats of food. We began buying the food locally. Why? Because Ukraine produces a lot of food. Why do we need to bring the food from outside when I can buy locally? I’m not only helping feed the people in need, you restart and you keep the local economy going.”

The locals know best, he said.

So the workers began making bags of food, 30 pounds each, including fruits and vegetables. They then deliver those bags once a week in faraway little towns where there are no supermarkets, where there is no infrastructure, where there are no bridges.

In the U.S., the federal government and private sector need to come together to create a more organized food system, from farmer to restaurant to supermarket to home table, so that people can be healthier and happier, he said.

And the produce industry is integral to this goal, of course.

“We need to believe that we have, in our fingertips, the solutions. They have to include policy, technology, distribution, bringing cool ideas to create water out of nothing,” Andrés said. “We have so many chances to upside-down rethink the planet we live in through the food we eat.”

Let mushrooms be themselves, says Le Bernardin’s chef Eric Ripert

Fri, 15 Sep 2023 13:14:03 GMT

NEW YORK — Most culinary mushrooms are grown indoors for sustainable year-round commercial production and mass consumption.

But for his acclaimed Le Bernardin restaurant in Manhattan, celebrated chef Eric Ripert plays with wild mushrooms and other edible fungi — like black truffle, candy caps, chanterelle, hen of the woods, porcini and morels — prized for their seasonal exclusivity.

“We create dishes that pay homage to those ingredients. It’s a celebration of those products. We’re not using those mushrooms to make fake something,” Ripert said Sept. 7 at the Plant Based World Expo in the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center. “It’s not necessarily for a fake burger … but it could be, if it’s really good.”

Ripert was likely the most well-known panelist at the expo session, “Meat Mushrooms, Your New Center of the Plate Protein,” which explored mushrooms’ versatility as foodservice items and minimally processed consumer packaged goods, or CPG.

Learn on PMG: Mushrooms

He’s chef and co-founder of the acclaimed Le Bernardin, a French, seafood-focused restaurant in Midtown Manhattan that has consistently earned three Michelin stars since 2005, has been named one of the World’s 50 Best Restaurants from 2006 to today and was honored as La Liste’s No.1 Restaurant in the World in 2023. Among other accolades, he’s a James Beard Foundation Award-winning chef and author of three cookbooks, including two New York Times bestsellers.

Moderated by Benjamin Davis, vice president of content for Plant Based World Expo, the session focused on which mushrooms are the meatiest and how to satisfy plant-curious consumers with this whole-food meat alternative. Insights also came from chef Stephany Burgos, executive culinary leader of New York’s Planta restaurants featuring 100% plant-based menus; Danielle Schwab from Fable Foods, which makes food products from the shiitake mushrooms’ dense, fleshy fibers and umami flavors; and SarahMarie Cole, chief marketing officer of MyForest Foods, which makes bacon from the mycelium byproduct of mushrooms.

The elephant in the room was the growing consumer demand for minimally processed or whole foods as plant-based protein or center-plate options — and the proliferation of meat imitations that the plant-based industry makes.

Related: Plant Based expo in 2022 panelists say its the gateway to whole foods

“The sensitive subject for plant-based companies is the ingredient deck, the nutrition label,” Schwab said. Like. Most meat alternatives, Fable Foods products require a binder, and theirs is 3% soy, she said, which adds a lot of protein. And protein is what consumers are seeking in alternatives, although it’s not as necessary as the public would think, she said.

“It’s about really looking about what nutritional deficiencies we have in America,” Schwab said. “We do not have a protein deficiency. We do have fiber deficiencies.”

Davis agreed. The concept of “center of plate protein” doesn’t mean you have a 1-to-1 match of the protein content, he said.

“Really, you’re trying to match the taste functionality,” Davis said. “Include some protein, and what you surround it with becomes really important, because if you put the right grains and vegetables around it, you’re adding nutrition.”

Using the brined mycelium of oyster mushrooms, MyForest is making “mushbelly” in place of porkbelly, Cole said.

“I think we’re at the beginning of building an entire category at retail and foodservice,” Cole said. “It really is a ‘full plate’ as we learn all the ways we can incorporate fungi, more than ‘center of the plate.’”

Davis asked a question from New York Times food writer Florence Fabricant, who was supposed to moderate but canceled for a family emergency. She wanted to know, in light of the portabella mushroom as the past vegetarian center-plate star, is the mushroom in danger of losing its identity?

“From a culinary aspect, it’s within us to explore all the ways you can use one ingredient, giving us a wider scope,” Burgos said. “I don’t think it’s really hijacked. If anything, we’re giving its identity more space and a wider audience.”

The panelists said that there is still so much we don’t know about mushrooms.

They’re not a vegetable; they’re not an animal; it’s its own entity,” Burgos said. “Lions mane mushrooms are absolutely delicious. It has a lot of health benefits: mental, immunity. We’re just scratching the surface of getting more visibility for mushrooms.”

The key is to attract consumers who aren’t eschewing meat altogether.

Ripert tries to inspire people to eat outside their typical repertoire at Le Bernardin.

“I don’t think we should be so drastic as saying, ‘There are people who eat meat, and there are people who eat vegetables, and there is no in-between,’” he said.

“We change the menu and put a lot of effort into it. Today, we have clientele who come to us for our vegetarian options. By not going extreme — not completely seafood or completely plant-based — we can inspire them to try something new.”

Related: Photos from the 2022 Plant Based World Expo in NYC

Supermarkets ask: Dine in, carry out or delivery?

Mon, 28 Aug 2023 18:36:21 GMT

Wander through some grocery stores and you feel as if you’re in a buffet, fast-casual restaurant or food court. The chef-helmed delis and salad bars tempt shoppers to carry out some kale salad punctuated with pink pomegranate arils and pine nuts. The caramelized, crispy Brussels sprouts glisten with bacon, and the cold, crunchy broccoli salad is sweetened with raisins.

Meal kits are proliferating for shoppers who still want to cook but with shortcuts. In between, there are heat-and-eat options — sometimes delivered through a third-party app.

“When you go in a store, we’re foodservice as well. You can sit down or carry out. We’re trying to meet the customer where they want to be,” said Steve Mayer, president of Bashas ’, based in Chandler, Ariz.

With the return of restaurants after tanking in 2020 and 2021, the competition has fired up in 2023 for grocery retailers trying to nab share of the consumer’s 35 meals a week.

In total food and beverage sales, rising inflation increased the retail share in 2022, but foodservice improved in the first quarter of 2023, reported Circana, the consumer behavior analytics firm that merged IRI and NPD’s retail-foodservice power.

Bashas’ offers foods from popular local eateries, and it hired trend-focused chefs at AJ’s, its gourmet banner, to meet the demand.

Produce in foodservice-oriented retail

As supermarkets transform at an ever-quickening pace, where does produce play a role?

International Fresh Produce Association’s global Technomic data revealed 64% of consumers use foodservice in supermarkets a few times a month or more. Only 17% of consumers believe that fresh produce is not represented well in supermarket foodservice, but two-thirds of shoppers want more prepared options that are healthful, as well as more heat-and-eat vegetables, side dishes and globally inspired choices, according to FMI, The Food Industry Association.

(Farm Journal)

“We’re really trying to offer restaurant-quality meals at our stores,” said Mimmo Franzone, vice president of merchandising at Vaughan, Ontario-based Longo’s . With 18 years in produce, Franzone spoke at the May 24 virtual town hall, “Foodservice: The Retail Effect and Where Consumers Shop Food,” hosted by International Fresh Produce Association.

“It’s making sure we have every occasion covered, No. 1,” he said. “And No. 2, it’s making sure that however the guest wants to prepare the food, we have that covered as well, whether it’s ready to eat or ready to cook.”

One Longo’s program, Take It, Make It, Learn It, offers a monthly recipe in all forms of preparation: ready to eat, ready to heat and a recipe via QR code.

Regarding fresh fruits and vegetables: “It’s always around fresh sides and the latest and greatest, what’s seasonally relevant,” Franzone said.

The dollar share of ready-to-eat produce meals jumped 8.6 percentage points compared with 2022, and added-value items jumped 8.2 points in the last 52 weeks ending April 23, Circana’s IRI data shows. Raw ingredients jumped 4.7 points.

“It’s consumers who are looking for something that’s convenient and readily available, but it’s also not taking away from those produce occasions. So, we didn’t see a dip on the produce [department] side of Brussels sprouts when a consumer was buying Brussels sprouts from the deli,” said Circana’s Kate Allmandinger in the town hall with Franzone. “Really, it was just increasing the size of the prize — or size of our pie — of the occasions of eating for vegetables because it was making it so much easier for consumers just to pick up and have.”

Convenience and restaurant quality

Retailers must take the dollar from restaurants with competitive meal convenience and tantalizing options.

Strategies include offering meal kits online and in-store, like Kroger’ s Home Chef partnership and ShopRite ’s DoorDash partnership for Fresh to Table express pickup and delivery at two Klein’s Family Markets locations in Maryland, launched in May. Fresh to Table focuses on produce and other fresh departments, offering three formats: Prep & Eat, Heat & Eat and Grab & Eat.

Related: ShopRite launches two more fresh-meal stores inside Klein’s Family Markets

From big chains to independent grocers, retailers are providing in-store dining. And grocery-restaurant partnerships mean popular restaurant menu items can be found in-store. Delis, salad and hot bars are growing ever-more elaborate.

“They’re really trying to bring almost that restaurant-quality meal into your home,” Allmandinger said.

Longo’s partnered with KitchenHub, a Toronto-based virtual food hall offering delivery or pickup of the area’s hottest restaurant menu items, like Mandy’s Salads. Longo’s makes it in-store in a ghost kitchen, where shoppers can pick it up after ordering it on the app and eat it at in-store seating, take it home or have a third-party app driver deliver it to their home or work.

(Farm Journal)

“It’s a fresh offering that’s visible to the consumer because you can see it in the kitchens. It’s taken off. It’s been incremental to our business,” Franzone said. “We have full-blown salad bars, and they’re still going. There’s enough sand to play in the sandbox, right?”

In The Packer’s 2023 Organic Fresh Trends report, almost 53%, or 538 of 1,017 survey respondents, said they’ve bought more value-added (fresh-cut fruit and veggies, ready-to-heat, ready-to-eat) produce in the past five years.

And when asked for their primary reason for the increased purchases of value-added produce, about 44% said convenience and time-savings, more than 35% said flavor and taste, almost 14% said value and more than 7% said reduced waste.

Produce is growing in added-value and ready-to-eat solutions, Allmandinger said. “Consumers are really telling us they want convenience, not just in our surveys but in what they’re buying in the store,” she said.

Off-premises was 75% of restaurant traffic in 2022, up 15% from February 2020, according to the National Restaurant Association.

Retailers can compete with takeout meals, which don’t provide ambiance. DoorDash’s partnership with Aldi is an example of another delivery company collaborating with a grocery chain to offer popular delivery foods at retail to heat and eat or keep on hand at home, Sloan said in her report.

Prices

Inflationary prices and budget-conscious shoppers haven’t stopped this trajectory, possibly because foodservice-level convenience feels less expensive at the grocery store than it does at restaurants.

The grocery food price index rose 5.8%, while restaurant food rose 8.3% in the last 12 months, shows a June Consumer Price Index report from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Inflation for fresh fruits and vegetables rose just 0.6% from May 2022 to May 2023, the report said.

(Farm Journal)

Still, convenience can win over price.

“It’s so expensive to eat out. We were so used to cooking at home. But guess what? In the first quarter of this year, retail has already lost 2.5 percentage points of sales share back to foodservice, even though we have inflation,” Circana’s Jonna Parker said June 8 at IFPA’s Retail Conference in the suburbs of Chicago. “You might point to the economy, market, inflation … but the reality is, we are human. And there is a perception that the food at retail is hard, and hard to find. Not aligned to my needs.”

That perception has to change for retailers to win more produce-filled meal share from restaurants.

Related: Circana’s Jonna Parker: What grocery transformation means for produce

In PMG’s LinkedIn poll in the Fresh Produce Industry Discussion Group, 77 voters were asked, “What ways do you think retailers can best compete with foodservice for the share of the consumer’s daily meals filled with produce?” Of 77 voters, 32% said meal kits, own or third party; 31% said in-store cafes and restaurants; 26% said elaborate salad bars and deli; and 10% said restaurant partnerships.

Whole Foods Market ’s newest store in Washington, D.C., has a prepared foods section with Kikka Sushi, New York-style pizza, bars of hot food and crisp salads, plus an on-site dining area.

“I notice, as with Whole Foods, that the salad, hot bar and soup are a huge hit. I, for one, am a fan,” commented Windy Hale of Hale Produce, Delray Beach, Fla.

At one of the Bashas’ banners, in-store birthday parties and holidays are big. “When you talk about the foodservice aspects of what we do, we’re like a 360-degree experience where you can just pick and choose what you want,” Mayer said.

— This article was featured in the July-August issue of PMG magazine. Check out the digital version of this issue and others.

P.F. Chang’s salad kits arrive at Giant Eagle, other retailers

Mon, 18 Sep 2023 17:02:07 GMT

More restaurant-salad favorites are coming to grocery store shelves.

Gonzalez, Calif.-based Mann Packing Co. , a packaged vegetable supplier and subsidiary of Fresh Del Monte North America, is collaborating with restaurant brand P.F. Chang’s for two new Asian-inspired salad kits at Giant Eagle and at select retailers nationwide, according to a news release.

“Our partnership with Mann Packing Co. allows us to bring the essence of the P.F. Chang’s dining experience to households across the nation,” Kristen Briede, president of global brand and retail at P.F. Chang’s, said in the release. “These salad kits are … a chance to bring the P.F. Chang’s dining experience into their homes in a fresh and convenient package.”

Related: Mann Packing Co. launches veg-packed bowls for warm winter lunches

According to IRI’s report on the Top Trends in Fresh: May 2022, with rising costs and inflation, 91% of consumers will eat at home more, and Asian is the number two most popular cuisine for salads, growing 3% year-over-year.

These salad kits are the Asian restaurant’s most popular salads on the menu:

Asian Caesar Salad Kit: romaine, parmesan, toasted sesame seeds and wonton croutons.
Mandarin Crunch Salad Kit: julienned vegetables, cabbage, mandarin orange, almonds, rice sticks and mandarin vinaigrette.

Mann Packing Co. is a grower, shipper and processor, delivering a range of fresh fruits and vegetables to Fresh Del Monte-owned facilities throughout North America. Besides its nationwide restaurant locations, P.F. Chang’s frozen options are in many stores, and this is a way to extend its culinary expertise in the produce department.

Related: Mann Packing relaunches stringless sugar snap peas

Founded in 1993 by Philip Chiang and Paul Fleming, P.F. Chang’s is the first internationally recognized multi-unit Asian culinary brand to honor the 2,000-year-old tradition of wok cooking as the center of the guest experience, according to the release. With roots in Chinese cuisine, today’s menu at P.F. Chang’s spans across all of Asia, featuring cultures and recipes from Japan, Korea, Thailand and beyond. P.F. Chang’s has more than 300 restaurants in more than 20 countries and U.S. airport locations, including a number of convenient P.F. Chang’s To Go locations offering takeout and delivery.

Photos: Day 1 of Idaho potato harvest tour

Thu, 28 Sep 2023 12:46:54 GMT

A former chef trained at the Culinary Institute of America, Eric Meisel of Gordon Food Service reveled in the mountain of potatoes — taller than three people standing on each other’s shoulders — in the shed at Wada Farms in Idaho Falls, Idaho .

“I’m going to go back home and make a presentation to my division of about 100 salespeople,” Meisel said on the tour bus between farm stops. “It will give them more education and appreciation for what they sell.”

Meisel, Gordon Food Service produce culinary specialist of the greater Ohio region, was part of a group of professionals in produce, foodservice, wholesale and broadline distribution on an Idaho Potato Commission harvest tour Sept. 25-27. About 30 people from as far as Washington state to Florida toured five farms, packinghouses and storage sheds.

They learned about russet burbank, russet norkotah, yellow goddess and red potatoes, among others, from the dirt to the poly bag, mesh bag or cardboard carton. The focus for this trip was on potatoes heading to foodservice customers.

These are some of the many sights and scenes caught on the first day of the tour.

Rigby Produce, Rigby, Idaho

(Farm Journal)

Bryan Mickelsen of Rigby Produce talked to the tour participants about how his dad and uncles started the company in the 1970s and how a nearby land and facility purchase a couple years ago has doubled the company’s capacity, today shipping about 3 million pounds of potatoes to the fresh market each day.

(Farm Journal)

Rigby Produce’s handles a mix of russet norkotah and russet burbank varieties.

(Farm Journal)

This Rigby Produce truck can hold about 150,000 pounds of potatoes.

Sun-Glo, Sugar City, Idaho

(Farm Journal)

Carson Crapo, 23, is part of the fifth generation to run his farm, Sun-Glo of Idaho, which has about 50,000 acres including cover crops like wheat. He is on one of 13 digging crews using a GPS-powered digger to harvest potatoes.

(Farm Journal)

The volcanic soil, cool evenings and arid climate make for a great potato growing, farmers in Idaho say.

(Farm Journal)

The Idaho Potato Commission tour group paused for a group shot at Sun-Glo’s potato field.

(Farm Journal)

Tron Crumly, who handles sales for Sun-Glo of Idaho, explained how the potato storage shed can hold about 7.5 million pounds of potatoes and that the metal pipes keep the pile ventilated.

“It’s just like a gaming joystick, this Spudnick piler,” Crumly said about the red-painted equipment that spread potatoes into the shed from a conveyor belt.

(Farm Journal)

Sun-Glo owner and manager Cade Crapo welcomed the tour group to his hangar for a cheeseburger lunch made with local beef and french fries from potatoes plucked from the dirt four hours earlier.

Bench Mark Potato Co., Rexburg, Idaho

(Farm Journal)

Kent Sutton shared about his family farm, which has about 375 acres, that’s part of the Bench Mark cooperative of five growers. They do about 85% foodservice and 15% retail, he said, harvesting about 4 million pounds of potatoes a day.

“We sell what we actually grow,” Sutton said. “It’s more than just a business. It’s a heritage. Family.”

(Farm Journal)

Amin Panjwani, who buys and sells potatoes and onions for S. Katzman Produce at Hunts Point Produce Market in New York, surveyed the potato sizes and quality at the Bench Mark facility.

(Farm Journal)

For many growers, like those part of Bench Mark, russet norkotah potatoes are becoming more popular.

(Farm Journal)

Kent Sutton of Bench Mark showed the tour group the poem his daughter wrote, copied on the wall of the packing shed office hallway.

From dirt to dinner: Foodservice experts dive into Idaho potatoes

Mon, 09 Oct 2023 13:03:56 GMT

IDAHO FALLS, Idaho — Eric Meisel wants to create the right flavors for his restaurant customers in the greater Ohio region.

And one way to best meet their needs is to learn about ingredients and stay on top of trends, which led Meisel to this day on Sept. 27 — the day he stood inches from a mountain of yellow goddess potatoes, piled three-people high inside a storage shed at Wada Farms in Idaho.

“I help independent restaurants update their ingredients for dishes and make new recipes. I create dishes that require less kitchen labor,” Meisel said while riding on a tour bus with 30 people on the Idaho Potato Commission’s harvest tour focusing on fresh potatoes for foodservice. Formerly a Culinary Institute of America-trained chef, Meisel now works as a culinary specialist for Gordon Food Service.

Potato primer

As striated farm fields of brown resembling corrugated cardboard flew by in a blur outside the bus window, the tour participants listened to Idaho potato facts and history from Alan Kahn, the commission’s vice president of foodservice. Between quips in his signature deadpan delivery, Kahn shared that more than 94% of fresh potatoes are the russet variety, and Idaho supplies one-third of potatoes consumed in the U.S.

The ancestors of almost all potatoes originated from the Andes Mountains of Peru, where they adapted to the high elevation, warm days, cool nights, dry air and mineral-rich soil — similar to conditions found these days in Idaho, he said.

“This part of the state has volcanic soil that potatoes love, 280 days of sunshine a year and we’re 100% irrigated from an underground aquifer north of here that’s the size of Lake Erie,” Kahn said. “There are a lot of growers here with straws to the ground, drawing from that.”

In any given year, those Idaho potato growers harvest between 300,000 and 320,000 acres of potatoes, averaging 13.5 billion pounds of Idaho potatoes per year, according to the commission.

(Farm Journal)

The 2023-24 growing season has been a banner year, producing 328,000 acres of Idaho potatoes — up about 13% over last year, which should amount to about 14 billion pounds, said Armand Lobato, the commission’s foodservice promotion director for the Western U.S.

“Our closest competitor is Colorado, but that’s 50,000 acres,” Lobato said.

About 60% of Idaho’s crop is processed for frozen and dehydrated uses, and the remaining 40% is for the fresh market, split evenly between retail and foodservice, he said.

The tour participants included representatives from Bloomin’ Brands, Darden Restaurants, US Foods, Chef’s Warehouse, Gordon Food Service, S. Katzman Produce of New York and a hotel management company who were interested in the growing trends of specific varieties, what their characteristics are and how it applies to foodservice needs.

The five grower-marketer-shippers that opened their fields, offices, sheds and packing houses to the tour — Rigby Produce in Rigby, Sun-Glo of Idaho in Sugar City, Bench Mark Potato in Rexburg, Pleasant Valley Potato in Aberdeen and Wada Farms in Idaho Falls — shared their experience.

From the potato growers

Most of the growers said the same thing about the two most common varietals of russet: Burbank is losing ground to norkotah.

Burbanks have enjoyed top status since the early 1900s for its lower water content and thus firmer texture that holds up well in cooking.

There’s been a big shift since the COVID-19 pandemic, said Kent Sutton, whose 375-acre family farm is part of the Rexburg-based Bench Mark cooperative of five growers. Bench Mark harvests about 4 million pounds of potatoes a day for customers that are 85% foodservice and 15% retail.

“For the first time we’re giving over to the dark side and growing more norkotah. They’re easier to grow, and they pack out easier,” Sutton told the group. However, he will still grow burbanks for customers who want it for the taste and can ignore the deformities when distressed.

Emily Painter from Pacific Coast Fruit Co., Portland, Ore., said she didn’t realize all the differences between russet burbanks and russet norkotahs until joining this tour because burbanks are the preferred variety in Washington state.

“It was interesting to learn how burbanks are the more desirable variety for foodservice,” Painter said. “We’re looking to boost our foodservice business in Seattle, so I’ll take that home to my sales team.”

(Farm Journal)

In Aberdeen, Pleasant Valley Potato is supplied about 270 million pounds of potatoes each year by four partner farms. Leading the company’s operations, Eric Wahlen shared with the group how his grandfather came from Sweden, arriving to Idaho on a motorcycle to homestead in 1913. When he died in middle age, Wahlen’s father, then 13, and his father’s older brother took turns running the farm and attending school.

Potato tradition remains in Aberdeen, where upper grade schools still close at harvest time so the teens can help with the potato harvest for two weeks, Wahlen said.

“We’ve always run more norkotahs than burbank. Our focus in this shed is foodservice. Our growers are always trying to grow for size but sometimes certain fields don’t cooperate,” he said, pointing to the conveyor belt of potatoes rolling by in the sorting, grading, cleaning and packing house, shooting off into the designated departments. “These we’ve just harvested this morning.”

Mikal Jones, a culinary student who won a Café Conference scholarship to attend the tour trip, stared and laughed when he saw a potato box labeled InFront Produce, as it’s for Outback Steakhouse. He wants to be a personal chef and TV personality in the culinary world and already partners with major brands for social media posts.

“I’ve never seen a harvest,” Jones said. “When you see the work and dedication people put into this, it’s crazy.”

(Farm Journal)

After a field walk in Sugar City, Sun-Glo of Idaho growers took the tour group into a storage shed that can house up to 7.5 million pounds of potatoes. Participants climbed stairs to reach the top of the potato mountain and pose for photographs.

“This is how Idaho does it year-round and does it well. We won’t run out this year,” said Tron Crumly, who handles sales for Sun-Glo.

Later, the crew lunched in an airplane hangar where two women from the owning family made French fries from potatoes harvested four hours earlier.

Menu Moment — Kiwi in Foodservice

Tue, 15 Nov 2022 07:34:49 GMT

The kiwifruit may be brown and pedestrian-looking on the outside, but inside – whether green or yellow – it is bright and sweet. According to a Fresh Insights on Foodservice report from the United Fresh Produce Association, kiwi has enjoyed rising popularity in restaurant dishes around the U.S., with 34% growth on fast-casual menus in the last four years.

While it’s often used in sweet dishes and beverages – smoothies, breakfast bowls, ice cream, tarts, cocktails – some chefs are branching out.

“Some operators recently have been getting creative with kiwi applications and have featured it sliced atop dessert pizzas and even savory pizzas,” United Fresh wrote. “Kiwi could also lend depth of flavor to concepts like salsa. According to Datassential’s SNAP! platform, kiwi is often paired with strawberry, pineapple and mango, so dishes where those fruits are featured could point to applications for kiwi as well.”

What goes with guava

Tue, 15 Nov 2022 07:38:15 GMT

A growing number of restaurants are incorporating guava into their menus, according to a recent Fresh Insights on Foodservice report from the United Fresh Produce Association.

The tropical fruit can be eaten out of hand, spiced up with cayenne powder or Mexican hot sauce chamoy, or spotlighted in desserts like sorbet and Puerto Rican guava cake and in drinks like agua fresca and sangria.

“As functional foods continue to trend, nutrient-rich fresh guava can also be incorporated into breakfast dishes to help consumers start the day off right – think smoothies and smoothie bowls, or sliced up to top pancakes or waffles,” United Fresh wrote.

In recent years, guava has been seeing the most growth on menus in the West (46%) and South (34%), though it has also gained in the Midwest (19%) and the Northeast (21%), according to the report.

To see more from the March-April issue of PMG, check out this intro to the magazine, including a link to the digital edition.

Foodservice, retail see growth amid higher consumer spending on food

Tue, 15 Nov 2022 07:29:17 GMT

How the food dollar ultimately splits out between foodservice and retail remains to be seen, but right now both channels are experiencing growth.

“Much of the talk at the start of spring was whether lifting COVID restrictions on foodservice would mean lower spending at retail,” the Steiner Consulting Group observed in a new report. “In the last two months, however, it appears that both food distribution channels managed to eke out gains.”

According to the report, May dollar sales at foodservice were $67.3 billion, a record high. That number was up 1.8% from April. More traffic and higher menu prices due to inflation have driven the gains.

Anne-Marie Roerink, principal of 210 Analytics, said numerous indicators – gasoline sales, TSA checkpoint numbers and OpenTable reservations among them – show increased consumer mobility, which generally coincides with more meals happening outside the home.

“It is an interesting thing that we see happening where restaurants have largely recovered and yet we’re seeing elevated demand at retail,” Roerink said.

Habits and meal occasions

“I do believe that people have changed habits that will stick around for quite a bit. When the pandemic first started, there (were) some Amazon statistics of 7,000% increases of sales in things like cutting boards and knives and colanders, your most basic kitchen appliances and supplies,” Roerink said. “So that would indicate that, hey, people clearly were not cooking, because if you don’t have a cutting board and knives, then more than likely, other than scrambling an egg, you probably didn’t do a whole lot of cooking. So there’s been an investment in kitchen tools and appliances.

“Without a doubt that has resulted in at least picking up some skills and at least, I imagine, a system where not every dinner or as many dinners will be eaten out, so I do think that retail is going to hold onto a majority share for a while, whereas we had of course dropped below 50% of food spending,” Roerink said.

The extent to which people return to offices will be another factor in how much of the food dollar goes to foodservice and how much goes to retail in the longer term.

A recent IRI consumer survey found that 32% plan to work from home full-time, while another 14% plan to work from home at least two days per week. Fifty-one percent don’t expect to work from home at all going forward.

“The meal occasion that has changed the most is lunch for the simple reason that, despite best intentions and the cutest lunch boxes we have bought a lot of times, we still run out of the house without a packed lunch, and also that was a social activity where you’d grab some co-workers and grab some lunch, and so what we actually see is a lot more people are making lunch at home,” Roerink said. “It’s an interesting consumption occasion in that there’s more pressure on time, so not a whole lot of people are going to spend a ton of time putting together a complicated meal at lunch time because they’re trying to let the dog out or they’re trying to get back to work.

Outlook

“I would imagine that once people start going back into the office or a hybrid system … initially we’re going to see people be very gung-ho about trying to bring their lunches to the office, realizing how much money they have saved, realizing that probably the lunch is a little healthier,” Roerink said. “I cannot imagine that longer-term we wouldn’t fall back into the patterns that were there simply because they were there for a reason and certainly, best intentions, but I imagine that a lot of those lunch dollars will move back into foodservice.”

Jeff Cady, director of produce and floral for Tops Markets, commented during a recent United Fresh webinar on how the resurgence of foodservice might affect retail sales.

“For us, we learned a lot during this,” Cady said. “We’ve identified things people like, and I think we just keep bringing those to folks as (restaurants) open up. There’s still going to be needs. I don’t think everybody’s going to be rushing out 100%, they’re not going to spend every food dollar there, we’re not going to keep every food dollar, there’s no doubt about it, but I don’t think now is the time to curl up in a little ball in the corner.

“We have to continue to be consistent, and that’s how we’re going to keep them – because I think that’s what we earned,” Cady said. “I think we earned a lot of respect, a lot of respect that maybe I wouldn’t say was lost, but maybe was just forgotten about over the years in this industry.”

Roerink noted that another factor in whether people spend more at retail or at foodservice is inflation.

“At the end of the day, not many of us get a raise just because life got more expensive, so we basically have the same money but have to stretch it a whole lot further, and that tends to favor cooking at home,” Roerink said.

Wada Farms sees strong market outlook

Tue, 15 Nov 2022 07:28:08 GMT

Foodservice demand is strong for Wada Farms , said Joe Esta, vice president of the Idaho Falls, Idaho-based company.

“Our foodservice demand is very high; we think that will continue,” Esta said.

Total fresh volume could be down about 10%, and market conditions this season should feature prices firmly above year-ago levels.

At the same time, higher input costs are a big worry for the industry, Esta said.

About 3% of the Wada Farms crop is organic , he said.

Originally established in 1943, Wada Farms was founded by Frank Wada, who immigrated to the U.S. from Japan in 1922.

Read related:

Wada Farms co-brands with The Produce Moms
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Sustainable Produce Summit brings Starbucks procurement manager

Tue, 15 Nov 2022 07:28:46 GMT

Sustainability is a global issue, and The Packer’s Sept. 13-17 virtual Sustainable Produce Summit will bring in high-profile speakers from within and outside of the industry to address key developments, such as water conservation and policy; social responsibility; carbon management; best of marketing and merchandising; packaging innovations; and trends and data from The Packer’s annual sustainability survey.

Peter Barone, procurement manager for Evolution Fresh/Starbucks, will be speaking at 2 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 15 about the marketing and merchandising aspects of his role at Starbucks and how they help advance the company’s overall sustainability goal of becoming “resource positive.”

Now in its second year, the Sustainable Produce Summit will focus on four themes:

Trends & Thought Leadership;
Packaging; Operations;
Certifications & More; and
Marketing & Merchandising.

In addition to a robust education agenda and networking sessions, the event will reveal the latest research from The Packer’s annual sustainability survey, as well as The Packer’s Best of SPS Marketing Awards after Barone’s presentation.

A little about Peter Barone

Barone is a senior sourcing manager for Starbucks/Evolution Fresh with 18 years of fresh food industry experience. Through focus on developing sustainability efforts across both fresh produce and packaging, his role helps shape Evolution Fresh sustainability goals in order to achieve Starbucks’ long-range commitment to be resource positive, including goals of reducing carbon, water and waste by 50% by 2030, according to the company. Barone is a member of the 2014 Produce 40 under 40 and a United Fresh Leadership Class 25 alumnus.

Tre’dish receives $10 million investment as home-to-home food economy grows

Tue, 15 Nov 2022 07:28:08 GMT

Home-to-Home food technology platform and community marketplace Tre’dish has today announced a $10m seed funding round as it commercializes and scales operations across the U.S. and Canada.

The funding round was led by Tre’dish Founding Team Members; Peter Hwang, Jay Wilgar, Srin Sridharan and lead investor Wes Hall. The group of marquee investors with their past experiences in the round include:

Wes Hall – Founder of BlackNorth Initiative, Dragons Den, Kingsdale Advisors, KSS Group of Companies
Luis Javier Castro - Founder of Mesoamerica and Alejandria
JP Rangaswami - Chief Scientist at Salesforce and British Telecom. Previously Chief Data Officer, Deutsche Bank.
Steve Smith – CEO of Recipe Unlimited (Formerly Cara Operations). EVP - Loblaw
Andrea DelZotto – Founder of Concrete Cardinal and Director, Tridel Group of Companies
Qamar Qureshi – President and CBO - Knowledgehook

Tre’dish has created a food tech marketplace platform that focuses on bringing the home-to-home food sharing economy together. Home Chefs have the opportunity to sell to consumers right in their own community, a diverse selection of authentic meals prepared by the person who makes it best. With the home-to-home market growing significantly during the pandemic, home chefs have been selling their meals through social media platforms in an unstructured grey market without proper processes to instil trust for the consumer.

Furthermore, other platforms that are coming into the market have simply created a marketplace where Home Chefs meet Consumers, and no support is provided for the Chefs to build a sustainable business.

Embedded in the Tre’dish technology is our Chef Education Platform and Chef Portal that allows Home Chefs access to some of the most innovative tools in the hospitality space. Our EdTech platform provides a Home Restauranteur guidance and support to build a business right from their own home kitchen safely and profitably with little to no investment required.

The success of the Tre’dish model has been driven by two central trends. Firstly, the hospitality industry for small owner-operated restaurants has been at a breaking point for several years with high overhead running costs (i.e. rent, labour, marketing and delivery) and very low margins making it difficult to sustain a profitable operation.

Moreover, to make a living they must sacrifice everything with zero work-life balance. Secondly, the pandemic brought into sharp focus the reality facing 3 million hospitality industry workers in the US and Canada when over 130,000 restaurants were closed disproportionally impacting the BIPOC community. For some, this provided the impetus to take to social media and sell food prepared from their home kitchens. For others, Tre’dish will now provide a new path for opportunity, employment and entrepreneurship.

Peter Hwang, CEO and Co-Founder at Tre’dish, commented, “The pandemic was very difficult on small businesses especially owner operated restaurants. Tre’dish was built to level the playing field providing equal access and opportunity for all individuals to once again flourish in the hospitality industry regardless of their cultural background, gender, experience, or financial ability. The only thing anyone requires is an amazing recipe and the desire to share their food with the world”

Tre’dish aims to build a global, impact-focused, food tech unicorn by providing equal opportunities for all cultural groups and new immigrants through access to a platform for any food entrepreneur to grow their presence and start a profitable business. Currently, 4 of the 5 largest shareholders represent BIPOC standing as it seeks to elevate a minority owned entrepreneurial movement. Tre’dish has built a bona fide business model, that authentically and organically creates a movement to empower and encourage historically underserved and underprivileged communities to become burgeoning food entrepreneurs and social media food influencers.

“Tre’dish is redefining what it means to be a professional chef by taking the hospitality industry beyond its historical confines of bricks and mortar restaurants,” said Wes Hall, Executive Chairman and Founder of KSS Group of Companies Inc. “I am proud to back such an innovative business model not only because of the tremendous future potential this company has but because of the thousands of jobs and opportunity Tre’dish will create for minority and BIPOC community members who have too often been left behind. Tre’dish will connect talented chefs with customers but also provide them with business knowledge and skills that will help them be successful for the long term.”

Tre’dish is not only a marketplace for home chefs and consumers but has set out to create a platform which empowers them to create successful businesses and have choice in what they eat respectively.

For Home Chefs, Tre’dish is a technology portal that offers:

Home restaurant consulting and business optimization technology tools such as, Menu Card Development, SKU Optimization, Consolidated Group Ordering and Geo-Targeted Data Tracking so they can build efficient and profitable businesses from day one.
A real time food and safety platform with digital check-in, check-out processes which provides transparency on how a home chef prepares their food daily ensuring compliant health and safety protocols each and every time.
A media content platform and technology training system which teaches home chefs how to become food influencers and content creators. Helping them build user created content and dissemination strategies to maximize engagement and views of their social posts.

For Consumers, Tre’dish provides:

A marketplace platform allowing individuals to support their local home chefs knowing they are preparing their meals safely with the highest quality restaurant standards that are digitally documented.
An amazing culinary experience in your community. The ability to support local chefs and try their authentic, healthy, and home cooked meals delivered conveniently to your door.
A technology and data platform that remembers your personalized food preferences to create the best experience possible – dietary, fitness, allergen and personalized meal customization that is geo-targeted in your area.
A food content and media platform allowing users to view content from Tre’dish Home Chefs across the globe including Chefs in their own geo-targeted Virtual Food Court.

Peter Hwang concluded, “As we launch our commercial operations, we see a massive opportunity to become thought leaders in the growing home-to-home food sharing economy. We are not only creating a disruptive technology, but we are creating a mainstream platform that can positively impact cultural diversity, mass job creation and entrepreneurial growth for generations for the foreseeable future”

Apples have small but important foodservice role

Fri, 12 Aug 2022 21:07:16 GMT

Smaller sizes and varieties that are on the lower end of the price scale often are the choice of foodservice buyers, Michigan apple grower-shippers say.

About 6% of the business at Applewood Fresh LLC, Sparta, Mich., was with foodservice customers last season, said Brian Coates, vice president of sales and business development. “Last year was less than what it likely would have been due to a low crop in Michigan,” he said. “We did not have fruit to do some of the later-season business we have done in the past and had to end early with some foodservice customers.”

The company’s foodservice accounts include schools, universities and jails, as well as distributors that provide fruit to restaurants or cruise ships, he said. Standard tray packs of apples without price look-up stickers usually are the package of choice.

Much of the foodservice business at BelleHarvest Sales Inc., Belding, Mich., is with school systems, said president Nick Mascari. Sliced apples are popular among students, but the company ships some bulk packages to schools, as well. BelleHarvest also sells apples to large foodservice distributors that supply product to various foodservice accounts.

Foodservice sales are a small but important part of the business at Sparta-based Riveridge Produce Marketing Inc., said Trish Taylor, marketing manager. “Foodservice (distributors have) proven they’re incredibly flexible and adaptable with market changes,” she said. “They are thinking ahead on the challenges and opportunities for their accounts — coming to us to explore new variety and packaging options to help their customers with incremental sales, convenience and efficiencies.” Their customers are a mix of restaurants, hospitality, hospitals and more, she said. “These industries use apples from a snack to an entrée ingredient.”

Apples often are used as ingredients by foodservice customers, Mascari said. The company also sells a lot of apples to processors and wholesale distributors for slicing. Red apples are popular at foodservice, he said, but BelleHarvest encourages buyers to consider varieties other than red delicious. “We want to provide a nutritional piece of fruit, but we want to make sure they get a great eating experience out of it,” Mascari said.

Gala, red delicious and fuji are among the most popular varieties at Applewood Fresh, Coates said. “(Foodservice buyers) are generally looking for something that is at the lower end of the pricing scale,” he said.

Distributors typically are more interested in size of the apples than the variety, Mascari said. They generally order “sizes that are not overly large,” like 88s or 100s, he said.

Schools systems also prefer smaller counts. COVID-19 caused a downturn in some foodservice business for Applewood Fresh, Coates said. “A number of customers did not buy at all, since they did not have anywhere to go with product,” he said. But sales seem to have rebounded. “For the most part, business with our group of foodservice customers is back to normal,” Coates said.

In the first year of COVID-19, Riveridge increased its volume with foodservice in part due to the USDA school lunch and the food box programs, Taylor said. Three-pound poly bag purchases increased for COVID-19 food box programs, she said. “We continue to experience supply chain issues, but navigate with extra planning,” she said.

Business on smaller sizes that are preferred by foodservice customers slowed during COVID-19 as restaurants and other establishments shut down or cut back their hours, Mascari said. But the retail-driven company made up for the drop in demand from foodservice. “Anything that was off on the foodservice side was definitely picked up on the retail side with the demand there,” Mascari said. Although there is always a certain demand for apples, the strength of that demand is cyclical, Mascari said. “When it’s harvest time, demand for apples goes up,” he said. “As the season goes on, it kind of levels out.”

Demand picks up again at the beginning of the year, when consumers make New Year’s resolution to eat more healthfully. “As you approach the spring/summer months, it drops off again, because everybody is looking for summer fruit,” he said.

St. Louis foodservice sales on rebound

Tue, 15 Nov 2022 07:25:47 GMT

Foodservice sales in the St. Louis, Mo., area have, for the most part, rebounded from the doldrums of the COVID-19 pandemic. In fact, some produce distributors say their restaurant business has surpassed 2019 levels.

“Our [foodservice] business dropped during COVID,” said Joe Sanders, owner of Midstate Produce Co. Inc. on the St. Louis Produce Market. But the majority of Midstate’s customers “were smart” and teamed up with DoorDash and other delivery services pretty quickly, he said.

There may have been a week or two when the direction foodservice would take was unclear, he said, but as soon as operators got onboard with delivery and carryout services, business picked up.

Midstate also shifted gears and put more focus on wholesale business. “The government didn’t shut down grocery stores,” Sanders said.

Some restaurants closed because of the pandemic, he said, but at Midstate, foodservice sales have bounced back. “For the most part, our foodservice is probably better than it was pre-COVID,” he said.

Some foodservice distributors went out of business during the pandemic, which created opportunity for other suppliers to pick up those sales, Sanders said.

Foodservice accounts for a relatively small number of sales at St. Louis-based Midwest Best Produce Inc., said president Dan Pupillo.

During the pandemic, foodservice sales dropped by 60%, but they were made up elsewhere. “What you lost in foodservice, you picked up in extra business in retail,” he said. “People were doing more of their own home-cooked meals.”

About 60% of the business at Front Row Produce LLC, Overland, Mo., is from foodservice, said owner and president Tony Pupillo Sr. The company puts up a number of pack sizes of items like tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers and colored peppers for foodservice. The pandemic’s effect on sales gradually waned. “At first it was very tough,” he said. But after a couple of months, the company got into some government food box business, and then retail sales began to pick up.

“We ended up having a strong year,” he said. Foodservice business has come back to pre-pandemic levels, and the company is expanding its reach into additional states, Pupillo said.

VMP Produce Co. on the St. Louis Produce Market also is attempting to expand its foodservice business after undergoing some difficult times during the pandemic, said owner Vince Pupillo. “The [restaurants] that survived are strong, and they’re holding their own,” he said.

But Pupillo said late summer was a relatively slow period. “We are counting on fall business to pick up,” he said.

California avocado foodservice rebound continues

Tue, 15 Nov 2022 07:27:20 GMT

Foodservice avocado sales seem to be slowly rebounding after the rollercoaster ride they endured during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Before the pandemic, various sources estimated that foodservice accounted for about 35% of avocado sales, said Jan DeLyser, vice president of marketing for the Irvine-based California Avocado Commission . “During 2020, sales to foodservice initially plummeted and then increased steadily as foodservice operators pivoted to mainly takeout and delivery,” she said. “Foodservice sales still have not returned to pre-pandemic levels, but we are optimistic that they will do so once pandemic-related challenges, including labor shortages, are resolved,” DeLyser said.

Two years into the pandemic, foodservice sales haven’t fully recovered, agreed Doug Meyer, senior vice president of sales and marketing for West Pak Avocados Inc. , Murrieta, Calif. But barring another variant such as omicron, spring and summer are expected to be good recovery periods for the entire foodservice industry, he said. Quick- and full-service restaurants already are slowly recovering as dining-out makes a comeback, Meyer said. “Takeout and delivery have continued to do well and are here to stay at significantly higher than pre-COVID levels,” he said.

The drop in foodservice business for Calavo Growers Inc ., “was really dramatic,” said Rob Wedin, executive vice president of national fresh sales for the Santa Paula, Calif.-based company. “Two years ago, the doors just closed — with some exceptions,” he said. But foodservice sales are making a comeback. “More and more of our biggest foodservice customers are coming back with more orders and plans for more menu items,” Wedin said. Up to 25% of the company’s business is with foodservice accounts, he said. During the pandemic, that figure plummeted to 5%-10%.

Read related: California avocado crop size, prices up this season

Sales to foodservice operators went up and down, depending on region, the prevalence of COVID-19 and the pandemic-related restrictions imposed on consumers, said Gahl Crane, sales director for Temecula, Calif.-based Eco Farms , which is the avocado division of Oppy, in Vancouver, British Columbia. “There was less demand as (COVID-19) numbers got high, particularly in California,” he said. But sales in some places did not change. Since the summer of 2021, he said, “things have been quite strong and steady for foodservice. “A little hiccup” occurred around Christmas and New Year’s when the omicron variant peaked, but overall, foodservice business has been solid, he said. “There’s a huge demand for eating out and partying and events.” Most restaurants have returned to indoor dining, as well as outdoor seating, and they’re open at full capacity, Crane said.

The pandemic had a significant impact on foodservice business at Henry Avocado Corp ., Escondido, Calif., said President Phil Henry. The shockwave hit in mid-March of 2020 when restaurants began to shut down. “In areas where we really had significant shutdowns, like California, our sales dropped in half basically over a week or two,” he said. The effect on business at Henry Avocado was especially impactful because restaurants and other out-of-home dining options make up about half of the company’s sales. Some of that loss was made up by an increase in retail sales, and over the ensuing months, some foodservice distributors began to rebound somewhat, he said.

By the end of 2020, foodservice sales were beginning to recover, but not to the extent Henry thought they should considering the plentiful supplies that were available and the favorable pricing. “Demand should have been much stronger for the whole industry,” he said.

That weakened demand continued last year, with some restaurants closing permanently and others cutting their hours or reducing menu options.
Labor shortages also affected sales. “Hopefully, with the decline we’re now seeing in the number of COVID cases, restaurants will be doing better,” Henry said.

NEPC expo to feature new site, new schedule, hockey star

Tue, 15 Nov 2022 07:26:17 GMT

Excitement is truly in the air for the New England Produce Council’s upcoming 22nd annual Produce, Floral & Food Service Expo , set for Aug. 24-25 in Boston.

Even more so than for last year’s first in-person show since the COVID-19-based, widespread event cancellations seen in 2020, says Executive Director Laura Sullivan.

“There’s a lot of excitement around this year’s event. I think people are excited to be in person,” she said, noting the trepidation many still felt last year around travel and in-person gatherings. “I think people just want to be together, and I think people feel more confident being in person.”

Of course, the chance for networking face to face isn’t the only aspect of the event to look forward to.

Organizers have some new attractions in store — one of the biggest ones being the location. This year’s expo will be held at the virtually brand-new Omni Boston Hotel at the Seaport , a luxury hotel near downtown Boston and Boston Harbor, which celebrated its grand opening in September of last year.

With the bigger hotel, instead of attendees bouncing between the hotel and off-site event venues, “we’re able to host all of the events under one roof,” Sullivan said.

The schedule of events has been updated, too. Previously held on the afternoon the first day of the event before things really get going that evening, the educational session has been moved up to the next morning as an educational breakfast panel session. The keynote, formerly held during breakfast, has been moved up to be a luncheon session. The expo portion of the show will be scheduled around these two events, “so everybody can be in attendance,” Sullivan said.

That will turn the show into largely a one-day event, minus the VIP and cocktail receptions that kick off at 5 p.m. Aug. 24 and are the only agenda items scheduled for that day.

“It’ll be a busy day,” Sullivan said, but worth it, as it was often tricky at past shows for retailers with booths at the event to attend the educational session held while they were setting up for the expo. “We just decided, you know what? The feedback we’ve received is, ‘We really like the one-day event.’”

On deck for that educational breakfast is a panel session on “How to Minimize Your Produce Supply Chain Challenges.” Moderated by Ed Treacy, the International Fresh Produce Association’s vice president of supply chain and sustainability, the session will feature panelists Mark Donley, vice president of ADUSA Procurement; Jon Eisen, with American Trucking Associations; Dave Patnaude, sales manager at Coast to Coast Produce; and Joshua Noonan, director of delivered sales at Robinson Fresh.

Sullivan said she expects the breakfasters to come away with more knowledge, and maybe a few more tools in their toolkit, of how to address such ongoing supply chain challenges as gas prices and transportation, among others.

“The panel that we put together, it was very well thought out. We have a lot of years of experience in that part of the industry [on the panel], and I think they’re going to have the most up-to-date information about what’s going on,” she said. “So, it’ll really just kind of peel back the layers as to … how their companies are combatting these issues.”

The keynote luncheon will feature the barrier-breaking, “Jackie Robinson of women’s hockey” herself, Blake Bolden. Now an ESPN reporter and pro scout — and the first Black female scout in the National Hockey League, at that — Bolden was the first Black player to be a first-round draft pick in the Canadian Women’s Hockey League. Her speech at the luncheon will touch on “Overcoming Adversity with a Healthy Mind and Body.”

“We were interested in her just based on what she’s accomplished, and then, as we got to know [more about] her, [we found out] she consumes a plant-based diet, and she does attribute a lot of her athletic success to her diet,” Sullivan said. “ So, I thought, ‘Wow, we loved her before, and now we love her even more.’ [She] fits what our mission is. So, we’re excited to have her come and address the group.”
The expo portion of the event will feature 126 produce and 14 floral booths, Sullivan said, and she anticipates the overall attendance to be in the 1,000 range, about the same as it has been in past years.

And Sullivan knows of what she speaks when it comes to the NEPC Produce, Floral & Food Service Expo.

“I have just started my 27th year,” with NEPC, she said, noting she still has fond memories of the first expo NEPC organized more than two decades ago. “We had no idea what to expect. We probably had low expectations, [but] it was so exciting and it was so much fun … and just kind of laid the foundation and set the groundwork for us to create an even better show each year.”

Schedule of events

Aug. 24

5-6 p.m.: VIP reception, by invitation only
6-8 p.m.: Cocktail reception

Aug. 25

7:45-9 a.m.: Educational breakfast panel session on “How to Minimize Your Produce Supply Chain Challenges”
9:10 a.m.-noon: Expo open
Noon-1 p.m.: Keynote luncheon featuring Blake Bolden (show floor will be closed during this time)
1:10-4 p.m.: Expo open

Celebrity chefs to livestream sustainable 'shroomy' recipes

Fri, 31 Mar 2023 19:38:54 GMT

Mushrooms may be the most sustainable commodity crop out there just by the way they’re farmed.

So, it makes sense that for the second year, The Mushroom Council is devoting Earth Month, which is April, to showcasing mushrooms’ sustainability with Kittch, a culinary livestream platform.

Throughout the month, Kittch will feature celebrated chefs nationwide livestreaming their favorite mushroom-centric recipes while touting fresh mushrooms’ minimal environmental footprint, according to a news release.

Learn more: Mushrooms, the commodity

The objective: Inspire home cooks to incorporate more mushrooms into their meals while also reminding them why the council considers sustainably grown mushrooms “The Official Ingredient of Earth Month.”

Launched in mid-2022, Kittch is possibly the first livestreaming platform for chefs and culinary artists. It’s a media hub devoted exclusively to food content, commerce and community. The platform hosts more than 600 carefully curated chefs, culinary influencers and brands.

Last year’s inaugural Earth Month collaboration between The Mushroom Council and Kittch reached consumers more than 4 million times.

As part of this year’s campaign, food lovers can tune in and cook along with their favorite culinary creators throughout April by signing up for a free Kittch account . Participating chefs events include:

Chad Rosenthal, chef-owner of The Lucky Well and Motel Fried Chicken in Philadelphia and Food Network personality — At 2 p.m. ET April 7, Rosenthal will make Seared Royal Trumpet Banh Mi with White Button Pâté.
Sarah Grueneberg, chef and partner of Monteverde Restaurant and Pastificio in Chicago, James Beard Award winner and cookbook author — At 6 p.m. ET April 11, Grueneberg will make Pan-Roasted Fancy Mushrooms with Golden Fried Eggs, Bitter Greens and Balsamic.
Kiki Aranita, chef-owner of Poi Dog Sauce, James Beard nominee, food writer in Philadelphia and New York City — At 6 p.m. ET April 17, Aranita will make Oyster Mushroom and Mussel Mazeman.
Mei Lin, chef-owner Daybird in Los Angeles, “Top Chef” winner and winner of Food & Wine’s Best New Restaurant — At 1 p.m. ET April 24, Lin will make King Trumpet Dan Dan “Noodles.”

These chefs also will conduct special Earth Month menu promotions at their restaurants to highlight their mushroom-centric dishes for customers to enjoy.

“It’s going to be a shroomy experience on Kittch all throughout April, and I’m so excited to be bringing viewers into my kitchen,” Aranita said in the release. “I love mushrooms, of course, because of their inherent umami, but also when I’m cooking with them, I just generally feel better about the dish I’m preparing because I know it only requires very few resources to produce that ingredient. Great taste and gentle on the planet. You can’t beat them!”

Minimal footprint

Consider why researchers have declared mushrooms “one of the most sustainably produced agriculture products”:

Producing 1 pound of mushrooms requires only 1.8 gallons of water and 1.0 kWh of electricity. And it generates only 0.7 pounds of carbon dioxide equivalents.
Up to 1 million pounds of mushrooms can be grown on 1 acre of land in a year.
Mushrooms are grown in composted agricultural materials, which after harvest, is often recycled into potting soil.

To learn more about mushroom sustainability and the Kittch collaboration, visit the Mushroom Council’s dedicated Earth Month web page .

The Mushroom Council is comprised of fresh market producers and importers averaging more than 500,000 pounds of mushrooms produced or imported annually. The mushroom program is authorized by the Mushroom Promotion, Research and Consumer Information Act of 1990 and is administered by The Mushroom Council under the supervision of the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service.

How fall 2021 affected child-focused foodservice

Tue, 15 Nov 2022 07:27:57 GMT

Restaurants are responding to consumer demand for healthier items for children, and school foodservice operations are able to reintroduce what worked and be flexible when it’s not.

These are two major findings in the Fresh Insights for Foodservice Fall 2021 report, presented by United Fresh Produce Association, powered by Dataessential.

Kids menus

(Farm Journal)

Green beans increased 43% on kids’ menus the last four years, according to Datassential’s Feeding Kids Keynote Report. The winter holidays also spotlight the favored string bean. Operators that offer smaller versions of adult entrees often include green beans as a side option, “while other operators get creative and offer options like green bean dippers or fried green beans for crunch.”

The rise of the green bean makes sense, considering 36% of parents said they wish restaurants had healthier side dish options on kids’ menus. The desire for more well-balanced meals for children has prompted foodservice operators to offer more fruit and vegetable sides, such as apple slices, steamed vegetables and fruit salad.

But some operators are taking it a step further, offering children similar trendy, globally-inspired foods as their parents get. Often packed with peas and carrots, fried rice is the fastest-growing side dishes on kids’ menus, growing 34% in the last four years, according to Datassential MenuTrends.

Corn grew 17% as a side on kids’ menus in four years, but it shows up in a much wider range of applications, including in corn fritters and elote, which you eat with your hands.

Tater tots are the fastest-growing side dish on children’s menus, and operators are getting creative with them, swapping in cauliflower and broccoli for potatoes with fresh, house-made dipping sauces. Sweet potatoes are also showing up more on kids’ menus as fries, providing a pop of color and hit of sweetness children love.

K-12 supply chain disruptions

(Farm Journal)

Basically, if your business has survived this far, you’re feeling a little optimistic that you will continue surviving: 51% of kindergarten through 12th grade school foodservice operators say they are cautiously optimistic about their business in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic and supply chain issues.

“Since August, schools have dealt with rising food costs as well as shortages and delays due

to supply chain disruptions,” according to the report. “Uncertainty over inventory means most kids aren’t being served exactly what’s advertised on menus, as meals are often changed on-the-fly.”

But the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced investments designed to help ease school food supply chain issues and relaxed restrictions so that schools can make last-minute purchases at grocery or bulk stores to meet student needs.

Most school children are no longer doing remote video-learning classes, so free and reduced breakfast and lunch programs no longer have to be delivered or offered take-out style.

Supply chain issues have affected fresh produce, but not as much as it has other food and foodservice items, according to the report.

Growing items in the K-12 foodservice sector are: red cabbage, sauteed spinach, car acara and blood oranges, according to the report.

Also, salad bars are back in many school districts, which can ease labor woes.

“All middle and high schools are once again using self-serve salad bars to offer a variety of fresh choices, and students at the elementary level have similar options, but with staff assistance to save on time,” Lauren Couchois, South Carolina’s Greenville County Schools culinary specialist, said in the report.

“The supply chain challenges have caused some last-minute scrambling with a number of menu items, although we’ve still been able to make fresh produce available to students daily.”