AUSTIN, TX - The Texas International Produce Association (TIPA) announced that it will be hosting the inaugural VIVA Fresh Conference and Expo this coming March. Under a “Gateway to the Americas” theme, fresh produce from the Southwestern United States and Mexico will be front and center throughout the event.

“We’re incredibly excited to debut this new international conference that will showcase the high quality, variety, and availability of fresh produce from Texas, the Southwestern US and Mexico,” commented TIPA President & CEO, Bret Erickson.

“Imported products continue to grow in volume and distribution,” elaborated TIPA Chairman Dante Galeazzi of Crescent Fruit & Vegetable and the Expo Committee Chair. “We believe that the topics and opportunities we will provide at Viva Fresh as it relates to the growth and expansion of produce from Mexico, transportation issues and upcoming trade regulations specifically for this region will make this conference unique to other trade shows and create the international draw that is missing from the ‘regional’ shows available today.”

Attendees of the VIVA Fresh Expo will have the opportunity to network with fellow growers and retailers on both sides of the border, go on virtual tours of farms and facilities in Texas and Mexico, and learn about merchandizing trends and nutrition during a supermarket dietician symposium. Most of all, TIPA hopes that the conference will help to foster stronger trade connections between the United States and Mexico.

“Connecting buyers with Southwestern US and Mexican producers is a key objective of VIVA Fresh,” Erickson said. “The conference committees will be working directly with retailers and foodservice companies, who are invited to attend for free, to ensure greater participation.”

According to a press release, the VIVA Fresh Conference and Expo will be held from March 26th-28th, 2015 at the Hilton Austin in Austin, Texas. Those interested in learning more can visit the VIVA Fresh Expo website which will launch this August.

TIPA

INDIANAPOLIS, IN – Peri & Sons Farms and The Produce Mom are calling on onion (and all fruit and vegetable) lovers to join the Bloomin’ BBQ Onion Scavenger Hunt. 

“Onions are one of my favorite ingredients to include in summer meals. With more than 30 years’ experience in growing onions from their family-farms in Yerington, Nevada, the team at Peri & Sons Farms has collected some great recipes. I hope my followers enjoy trying them and participating in this fun way to find new ways to use onions,” said Lori Taylor, The Produce Mom.

To join the hunt, participants must follow three steps:

• Follow The Produce Mom on Pinterest
• Follow Peri & Sons Farms on Pinterest
• Find the link on The Produce Mom’s Facebook page and pin a recipe that works great on the grill, a recipe that your kids will love, and a recipe that you would take to a potluck.

“Summer is the perfect time to test new recipes like the low-fat Bloomin’ BBQ Onion,” said Teri Gibson, Director, Marketing & CRM, Peri & Sons Farms. “This alternative to the deep-fried version is simple to make, even easier to grill and kids love dipping the onion 'petals' into a variety of healthy sauces. We’re excited for consumers to try this and some of our other favorite onion dishes.”

The three winners of the contest, which takes place July 9-18, will be randomly selected to receive a prize pack, according to a press release.  The prize includes a $50 Visa gift card, grilling utensil set, Peri & Sons Farm USB drive and a pink ribbon Sweetie Sweet apron and cap.

The Produce Mom

Peri & Sons

CARROLLTON, TX - CMI's imported Club Apple brand apples are flying off the shelves this summer, and retailers are taking notice. According to a recent study by the Nielsen Perishables Group, both sales and volume numbers for import apple brands were up as of June 1^st.

Robb Myers, Director of Sales and Imports at CMI, backed up these findings, observing that the supermarket volume numbers of KIKU® brand apples doubled during May. Kanzi®, Koru, Sweet Tango, Pacific Rose, and Ambrosia^TM figures are also rising.

“International production from our southern hemisphere club variety partners continues to grow and we’re seeing it payoff in terms of greater supermarket sales during the summer months,” Myers said.

Myers went on to explain that the key driver of this growth was improved supermarket distribution. “Winning retailers are allocating more shelf space to club varieties and brands just like they have for summer Navels,” he said. “In the past we saw some club apple brands suffer during summer as retailers cut back distribution and shelf space to make room for seasonal products like stone fruit, melons and grapes. That’s really changed. On KIKU® brand alone, U.S. retail distribution increased by over 50%.”

Myers also notes that the increased domestic storage and production of Gala and Fuji apples, the traditional focus of Southern hemisphere growers, has further incentivized a shift to club brands like KIKU and Kanzi apples.

Retailers should be excited about this recent trend because “these club apple brands are a great incremental sales driver for supermarkets,” said Myers. “Apple consumers are loyal and when they see fresh products in the stores, it energizes the category at precisely the right time in the summer when retailers need it.”

According to a press release, CMI's imported Ambrosia apples and its Golden Bosc pears will be available through the end of July. KIKU®, Kanzi, and Cripps Pink apples will be available till the end of August.

CMI

TEWKSBURY, MA - If Arthur S. Demoulas had hoped that July would bring some relief from the constant controversy that has surrounded his company's business since the firing of his cousin Arthur T. Demoulas, former CEO and President of Market Basket, this week's events surely squashed it. 75 Market Basket corporate employees met at the company's headquarters last Tuesday to speak with new COO Felicia Thornton and CAO James Gooch. Led by Market Basket's Supervisor of Operations Joe Schmidt, they informed them that they would be demanding the reinstatement of Arthur T. Demoulas, and would be breaking off communication with senior management until this was done.

"There have been questions in the last two weeks regarding costs, benefits to employees and obviously the loss of senior management," Schmidt said. "In the best interest of customers, a mandate was provided to the board to reinstate Arthur T. Demoulas as CEO."

He went on to say that "it's evident the current direction of the company has caused great concern among customers and employees. The co-CEOs have been told employees at our corporate office will no longer be in communication with them until Arthur T. Demoulas is reinstated."

Their message is one which resonates with many other Market Basket employees who fear for their future without the leadership of the much loved former CEO.

"This company has been successful because of the philosophies of Arthur T. Demoulas," said Joe Amaral, North Andover Market Basket Store Director. "We've grown because of him and we'd like it to remain that way. The majority of employees and management feel that way."

According to the Eagle-Tribune, so far neither the Board of Directors nor Thornton and Gooch have responded to the protestors' mandate. Schmidt says he expects he hear back soon however.

To read more about the ouster of Arthur T. Demoulas, check out our previous article on the leadership change here.

Stay tuned to AndNowUKnow for any further updates on this developing story. 

Market Basket

SILOAM SPRINGS, AK – Allens Inc, the canned vegetable company, is changing its name to reflect new ownership and management.  Effective immediately, Allens' new name will be Sager Creek Vegetable Company, according to a press release.

“Sager Creek is a beautiful resource that runs through our hometown of Siloam Springs, Ark,” said Chris Kiser, CEO.  “Our company was founded in this region in 1926, and this place has nurtured and helped sustain our business.  Our new name reflects our history and better positions us to strengthen our brands in the marketplace.”

The company stated that even with this transition, its product names will remain the same.

Sager Creek Acquisitions Corp. acquired the company in February of this year, and Kiser became CEO in March, according to a press release.  The company employs more than 1,000 people in Arkansas, Wisconsin and North Carolina.

Sager Creek Vegetable Company

CINCINNATI, OH – Total Quality Logistics (TQL) has named Rescue Bank® as its June recipient of a $1,000 donation from the TQL ‘Moves that Matter’ program.

Rescue Bank provides food supplies to animal rescue and rehabilitation groups.  Its network of regional affiliates receive truckload donations of pet food and then distribute pallet quantities to qualified groups, according to a press release.  This program also allows rescue organizations to transfer part of their food budget to other services.

“Our goal with this program is to encourage everyone who works in the transportation industry to take pride in the valuable work they do and shine a light on the many people and organizations working for the greater good in our communities,” said TQL Executive Vice President, Kerry Byrne.

‘Moves that Matter’ is open to all TQL employees, customers, and carriers who help a recognized 501(c) (3) organization transport freight.  To nominate a non-profit organization for a $1,000 donation in TQL’s ‘Moves that Matter’ program, click here.

For more information on the creation of the ‘Moves that Matter’ program, check out our previous article by clicking here.

Total Quality Logistics 

TWIN CITIES, MN - Supervalu is shaking things up in the Twin Cities with the commencement of its conversion of the 18 Rainbow stores that it aquired from Roundy's last May in a $65 million sale.

To read more about the Roundy's/Supervalu sale, check out the article ANUK previously posted on the topic here.

Supervalu will be undertaking this project with the support of a team of four other Twin Cities-based independent retailers: Jerry’s Enterprises, Haug Enterprises, Lund Food Holdings and Radermacher Enterprises,

“I am very pleased that we are now adding these 18 stores to SUPERVALU's distribution network and that we are expanding our supplier relationship with a group of very strong independents and longtime customers of our Independent Business segment. We expect these fine retailers will serve the Twin Cities better than ever with an expanded store base,” said Sam Duncan, Supervalu President and Chief Executive Officer. “Each of these independent retailers, along with Cub, are longtime grocers who know this market and their customers and are actively involved in their stores and communities.”

Supervalu will be converting 10 of the 18 locations into Cub Food stores and two others into Byerly's. The final 6 locations will remain Rainbow stores.

The Minneapolis, St. Paul, and St. Louis Park locations reopened for business on July 9th, after 5 days of rennovations. According to a press release, the remaining stores are expected to be finished over a two week timetable.

Supervalu

UNITED STATES - Marketers everywhere could take a page out of Zack Brown's book, the Kickstarter wizard who turned a vision of a $10 potato-salad on the 4th of July into a $70,000+ fundraiser with over 5,000 online donors. How did he do it? Even Zack admitted on his page that, “Basically I'm just making potato salad. I haven't decided what kind yet.” What did he do and more importantly what can we all learn from him?

Have realistic, reachable goals.

Zack was successful in part because he started small and didn't overreach. He knew he wanted some potato salad and he quickly calculated that it would take about $10 to make this possible. So that's what he asked for. Nothing flashy, nothing over-the-top, just a simple request for $10 to make his potato salad. You'll find that investors appreciate realistic, reachable goals when they're looking to put money into a project.

Be humble.

Zack could have tried to 'Wow' his readers. He could have broken out the ol' thesaurus and talked about how he wanted to engage in a gastronomical experiment of stupendous proportions, one which would revolutionize the culinary and potato cultivator industries for generations. He could have waxed on and on till he was blue in the face and his reader had long since stumbled wearily away. Instead he kept it simple. “Basically I'm just making potato salad. I haven't decided what kind yet." Count the syllabuls in that sentence. Hint: There aren't a lot of them.

Successful communication skills are key to good marketing. A big part of this is making sure you don't let your language alienate your readership base. Before saying or writing something the first question you should ask yourself is, does this communicate my point the clearest? Or am I just trying to make myself sound smart?

Be sincere.

What you do find in Zack's Kickstarter however is sincerity and even some vulnerability. You find a man with a dream, a dream of potato salad, but also a man who acknowledges his own limitations in a tactful way. Zack admits to his prospective investors that, “It might not be that good. It's my first potato salad.” This admission successfully makes Zack and project relateable without compromising an investor's faith in his ability to follow through. The key is to be honest, but dedicated.

Express the benefits of investing clearly and concretely.

While some investments reward the investor with dividend payments, Zack's potato salad backers are rewarded with online “thank you's,” photos of the potato making process, and even potato salad themed haikus depending on the investment level. Regardless of what the reward is however, it is important that people feel a connection with their investment and the easiest way to do this is with some kind of positive reward system.

With such success behind him and more money pouring in every day, American potato growers can only look on and wonder if they'll be the lucky ones to provide the potatoes for the potato salad Zack has been dreaming of. 

If you'd like to donate to this great cause, then you can donate to Zack's Kickstarter here.

AndNowUKnow wishes Zack the best with his potato salad adventures. Here's to hoping he'll share!

CORAL GABLES, FL - With more consumers than ever looking for healthy and ready-to-eat meal options from retailers, Del Monte Fresh is stepping up with a major expansion of its Nature Made^TM brand which will now include a variety of new single-serve salad bowls and fresh fruit & protein snack packs.

“We are excited to launch our newest product line that will include salads and snack packs. Our focus is the on-the-go consumer seeking a convenient, healthy, and complete meal. Our new product range makes it easy to eat healthy, with delicious and nutritious salads made with premium quality ingredients complete with a fork, dressing, and even an after-meal breath mint. As one of the largest fresh cut suppliers, extending our product line to include salads and snacks for the on-the-go consumer was a logical move,” says Dennis Christou, Vice President of Marketing, North America for Del Monte.

The salad bowls will come in a variety of flavors such as Nature MadeTM Caesar Salad with White Chicken and Nature MadeTM Turkey and Bacon Cobb Salad. The fruit & protein snack packs will offer retails and consumers a similar range of fresh and healthy options. The Turkey and Swiss Snack Pack for example will feature red grapes, red apple slices, turkey slices, swiss cheese, and crackers. Another snack pack, the Sausage Links & Pancake Pack, comes with grapes, buttermilk pancakes, apples, turkey breakfast sausage, and syrup.

Del Monte Fresh is able to offer all of these new products thanks largely to a major expansion of its processing facilities in Dallas, Texas. In addition to its new Nature MadeTM products, the new facility will also allow Del Monte to offer more bagged, single-serve fruit and vegetable options which will appeal to a wide range of food providers, from traditional retailers to schools.

According to a press release, the new Nature MadeTM salad bowls and snack packs will initially only be avaliable in the South Central and Midwest regions of the United States. Plans are already in place however to expand the product release in the future.

Del Monte Fresh