EL SEGUNDO, CA – With more consumers turning to meat alternatives made from their favorite fresh produce, more foodservice providers, like McDonald’s and Beyond Meat®, are making room for meatless options on menus and in grocery stores. After finding success with the Beyond Burger™, Beyond Meat stays on the offense for plant-based proteins in its meat aisle takeover with the launch of the newly released Beyond Sausage™.
“As a category leader in plant-based meat alternatives, Beyond Meat has revolutionized how consumers get their protein,” said Red Elk Baks, Vice President of Whole Foods Market’s Rocky Mountain region, in a company press release. “We’re thrilled to introduce the Beyond Sausage to our Boulder shoppers, and proud to partner with Beyond Meat on the introduction of another innovative and delicious plant-based protein.”
With more protein, 43 percent less total fat, 38 percent less saturated fat, 27 percent less calories, and 26 percent less sodium than traditional pork sausage, the Beyond Sausage is made from an assembly of pea, fava bean, and rice proteins, and includes trace amounts of beets for color, coconut oil for mouth-watering juiciness, and is wrapped in a 100 percent plant-based casing derived from algae. Offered in three flavors–Original Bratwurst, Hot Italian, and Sweet Italian–the Beyond Sausage has a similar juicy taste and texture to pork sausage that will satisfy vegetarians and carnivores alike.
“I love Beyond Sausage first and foremost because it’s truly so enjoyable to eat but also because I see it as an advance in our team’s relentless march toward a perfect build of meat from plants,” said Ethan Brown, CEO of Beyond Meat, in a company press release. “Though we aren’t there yet, I’m encouraged by the progress we’ve made with Beyond Sausage and look forward to hearing what the consumer thinks.”
Unfortunately, for those ready to hop on board the meatless sausage train, the new plant-based links can only be found exclusively at a Whole Foods Market in Colorado this week.
What will be the next fresh produce-based product to conquer an aisle outside of produce? AndNowUKnow will continue to report as more make the leap from the produce aisle.
DELTA, CANADA - The Lorabella Blossom™ tomato from Village Farms is turning heads. Catching the eyes of judges in New York City last week with its blissfully bright™ orange and stand-out flavor, the unique variety snagged the first annual Produce Business Innovation Award.
“The Village Farms team has always been known for going above and beyond to deliver the absolute best flavor in the industry,” said Michael DeGiglio, President and CEO of Village Farms. “This award just goes to show that we’ve done it again with Lorabella Blossom™. We are honored to receive this award as it truly takes a village to consistently bring innovative products like this one to life. This variety and its name hold a special place in my heart.”
Mike goes into further detail about the work and message behind this beautiful product, inside and out, in our exclusive audio interview above.
According to the company, everyone at Village Farms has had a major part in bringing this innovative variety to market. Lorabella Blossom™ is exceeding expectations and bringing consumers a flavor profile unlike any other thanks not just to the expertise of its growers, sales, and marketing teams, but also the operations, finance, and transportation members.
Described as having a unique citrus floral essence, the Lorabella Blossom™ makes for an exceptional snacking tomato that is extremely versatile; it can be grilled, roasted, even sautéed.
Congratulations to Village Farms as one of the ten honorees to win this inaugural award!
DOWNERS GROVE, IL - Fresh Thyme Farmers Market has no plans of slowing down its rocket-speed growth anytime soon, announcing 10 new store openings slated for 2018, along with entering into its 10th state—Pennsylvania. Since opening its doors in 2014, Fresh Thyme has built up a coalition of 66 locations throughout the Midwest, and has plans to hit a 150-store mark by the year 2020.
"From acquisitions and mergers to shifting consumer habits, 2017 was marked by significant changes, and the grocery and food retail industries continue to be ever-evolving," said CEO Chris Sherrell in a press release. "We enjoy the challenge this brings and work hard to continuously improve our shopping experience."
The Daily Herald reports that the additional 9 store locations are planned for Evansville, Indiana, Ames, Iowa, and beyond.
"As a three-years-young company, we're extremely proud of our 5,000 employees and the communities we serve throughout the Midwest," Sherrell continued. "Over the past year, we’ve made significant hires at the executive level, further developed our private label offerings, and continued to support the organizations that matter most to our communities. We’re excited for 2018 and all that is in store."
2017 marked a flurry of changes for the retailer in flux. In addition to Scott Schuette being promoted to Vice President of Produce, Carol Okamoto joined as Chief Financial Officer in March, and Mark Doiron was brought on as Chief Merchandising Officer in May. Schuette came to his produce role with 33 years of retail experience, including time with Bashas, and Okamoto and Doiron bring three decades of experience to the retailer as well. Just last month, Fresh Thyme also welcomed Dean Little as Chief Operations Officer, giving his 40 years of industry experience new life in. The following other new roles were highlighted in the release:
- Amy Parker as Vice President of Marketing
- Art Scott as Senior Director of Marketing
- Kerry Clifford as a in-house registered dietitian
- Meghan Sedivy as a in-house registered dietitian
Now with stores in Wisconsin, Minnesota, Michigan, Missouri, Nebraska, Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Ohio, and soon-to-be Pennsylvania, AndNowUKnow will be keeping a close eye on this one to watch for 2018.
MIAMI, FL – After teaming up with After-School All-Stars (ASAS), a national provider of daily, comprehensive, tuition-free academic, fitness, and enrichment programs for underserved families after-school, Cuties® delivered some California sunshine and kindness to kids enrolled in the program at Bowman Ashe/Doolin K-8 Academy in South Florida.
“Cuties is on a mission to spread positivity and sunshine during California Cuties season, from November through April,” said Howard Nager, Vice President of Marketing and Business Development at Sun Pacific, in a press release. “We’re thrilled that together with iHeart Radio and After-School All-Stars, we’ll be able to give All-Star students at Bowman Ashe/Doolin a very special reminder to share sweetness all year long with our Cuties Buddy Bench and pledge to provide healthy snacks to all the students enrolled in ASAS programs in South Florida.”
Cuties joined iHeart Media’s Jingle Ball concert tour at the BB&T Center Sunday in Miami to introduce the concert series’ first ever Cuties correspondents, Ayden and Ryan Soria, two brothers from Los Angeles. Ryan and Ayden were selected after submitting a video about what kindness means to them through Cuties’ 100 Days of Sunshine contest promoted during ON with Mario Lopez and Ryan Seacrest’s AT Top 40.
During the concert, Ryan and Ayden asked artists and celebrities from the popular tour to sign a custom-designed Buddy Bench. Buddy Benches were developed by an elementary student in Pennsylvania who wanted to eliminate loneliness and foster friendship on the playground. Students sit on the bench to signal to classmates that they’re looking for a friend to talk to or play with. Artists at the Jingle Ball tour, including Demi Lovato, Nick Jonas, Charlie Puth, Halsey, and Logic, signed the bench and added personal messages of encouragement to After-School All-Star students. The buddy bench was then donated by Cuties and Y100 DJ Frankie P to Bowman Ashe/Doolin, one of 400 After-School All-Star school sites nationwide, on Monday.
“We are honored to partner with Cuties’ and iHeart Radio to support the wellbeing and good nutrition of our students,” said Natalia Sol of After-School All-Stars. “Our programs teach kids the value of kindness and inclusion, and the Cuties Buddy Bench will reinforce those values and serve as a reminder for students to continue to spread positivity and sweetness in their community.”
Cuties also announced it would donate a season’s worth of fruit to the 2,000 students enrolled in the program locally in order to combat hunger and food insecurity that affects more than 15 million children in the United States, according to the Afterschool Alliance.
For more information about After-School All-Stars of South Florida, visit AfterSchoolAllStars.org. To learn more about Buddy Benches and how you can implement one at your school, visit BuddyBench.org.
For more on community efforts, giving back, and the good in our industry, keep checking back with AndNowUKnow.
GERMANY - Germans will be saying “Hallo” to their newest neighbor: Amazon. The company has announced that it has plans for brick-and-mortar stores in Germany, as it taps into the more culturally recognized traditional retail market.
“That’s not a question of whether, but of when,” explained Ralph Kleber, Germany’s CEO of the group, according to Berliner Morgenpost. "Customers love diversity online and in traditional retailing, which still accounts for 90 to 95 percent of sales in Germany, and we'll never forget what the customer wants."
While the company is embracing the strong attraction for in-store retail experiences with this new launch, Amazon’s new venture is almost mirroring its successful Amazon Fresh online grocery service by implementing a small-scale format. Amazon Fresh was tested for six years before making its way abroad, where it is seemingly thriving as Amazon’s brick-and-mortar stores move into town.
This isn’t Amazon’s first rodeo in the brick-and-mortar ring. The comany's first go-of-it in the storefront game was with its 12 physical Amazon Books stores located throughout the U.S. Further, it has had some time to acclimate to more stationary store formats with its $13.6 billion acquisition of Whole Foods in August, where customers can get their hands on Amazon products like Kindles and the Echo.
This shift looks to be working for the retailer, as it banked $1.3 billion in the last quarter from physical stores alone, and the funds, according to Quartz, mostly came from Whole Foods. In contrast with the retailer’s $26.4 billion online sales, this might not seem like much, but this is just the beginning of this transition.
Hamberg residents, Berliners, and Munich citizens have already had Amazon Fresh delivery services available to them, which has been a great start for the company, Kleber explained. In the same Quartz piece, he says that metropolitan areas are Fresh’s best bet, as they are efficient for the cities the service serves and also can provide learning data for the company.
"We try to find the ideal mix that we offer the customer later, which can also be a consistent delivery," said Kleber in the Berliner Morgenpost article.
What’s more, Amazon’s recent September launch of Flex will allow Germans to earn some extra cash by registering to deliver Amazon Prime orders for about $18-$25 per hour, Kleber explained. This seems a fitting delivery option for the company’s burgeoning German sphere, as customers within the country’s Amazon purchases amount to 25 percent of its online retail market, and between 2014 and 2016, the company’s German site has doubled its produce selection.
How will the introduction of this new store format leak into the German grocery and fresh produce marketplace? AndNowUKnow will continue to report as the story develops!
SANTA MARIA, CA - Launching onto the scene with an innovative new foodservice product and a fresh branding approach, Fresh Avenue, the regional sales and marketing team for source fresh-cut producer, GreenGate Fresh and other fresh produce providers, is embracing the growth it’s seen in since its debut 18 months ago.
“So many great farmers and producers need a “hands-on” sales team with reach into the regional and local marketplace. It isn’t just about regional sales, but how our team approaches sales and support,” Managing Partner Mark Vaughan shares with me when I ask about what differentiates the company. “We want to be there, engaged and in person, helping customers solve issues by connecting them with great suppliers, products, and logistics.”
This mindset, perhaps, is what led the company to launch a value-added variation of leeks for the foodservice industry, where the unneeded portions of the produce are removed at the facility.
Fresh Avenue has been growing across the board since it began operating in July, 2016. Recently it has expanded with new team members and the launch of its logistics and commodity programs, all within the last year.
“This is all fueled by our growing customer base. I laugh about this, but it is very true, that if you want to be a part of Fresh Avenue, you have to kick butt. That sums up our last 18 months, kick butt level of growth, and we don’t plan on slowing down,” Scott Bricker, Director of Sales and Partner, comments.
Partnered with GreenGate Fresh, the team builds its sales and support outreach around GreenGate’s product base, bringing a deep pool of produce knowledge to the table.
Mark grew up in the fresh produce and food sector in fresh processing and distribution. The Founder and Owner of Vaughan Foods in Moore, OK, he grew it from a small facility to a large processor with national reach with customers across the U.S. and Mexico. Mark sold the business a few years ago. He now heads Fresh Avenue as Managing Partner and Mark also serves on the advisory board for FAPC, a group out of Oklahoma State University that provides support for Oklahoma food producers.
Scott Bricker, Director of Sales and Partner, worked his way up throughout his produce career, settling well into sales. The team shared that his sales career is summed nicely by the term, "rainmaker." He now holds a Partner position with Fresh Avenue, leading the sales team.
Also building up the Fresh Avenue brand are Jamie Shipley, Jim Leighton, David Root, Peter Divoky, and Amber Parrow.
“With the exception of myself, everyone has built their careers in various places throughout the produce industry, from farming, logistics, sales, buyer, operations, etc.,” Amber, Fresh Avenue’s Marketing Director shares. “Between six of the team members, there is over 150 years of experience in produce. I’m the odd one as I’m 18 months in produce, but what sold me was the fast pace of Fresh Avenue and that I absolutely love working with the team. I can’t say enough that they are great people to be around and work with.”
With much more in the works for GreenGate Fresh and Green Light as we prepare to bid 2017 farewell, keep checking in with AndNowUKnow as we follow this and other rising companies in the produce industry.
BEIJING, CHINA - Taking the lead in innovative ways to engage with consumer demands is Chinese online retailer JD.com. The company has reportedly beat Amazon to the next phase in convenience with plans to open hundreds of unmanned convenience stores.
The “smart-store” format has already gone through a trial phase in Beijing, where cameras on the ceilings of the stores recognize consumers’ movement and the heat they generate to calculate traffic flow, product selection, and customer preferences. It is with this facial recognition that the company registers customer payment and product identity; now, customers don’t have to wait through any pesky checkout line. Ladies and gents, the future is now.
"These two smart-store solutions will completely change what it means to go to take a trip to the store," said Song Ma, Vice President of JD.com, according to The Telegraph. "From helping small stores' owners streamline their supply chains and increase stocking efficiency, to speeding up check out, this is a massive jump beyond anything in use today.”
The convenience of this model does not stop at these remarkable technological feats—according to the same article, the company will also have adverts and promotions that will be given based on customers’ shopping habits and demographics. While these advancements are all the rage at this moment in time, pretty soon they might be more of a regular occurrence because the retailer will be able to license other third-party retailers with the developed technology, the article explains.
Stores are not the only no-salesman’s-land technology the company is currently working through; it also announced plans to implement driverless vehicles for delivering goods with pre-programmed routes and secure lockers.
What takes this news to a whole different level, though, is that these new stores, which are a collaboration with real estate developer China Overseas Land & Investment, show that JD.com is seemingly ahead of Amazon’s “Amazon Go” game, which also seeks to avoid the use of tills and barcode scanners by charging Amazon Prime accounts directly.
How will JD.com’s advent of man-less convenient shopping assist in its continued rise to prominence in the Chinese market? AndNowUKnow will continue to update you with the latest!
KENLY, NC – A truck en route from Florida to Massachusetts, hauling nearly 40,000 pounds of strawberries, was jammed up when it careened off a stretch of Interstate 95 and rolled down a muddy embankment.
According to a report from local North Carolina news source WRAL.com, the crash happened around 4:00 a.m. when the driver was reportedly forced off the road by another vehicle. The truck was heavily damaged, though the driver was uninjured.
The North Carolina State Highway Patrol narrowed traffic to a single lane as crews worked to rescue the truck from the embankment. Thankfully, the tractor-trailer’s refrigeration unit remained intact, and the truck's roughly 38,000 pounds of berries were largely preserved.
No reports were forthcoming about whether the strawbs in question made their way to Massachusetts. AndNowUKnow will continue to report with more on fruit-rattling crashes and veggie upsets of all kinds.
WESTLAKE, FL – J&J Family of Farms looks to consumer trends and demands as it announces its expansion into organic produce with the launch of its new organic brand Farmganic™. Initially including certified organic green peppers, yellow squash, zucchini, and cucumbers, the new organic line emphasizes sustainable growing practices in an effort to help future generations.
“This is just the beginning for J&J, as we plan on expanding our organic product offerings by developing our own organic production and expanding our grower network to provide organic produce on a year-round basis,” said Lynn Rundle, Chairman and CEO, in a press release. “Of the consumers who purchase organic food, 35 percent make their purchases from the produce department. When it comes to food choices and consumer trends, it’s always all about produce. We look forward to meeting our customer’s needs with Farmganic and will continue to provide products that exceed expectations.”
The grower’s headquarters in Westlake, Florida was one of the first locations to obtain certification by Quality Certification Services (QCS), and J&J’s organic rollout includes obtaining certification at each of the company’s shipping points.
“We are excited about our organic produce, which is grown by farmers who emphasize the use of renewable resources and the conservation of soil and water to enhance environmental quality and sustainability for future generations,” added Bob Ziel, Director of Food Safety & Social Responsibility.
If you are interested in learning more about J&J’s new Farmganic line of organic products, contact J&J at 561-422-9777. For more produce industry news like this, stay tuned to AndNowUKnow.
MONTEREY, CA - As we begin our next tour around the sun this January, the Agricultural Personnel Management Association (APMA) has scheduled its 38th Annual Forum. The event is being held in Monterey, California, January 24th – 26th of 2018, bright and early in the year. This year, the organization is hoping to attract HR and safety professionals in agribusiness, both current and aspiring, vying for new knowledge and contacts in the industry.
“This is our 38th Annual conference, and with that many years of serving the industry, we are very in tune with unique needs and challenges of agribusinesses,” said Julia Belliard, APMA’s Executive Director. “APMA is the only organization that offers a bi-lingual certification for HR professionals and Supervisors in agriculture—Human Resource Professional in Agriculture (HRPA™). Participants at this event will get the most recent information on employment laws and management that they can apply in 2018 and or years after.”
What makes the event such a unique opportunity for professional growth is its acute attention to the needs and challenges within the industry. At the conference, attendees will become privy to the latest in the industry updates through educational and networking events, including employment law, health and safety, management, and HR Foundations.
These workshops are not all of the informative happenings at the conference; a comprehensive three-hour 2018 Employment Law Update will be offered to provide participants the most recent cases and laws and several in-depth discussions will dive into the H-2A Program, the cannabis industry, and leadership development. The icing on top of the cake is that Barry Bedwell, President of the California Agricultural Leadership Foundation, and Geni Whitehouse, author of How to Make a Boring Subject Interesting: 52 Ways Even a Nerd Can Be Heard, will both be keynote presenters at the conference.
“Last year we had over 250 attendees, and the conference keeps growing. This is the only event in California focused on HR and safety-specific needs of the agricultural industry. We also believe that networking is a very important aspect for many professionals and offer a number of networking events throughout the conference. Because of its size, it is easy to foster these professional relationships,” said Belliard.
With so much experience working through industry issues and resolutions, the event’s mission is to continue to develop creative leadership and effective HR & Safety management within the agribusiness community, and we’re thankful for that!
Wanting more details on how you or your HR manager can attend the event? Visit http://agpersonnel.org/events/