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ROSEMONT, IL - Looking for a fun, tasty, and insightful way to fill your Monday night? Look no further than the FYI network’s new show Stove Tots. This dynamic weekly program not only dives into the world of a cutthroat junior culinary competition, it also stars one of our produce-own, Reinhart Foodservice’s Corporate Chef, Paul Young. As Host and Head Judge, Paul engages these young culinarians as they prepare and compete in cook-offs across the U.S.
“The main goal and vision of Stove Tots is to show what these young chefs are capable of,” Paul tells me, adding that the kids competing range, for the most part, is between 10-14 years old. “I cannot stress the true talent that these young cooks have. I wish I had half their chops when I was 10 years old. They also get to cook with their parents—this is the true test on who really runs the kitchen in their house. Of course, I get to taste every dish—so there are worse jobs in the world!”
Each episode features a new group of culinary youngsters, along with their parents, as they prepare recipes and search for inspiration—all under the pressure of competition. These challenges will culminate on competition day, where three culinary chefs will go head-to-head in a two-round elimination tournament.
When I ask Paul how he came to the spotlight on Stove Tots, he shares that he entered a burger cooking challenge through Culinary Fight Club—a show that currently does live cooking competitions through 17 cities yearly.
“I happened to win the cooking competition and ended up becoming friends with the Founder Jiwon McCartney. A few months after the competition, Jiwon called me up out of the blue asking if I wanted to shoot a pilot for a kid’s version of Culinary Fight Club,” Paul shares.
He jumped at the chance, and little did he know that after filming the pilot, the production company would then call him and ask if he wanted to be the Host and Head Judge. Of course he accepted, and then went on to film 13 episodes of Stove Tots.
“What is it about the show and the dynamics of the next generation chefs that most surprises me is the raw passion that these young chefs bring to the table,” Paul says. “Simply owning every dish that they make… good or bad. Not only that, but I am really surprised at the ‘touch’ that they have. Some of the dishes being created have had nuances that require that touch, as well as certain procedures that really surprised me and the other judges. I experience pure excitement when seeing this type of food being created at this stage in their young careers.”
What Paul really loves about this concept is how the chefs are sent a “mystery box” with the ingredients that need to be used prior to the competition.
“The surprises and ‘drama’ that happen on the show are organic, and the fact that the parents get involved brings a wholesomeness to the show that you can’t get anywhere else,” he notes. “I am proud of every one of these chefs, they truly left it all on the table, and on their dishes.”
While Paul has funneled much of his passion into Stove Tots, Paul loves waking up to his current creative endeavor at Reinhart Foodservice even more. But his love for food started years and years ago. Born in the South Side of Chicago, Paul would go and work as a busboy on the weekends at a little restaurant down the block from his house where his mother worked, to make some extra money.
“I would see the chef running that kitchen like a pro and everyone was a little scared of him. I wanted to be him. I was hooked,” Paul laughs. “Fast forward a few years when I was 15, and I landed a job at a famous Italian restaurant in the suburbs, where we then lived. I was a mess, and had no idea what I was doing. The owner soon caught on, but instead of firing me, taught me how to do every little task to her liking and again I fell in love with the business.”
Paul continued cooking and serving in restaurants and finally ended up at Culinary School in 2002. He then went on to cook for the Levy Corporation and really cut his teeth as a Sous Chef at the then-famed Bistro 110 in downtown Chicago. After a few years there, he went on to be a chef at other restaurants and then got transferred to Milwaukee.
“After working there for three years, my Reinhart sales rep asked if I was looking for a job. The rest is history,” he smiles. “At Reinhart I have the opportunity to partner up with many different restaurants and concepts and really make a difference on their menus.”
With Stove Tots just a handful of episodes in, you can still catch up on the competition on Monday nights at 11/10 Central—and see Paul in action as well.
SACRAMENTO, CA - The results are in, and, drumroll please, we have our winners for this round of spotting the ANUK logo. Did you spot the logo lurking in the mistletoe shadows on our December edition of The Snack Magazine?
Coming in with record speed the fastest response time, we have J. Marchini Farms' Sales & Marketing team member Francesca Fordice. We barely had a chance to refresh our emails before she had whipped out her copy of The Snack.
“I love reading The Snack and staying in the know of the produce industry,” she said. “Also, it’s one of the prettiest magazines EVER!”
We’re blushing!
On the buy-side of our contest, we have longtime player Danny Ortiz, Quality Assurance Inspector for Sysco West Texas, who finally claimed the title (and the $100).
"Thanks to AndNowUKnow for all the good and exciting, worldwide, and interesting news, and the awesome snack challenge," Danny shared with me.
"I been chasing this victory for a while, but there is always someone faster. Today was my day and tomorrow may be yours. Keep reading and playing!"
Never before have I seen so many of our supply- and buy-side friends submit pictures of their lovely faces. Thanks for kicking off our New Year with a smile! Check out some of our favorites in the gallery above.
If you missed the logo challenge, make sure to subscribe to The Snack Magazine here (subscription is valued at $129 per year), and keep an eye out for future contest announcements on ANUK.
December, 2017 Snack Magazine-Volume 29
Remember that contest rules stipulate submissions include the person pointing out the logo on the cover of The Snack Magazine (no random fingers please!) Only when we announce the contest in AndNowUKnow’s newsletter, to which you can subscribe here, does the countdown begin.
Congratulations to our most recent victors! Keep an eye out for your next chance to win with Volume 30 of The Snack, hitting desks this February.
SOUTHEAST U.S. – Freezing weather has hit the Gulf Coast this week, with freeze warnings and snow impacting the Southeast from Texas to Florida. The National Weather Service (NWS) has issued dozens of freeze, hard freeze, and winter weather advisories throughout the region—warning of rain, freezing rain, and sleet across the Gulf Coast and into Georgia.
“The wintry weather and deicing operations may significantly delay airline passengers,” noted Senior Meteorologist Kristina Pydynowski, in an AccuWeather report, published Tuesday morning, noting trying travel conditions from Texas to Tennessee. “While any freezing rain is not expected to accrue enough for widespread power outages, just a coating of snow or ice is enough to make untreated roads slick.”
Road closures have been reported in Louisiana, and travel delays are expected to occur throughout Tuesday and Wednesday and span the entire Gulf region—with significant delays expected along portions of Interstates 10, 20, 35, and 45.
While extreme cold will affect much of the Gulf—and snow is falling across the Appalachians, Florida does not expect widespread snow or ice. Nonetheless, a NWS hard freeze warning for much of central Florida is currently in place, and local new source the Crestview News Bulletin has noted that temperatures Tuesday night were expected to drop well below freezing.
“We’re not looking at widespread ice or snow,” Okaloosa County Emergency Management Division Chief Randy McDaniel told the Bulletin as of Tuesday morning. “I would just caution people as they’re driving, if the bridge looks wet in the morning, there’s a good chance that could be a patch of ice and they need to exercise caution while driving.”
AndNowUKnow will continue to report with updates as they occur.
NOGALES, AZ - The folks over at SunFed are making steady headway as they enter 2018 with hothouse eggplant now in full-swing from the team behind the Perfect Produce® brand. SunFed’s supplies of Perfect Eggplant seek to provide retailers with the much needed volumes as we move through the winter months. As we gain ground in the new year, Director of Sales Frank Camera takes some time to chat with me about the current eggplant market and what we can expect as the season continues to ramp up.
“We are currently in a tight market due to the cold temperatures in the Southeast which have limited supplies from the region, creating a period of high demand,” Frank explains to me. “As trying times have hit many segments of the industry in the recent months, it seems to have propped eggplant up for a successful season. So far, everything is looking good. There is a lot of product that is grown out in open fields, and we actually grow about 90 percent of our eggplant under protected agriculture, so we at SunFed are looking forward to seeing great supply of quality product in the coming months.”
The Mexican eggplant coming out of Nogales is coming in good supply, he shares, as warmer temperatures in Mexico earlier this season have nurtured growth.
“Weather-wise we had a couple of days of cooler weather, but nothing comparable to what was seen in Southeast growing regions. Colder temps are definitely going to have an effect on the market based on the reports we’re hearing,” he shares with me.
I ask Frank how this is impacting the market and he shares that eggplant prices have been climbing recently and going forward, only time and weather will tell.
“Right now we’ve been on a steady upmarket since right after the New Year. We could feel demand immediately, and we’ll probably see a little more upswing before it caps out,” Frank tells me. “We haven’t hit the threshold yet, but with everything that is happening with the freight, it’s hard to say what the threshold will be on the eggplant. My gut is that we’re very close to it because of the elevated costs of the freight.”
For those unfamiliar with what is happening with freight, which we previously reported on, Frank explains to me that due to changes in freight costs and logbooks, “The way people are used to doing business over the years is going to change—order lead times for the customer are going to have to change.”
He clarifies that this in no way is resulting in late eggplant border arrival and delivery; however, the company is sending product to McAllen to help customers in the Midwest and on the East Coast to take advantage of the hopefully reduced freight rates through the portal. The company’s tactical approach, forking the importation of the coveted produce item, allows it to enter the market from multiple distribution angles and address a broader spectrum of consumers.
When I ask Frank to expand upon the timeline of tighter than usual supply, though, it seems to be a steady concern that will trail further into this coming season.
“Over the next months we will see increased demand due to the Easter demand, but as we move towards the spring, the Southeast crop will be back in,” he shares.
As eggplant season carries on, the company looks to its shade houses to carry it through the harsh weather and current freight conditions, no doubt prepped and primed for a fruitful season as it tackles these difficult-to-navigate challenges.
LOS ANGELES, CA – This February, a new flavor is arriving to town and it’s bringing natural back. Just in time for Heart Health Month, Wonderful Pistachios announced a new addition to the Wonderful portfolio: Natural Raw Wonderful Pistachios. The newest flavor is the closest pistachio lovers can get to snacking straight from California pistachio orchards thanks to their no roasting, no salting naturalness.
“The ‘natural raw’ process maintains the raw properties of the pistachio nut that some of our consumers are looking for,” said Adam Cooper, Vice President of Marketing, in a press release. “In fact, consumers are showing an increased desire for raw nuts, with 62 percent of all nut buyers purchasing raw nuts in the past year. Among this group, nearly 80 percent expressed interest in buying Natural Raw Wonderful Pistachios. With this clear consumer in mind, Wonderful Pistachios Natural Raw was a natural extension to our portfolio.”
Bursting with a rich, crunchy, nutty flavor, the Natural Raw Wonderful Pistachios will be available in 16 ounce bags in local grocery stores beginning this February. A great way to add plant protein to daily diets, these new heart-healthy morsels are a great option for shoppers in more ways than one.
And for retailers looking to market the new flavor, the Wonderful Company is supporting the launch of Natural Raw Wonderful Pistachios with Digital, PR, and Marketing support including new high impact woodgrain POS displays that have been shown to help Wonderful Pistachios sell three times faster in store.
For more information on Wonderful Pistachios, please visit GetCrackin.com or Facebook.com/WonderfulPistachios.
For more on the latest in produce and grocery, stay tuned to AndNowUKnow.
BOISE, ID - After over 40 years with the retailer, Albertsons President and Chief Operating Officer Wayne Denningham announced plans to retire by the end of the company's fiscal year. The retailer has named Susan Morris Executive Vice President and Chief Operations Officer to take his place.
“Susan is a talented leader within our company, and she fully embraces our entrepreneurial spirit and commitment to running really good stores,” said Bob Miller, Chairman and CEO, in a company press release. “Susan raised her hand to come to Albertsons LLC in 2010 when she was a Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing for a competitor, and she took the only job we had open—a Grocery Sales Manager in our Southwest Division. She has proven herself to be a valuable part of our leadership team in readily accepting new challenges, developing others and bringing teams together, and I know that her broad experience will be of significant value to Albertsons Companies as we move forward.”
In her new position, Morris will oversee the Supply Chain, Manufacturing, and Operations functions as well as continue to lead the Seattle, Portland, and Northern and Southern California divisions.
Morris's 30+ year career began in Albertsons Denver Division while she was still in high school. After proving she was capable of leading, executing, and cultivating great teams in assignment after assignment, Morris began to work her way up through the ranks and took on new roles like Store Director, Corporate Grocery Sales Director, Vice President of Bakery and Operations and, upon the sale of Albertson’s Inc.’s assets to SuperValu, Vice President of Customer Satisfaction. In 2013, Morris was named Intermountain Division President after a three-year stint in the company’s Southwest Division, and subsequently was asked to lead the Denver Division in 2015. Morris was named EVP, East Operations in April 2016 and was moved to lead West Region Operations in March 2017.
Jim Perkins, EVP Operations and Special Projects, will continue as President of the Acme and Eastern divisions; while Mike Withers, EVP East Region Operations, will lead the remaining six divisions, including Denver, Intermountain, Jewel-Osco, Shaw's, Southern, Southwest, and United.
For more on what's changing in grocery, keep checking back with AndNowUKnow.
WASHINGTON, DC – The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced that Cry Baby Foods LLC satisfied a reparation order issued under the Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act (PACA).
The Royal City, Washington, company can continue operating in the produce industry upon applying for and being issued a PACA license. Kelsee L. Shearer and Aaron K. Shearer were listed as members of the business and may now be employed by or affiliated with any PACA licensee.
PACA provides an administrative forum to handle disputes involving produce transactions; this may result in a reparation order being issued that requires damages to be paid by those not meeting their contractual obligations in buying and selling fresh and frozen fruits and vegetables. USDA is required to impose sanctions on a business that fails to pay PACA reparations awarded against it as well as impose restrictions against those principals determined to be responsibly connected to the business when the order is issued. Those individuals, including sole proprietors, partners, members, managers, officers, directors or major stockholders may not be employed by or affiliated with any PACA licensee without USDA-approval.
Once a reparation order is fully satisfied and it is confirmed that there are not any outstanding unpaid awards, USDA lifts the employment restrictions of the previously named, responsibly connected individuals. USDA also requires any unlicensed company that fully satisfies all unpaid reparation awards to obtain a license if it continues to operate in the industry.
In the past three years, USDA resolved approximately 3,400 PACA claims involving more than $58 million. PACA staff also assisted more than 8,500 callers with issues valued at approximately $151 million. These are just two examples of how the USDA continues to support the fruit and vegetable industry.
SAN FRANCISCO, CA – It’s a truth universally acknowledged that two pioneering e-commerce companies joining forces will make headlines. And so the story goes with Instacart, a technology-driven, nationwide, on-demand grocery delivery service, who recently acquired Unata, an award-winning provider of 1-to-1 digital solutions for grocers. The new match seeks to strengthen and quicken the progressive online grocery shopping movement, as it combines clever teams, lively cultures, and advanced products.
"Instacart's mission has always been to be an independent partner to retailers and enable them to give their customers the best experiences using the best technology," said Apoorva Mehta, Founder and CEO of Instacart, in a recent press release. "This acquisition allows us to take that commitment to the next level. It represents a landmark win for retailers, who will benefit from Instacart's scale, Unata's highly-configurable technology, and the deep grocery industry integrations this acquisition will enable."
In an effort to create a one-stop-shop of sorts for brick-and-mortar retailers to compete in the burgeoning online grocery scene, Instacart’s acquisition of Unata will take on the latter’s white-label digital grocery platform, which will be strengthened by the former's technology and scale.
"Unata and Instacart have long shared a vision of innovating the grocery industry and building the online grocery shopping experience of the future," said Chris Bryson, CEO of Unata. "By combining the power of our teams and technologies, we can achieve this vision faster and for the first time ever offer a fully-comprehensive, configurable digital solution for grocery retailers of all sizes."
Unata will stay put in its Toronto headquarters and become an independent subsidiary of its new parent company, as it keeps its name and brand. Instacart, on the other hand, will be investing in the innovation and resources for both Unata and Instacart, while the two merge into one unified grocery industry-influencing platform. The acquisition transaction is subject to customary closing conditions.
Chief Executive Officer for Unata, Chris Bryson, will now be reporting to Instacart’s Chief Business Officer, Nilam Ganenthiran. This is the next move in Instacart’s list of endeavors to take on the market, after recently expanding from 30 to over 190 markets in 2017 alone. In this next step, the company noted in its press release, Instacart is eager for its ideal partnership with Unata to expand its company’s technology bandwidth in 2018.
How will this new technologically-advanced partnership impact the industry at large? AndNowUKnow will continue to keep you up-to-date with the latest!
PHOENIX, AZ – Arizona growing season has kicked off with a bang for Pacific International Marketing. The produce provider is expanding on its conventional carrot offerings—with its new line of Arizona-grown organic carrots first introduced last year.
According to a company press release, Pacific International Marketing’s carrot program is operated in conjunction with Rousseau Farms—a partner who has been growing carrots in Arizona for almost forty years. The program started in early-January and will run through the end of May, with a lineup of conventional carrots including cello’s, baby peeled, shred, petites, and carrot chips—all marketed under the Rousseau label.
And beginning last year, Pacific International Marketing has expanded its carrot program to include organic baby peeled and organic cello’s, both marketed under the Pure Pacific label.
The company noted, in a press release, that Pacific International Marketing’s carrot program is one of more than 100 categories that the company is involved in growing, packing, shipping, and processing. Pacific International Marketing offers a complete line of organic and conventional fresh fruits and veggies and ships more than 25 million packages from the Western United States and Mexico every year.
For more fresh produce news, stay tuned to AndNowUKnow.