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Food Magic Daily June 23, 2014

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Fo o d M a g i c D a i l y 7 M o n d a y, J u n e 2 3 , 2 0 1 4 NDC TECHNOLOGIES PRECISION INFRARED MEASUREMENTS FOR FOOD INDUSTRIES NDC Technologies offers the world's most extensive range of non-contact sensors and systems for measurement of various food product constituents. The near infrared (NIR) product range includes instruments for monitoring the fat, moisture, oil and protein content in food. They can also use light in the vis- ible spectrum to measure the degree of bake or surface brownness of either baked or fried foods. The group is the world market leader in the design and manufacture of near infrared (NIR) sensors and sys- tems for either On-Line and At-Line measurement and process analysis. NDC Technologies has over 40 years experience in the design and manufacture of in-process instru- ments and an installed base of thousands of units worldwide. It has helped its customers control the quality of their products and improve process performance while realizing substantial eco- nomic benefits through the applica- tion of these measurements. NDC Technologies are headquar- tered at Irwindale, Calif., USA; Maldon, UK and Alleur, Belgium in Europe. Operating companies in Germany, Italy, China, Japan and India provide local support to key world markets, and NDC Infrared Group is presented in more than 60 countries worldwide by a network of specialist dis- tributors. NDC Infrared Engineering is a Spectris company, an international company specializing in high value-in- use process control solutions. For more information, visit booth 1501. FRESHTIME: PUTTING FRESHNESS IN YOUR HANDS By Terry Myers, CEO, Infratab As water becomes more precious, ingre- dients more expensive and competition fiercer, all who handle and use perish- ables are faced with having to "make the most out of what they can get," and in the case of perishables, ensuring that what they get is fresh. Optimizing freshness is what Infratab and its Freshtime products are all about. Freshtime is a toolkit consisting of sensor tags and software whose purpose is to tell you "how fresh?" a perishable is at any time in its life to ensure that, under your watch, your perishable keeps as much of its freshness as possible. We started Infratab 10 years ago, with what then seemed a simple idea: to create a live date stamp that would work in conjunction with the product ID on your perishable. This would be a small label, able to be read by a cell phone, indicating by color how fresh your per- ishable is. Fast foward to 2014, and only now has the vision become a reality, in large part thanks to NXP, without which it would have remained a dream. At IFT, we will be announcing our Freshtime NFC sensor tag – not yet thumb-size, but getting there – able to be read by any device with near field com- munications (NFC), including a smart- phone or tablet. The new Freshtime EPC/NFC tag works with our established Freshtime product: Freshtime EPC, which is a sensor tag used in the supply chain. The new Freshtime EPC/NFC tag is readable by both NFC smartphones and EPC-high power factory-floor/dock-door readers used by large multinationals. What is the significance? The capability for measur- ing freshness is about to find its way into the hands of anyone with a smartphone or tablet, and will no longer be restricted only to the multinationals. What distinguishes Freshtime from our competitors is our ability to quantify freshness. We do this using Freshtime Points, based upon the simple concept that a product's life starts at 100 and goes to 0 (the brand-owner-set use-by time), enabling spoilage parameters to be set, validated, refined and even fine-tuned for regional or ethnic prefer- ences. Freshtime also enables freshness targets, alerts, compar- isons and analytics. These features are so simple that they provide a standard of measure for the individual user and smart data for those wanting to compare carri- ers, transportation options or suppliers. With our Freshtime NFC tags come our Freshtime smartphone applets. Our first applet, Planner, helps you forecast by business step or journey how much freshness will be used. Our main data capture dashboard is Freshtime Go. We invite you to see for yourself what quantifying freshness makes possible. Visit Infratab at booth 1056. For more information, go to www.infratab.com, call 805-986-8880 or email info@infratab.com. MAPLE RUN EMPORIUM REIMAGINES CLASSIC SUGAR HOUSE By Lucas Witman For those living outside the Northeastern United States, it can be difficult to comprehend the importance of maple syrup to the region's endemic food culture. In this area, sugar houses have operated for centuries, carefully harvesting the sap from sugar maple trees and transforming it into maple syrup, maple cream, granulated maple sugar and maple candy. Today, the products of these sugar houses are more popular than ever, with specialty food companies going out of their way to incorporate maple into their product lines. Keeping track of all of the maple products currently on the market is a formidable task, but maple maven Mary Hilton has made it her business to do just that. And if there is a maple product available anywhere in the United States, you are likely to find it on dis- play at Hilton's Potsdam, N.Y. shop Maple Run Emporium. As a retail space, Maple Run Emporium offers a truly unique shopping experience. Not only does the store con- tain perhaps the largest selection of maple-related food products in the coun- try, but the space also serves as a gallery for local artists, a kitchenware and home design store and a meeting place for area residents and Potsdam visitors. Since the store's founding in 2010, Hilton has worked hard to create a welcoming retail space that showcases the best of what her region has to offer. Hilton's inspiration for the Maple Run Emporium concept originally evolved out of her admiration for the works of American philosophers Helen and Scott Nearing. The Nearings often wrote about harvesting sap and making maple syrup on their farm in Vermont. Hilton was always attracted to their romantic tales of horse-drawn sleighs and Victorian stone gardens. It was Hilton's desire to experience the world that the Nearings described, combined with her lifelong love of everything maple, that ultimately led her to open the store. "The shop is a culmination of everything I love. I love cooking. I love gardening. I love everything about the kitchen," said Hilton. "Boiling sap from my maple trees to make products for the shop was part of the original idea, and now the plan is to do just that right here." Maple Run Emporium quickly became a fixture in Potsdam, a small college town in upstate New York with a population that is very in touch with local food culture. "People are really looking to come to a local shop. Everyone wants to come to a college town and go in and out of the quaint lit- tle shops," said Hilton. "And people want to see things that are locally pro- duced. Almost everything I have in the store is pretty much regional." Today, Maple Run Emporium has become the place to go in Potsdam for those looking to take in the area's regionally produced consumables and art. When it comes to the gourmet offerings at Maple Run Emporium, the store offers just about every type of maple product that one could possibly imagine. Popular specialty food brands like Stonewall Kitchen, Robert Rothschild Farm, The French Farm and Gourmet du Village are all represented. The store offers maple-flavored cheeses such as locally produced Maple Cheddar with Bacon from Lowville Producers Dairy Cooperative. There is a vast selection of maple candy, including Chuao Chocolatier's Maple Bacon Chocolate Bar and sweets from Hutchinson's Candy, Saratoga Sweets and Das Lolli. The list of maple products goes on and on, encompassing pancake mixes, frozen desserts, meats, spices, teas, coffees, pickles, jellies, nut butters and more. Of course, no emporium of maple would be complete without an impres- sive selection of maple syrups, and Hilton's store is no exception, featur- ing two bookcases stocked with every variety of the sweet elixir. The shop owner divulged that she does have her own favorites, most notably the two "tonics" from Noble Handcrafted. She praised Tonic 1, a dark syrup aged in bourbon casks that she feels is particu- larly rich and flavorful. However, she also has a fondness for the company's Tonic 2, which is infused with Egyptian chamomile and Tahitian vanilla bean. In addition to the store's wide spe- cialty food selection, Maple Run Emporium also offers an equally impres- sive selection of housewares, including Wüsthof knives, Nordic Ware pancake griddles, Emile Henry pizza stones, Le Creuset batter bowls, Mauviel copper crepe pans and All-Clad cookware. The store's maple wood products are also popular with customers, including Jonathan's maple utensils and J.K. Adams cutting boards. Shoppers at Maple Run Emporium can also browse for kitchen gadgets, home textiles, bath products and gift items. In the store's relatively short lifespan, Hilton has made it a personal priority to Continued on Page 10

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