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INDUSTRY NEWS www.kitchenwarenews.com ■ SEPTEMBER 2014 ■ KITCHENWARE NEWS & HOUSEWARES REVIEW Industry News 1 9 The Pillsbury Bake-Off® Contest has unveiled the 100 creative home cooks who will compete this fall for more than $1.3 million in cash and prizes. The 47th Pillsbury Bake-Off Contest will take place on Monday, November 3, 2014 in Nashville, Tennessee. The 100 finalists chosen to compete in this year's contest hail f rom 32 different states. California boasts the highest number of finalists, 17, while Pennsylvania comes in second with 10. One competitor lives within miles of the host city, Nashville; another will travel more than 4,000 miles from Koloa, Hawaii to compete at this year's event. The group consists of four males and 96 females who range in age from 28 to 89 years old. A list of all 100 finalists is now available online at www.bakeoff.com. "The Bake-Off Contest has long epitomized the way America cooks. As the demand for easy-to-make meal solutions increases, this year, we challenged contest fans to create original recipes that use no more than seven ingredients and take 30 minutes or less to prepare," said Jann Atkins, Bake-Off Kitchens Manager. "The creative recipes that advanced to the contest finals demonstrate that great tasting dinners, breakfasts, appetizers and desserts do not have to be difficult to make." The largest purse in competitive cooking is up for grabs. In addition to the contest's 47th Pillsbury Bake-Off Contest to Award $1 Million Pillivuyt Recognized for Franco-Swiss Relations unparalleled grand prize of $1 million plus $10,000 in GE kitchen appliances, the 100 finalists will be competing for eight special awards from the GE Imagination At Work award for the finalist with the most innovative recipe to a variety of awards for finalists who use specific ingredients in their recipes. The Pillsbury® Gluten Free Award recognizes the finalist who has the best recipe that uses a Pillsbury gluten free product and does not contain wheat or any products that include wheat as an ingredient. Additionally, the three category winning runner- up recipes will each receive $10,000 and $3,000 in GE kitchen appliances. Contest Details Earlier this year, Pillsbury invited home cooks to submit their original recipes for consideration in one of four categories: Simply Sweet Treats, Savory Snacks & Sides, Weekend Breakfast Wows or Amazing Doable Dinners. The Bake-Off Kitchens evaluated all of the eligible entries and chose the top 100, which will compete at the contest finals at the Omni Nashville Hotel. At the finals, all 100 finalists will each prepare their original recipe for judging. A panel of independent judges, consisting of leading food experts and media, will select the best recipe in each of the four categories based on taste, appearance, creativity and crowd appeal. The four category winning recipes will be placed online, giving America the chance to vote for their favorite. The public vote will be combined with the judges' decisions to determine the $1 million grand prize winner of the nation's premier cooking competition. Sponsors of the 47th Pillsbury Bake-Off Contest include The J.M. Smucker Company, GE Appliances, Green Giant, The J.R. Watkins Company and Reynolds Consumer Products. For more information, go to www.bakeoff.com. Pillivuyt received the Tradition & Savoir- Faire prize in Montreux, Switzerland, in January of this year. Awarded by the Franco- Swiss Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the trophy recognizes companies that enhance Franco-Swiss economic relations by bringing these two markets together. For this year, Pillivuyt has introduced the Bretagne collection in three shades of blue that echo the sea and sky of Brittany and add a timeless note to resolutely modern shapes, making them best f riends of classic white dinnerware. The line is made by adding the tint to a glaze and then dipping the porcelain pieces into the glaze before firing it at 2,500 degrees Fahrenheit to produce these fine porcelain pieces with fast color and resistance to thermal shock. For more information, visit www.pillivuyt.f r. Dallas Market Center has named Jim Lugannani as Vice President of Gift Leasing. In his position, Lugannani is responsible for leading the luxury gift, tableware, housewares and general gift categories as well as maximizing opportunities between permanent and temporary exhibitors. "Jim has been instrumental in strengthening and developing our business during his more than 15 years at the Market Center," said Robbin Wells, Executive Vice President of Leasing, Dallas Market Center. " We look forward to the next phase of growth in the permanent gift categories in Dallas under Jim's leadership." During Lugannani's time at Dallas Market Center, he first served as Vice President of Leasing, focusing on gift, home textiles, floral and other business projects. He then moved to the temporary side for six years, where he remained until his transition back into permanent leasing. Lugannani's career experience includes working with companies such as: Pfaltzgraff, Fitz & Floyd, Kennedy Group and Walt Disney Art Classics before joining Dallas Market Center. Lugannani Named V.P. of Gift Leasing for Dallas Market