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GOURMET NEWS FEBRUARY 2015 www.gourmetnews.com Supplier Business SUPPLIER BUSINESS 1 1 BRIEFS Chatfield Dairy Farm Family Named 2014 Producer of the Year Minnesota Milk Producers Association named Hinckley Holsteins, a family owned and operated farm in Chatfield, Minnesota as its Minnesota 2014 Producer of the Year. Dale and Marlys Hinckley and their sons, Matt and Adam, were selected for their commitment and dedication to the dairy industry, managing their farm for future generations and being active in their local community. "We are honored to have been named Minnesota Producers of the Year," said Dale. "We take great pride in our farm, as we plan to keep it in our family for many generations. Marlys and I have started to step back on the daily management of the farm as Matt and Adam take the reins, but that hasn't stopped us from promoting the dairy industry that we love." To learn more about Hinckley Holsteins, visit www.mnmilk.org/poy. High Liner Foods Opens New U.S. Headquarters High Liner Foods Incorporated, the leading North American value-added frozen seafood company, recently announced the official opening of its newly-constructed U.S. headquarters, a 38,000- square-foot state-of-the-art facility located at the Pease International Tradeport in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. The new U.S. headquarters will feature 110 full-time employees from administration, sales and marketing, research and development, and culinary. The building features advanced communications technology, a cutting-edge culinary innovation center and research and development facility, with an open workspace environment for enhanced employee collaboration. It was designed and built using sustainable building principles. The new facility offers ample space for future expansion and is located only two miles away from the company's Portsmouth manufacturing facility at 1 Highliner Avenue, bringing management and the culinary team in closer proximity to this key manufacturing site. Fannie May Fine Chocolates Bounces Back after Warehouse Fire On Thanksgiving Day, a fire destroyed Fannie May Fine Chocolates' warehouse and distribution facility in Maple Heights, Ohio. Fortunately, no injuries were reported due to the blaze. Since the building was severely damaged, the company's peak holiday season operations were affected, as the company temporarily suspended online orders. Fannie May Fine Chocolates' state-of-the-art production facility was fortunately not affected by the fire. As the Fannie May team activated contingency plans and worked around-the-clock producing more of the company's iconic chocolates at its state-of-the-art production facility, it was able to bounce back quickly from the tragedy. Within days of the destructive fire, the Fannie May website (www.fanniemay.com) was back online, and the company is already back accepting e-commerce orders. The team at Fannie May promises to continue to work diligently to make additional confections. BY DAVID BERNARD When you live abroad and cannot keep up with the demand from friends and family for the interesting food products you ferry home in suitcases each year, it might be time to start your own busi- ness. So it was with Colleen Sundlie, who had discovered date syrup while liv- ing in the United Arab Emirates with her professor husband and son. Now back in Springfield, Missouri and two and a half years into her business, Date Lady, Sund- lie no longer has to seek out the obscure Middle Eastern market to locate a bottle of this nutritious and surprisingly versa- tile syrup. After tasting many products and com- ing to appreciate Middle Eastern "date culture," where hosts typically serve cof- fee and dates, and bowls of the fruit are a staple at gyms, hotels and car dealer- ships, Sundlie put her marketing and business background to work. In addi- tion to the date syrup, Date Lady sells a caramel sauce, a chocolate spread sweet- ened only by dates, packaged dates and a new date balsamic vinegar. The all-nat- ural products are sold nationwide, in- cluding at many prominent retailers, such as Murray's Cheese, Whole Foods and Mom's Organic Markets, as well as in many smaller specialty food stores. Sundlie reports the company's sales have roughly doubled in the last year. According to Sundlie, consumer de- mand for Date Lady's flagship date syrup has exploded in recent months. "We have a lot of people that are addicted to it," she said. "We've had people asking us if they can order it by the gallon." While the company is looking into larger packaging, it recently added convenience with squeeze bottles for its date syrup and caramel sauce. These products previously came in glass jars. "People were just using it more often and asking, 'How can you make this easier for us?'" said Sundlie. When it comes to the company's pack- aged date offerings, Date Lady's unique- ness extends to this product line as well. While most dates sold in the United States are Medjools or Deglet Noors, Date Lady sells organic California Barhi and Halawi dates. Sundlie likens these less common dried fruits to pieces of caramel. The company does use Medjool and De- glet Noor dates in its other products. In addition to climbing retail sales of Date Lady's date syrup, some manufac- turers have begun substituting the 100 percent fruit syrup for other sweeteners, for example in chocolate and fruit and nut bars, smoothies, ice cream and even beer. Interestingly, none of these prod- ucts are date-flavored. The syrup has the sweetness of maple syrup but carries a more complex flavor, with hints of caramel, toffee and molasses. The date flavor itself is often masked when the syrup is used to sweeten other foods. However, when used alone as a syrup, for example on pancakes, notes of date do come through. To meet grow- ing demand from consumers and manufactur- ers, Date Lady recently moved to a new Spring- field headquar- ters and production facil- ity, tripling its capacity. The company bene- fits from a rela- tive lack of c o m p e t i t i o n within the larger specialty food l a n d s c a p e . While other companies sell whole dates, Date Lady's syrup, caramel sauce, choco- late spread and date balsamic go virtually unmatched. Even most Middle Eastern products do not compete directly with Date Lady products. Many include added sugar, and, according to Sundlie, some products touted as "all-natural" fre- quently fall short of the claim. Always looking to branch out into the gourmet market with new products, Date Lady launched its new date sugar last month and plans to debut additional products later this year. For more infor- mation, visit www.ilovedatelady.com. GN Missouri Producer Brings a Taste of Middle Eastern Date Culture to the American Market Top-selling packaged frozen dessert brand Talenti Gelato & Sorbetto recently an- nounced that it has been acquired by Unilever, one of the world's leading suppli- ers of food, home and personal care prod- ucts. The acquisition gives Talenti an unprecedented opportunity to grow and expand its footprint and reach more con- sumers. The terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Under Unilever, Talenti will continue to craft gelato and sorbetto using old world methods – a quality that has distinguished the brand since its beginning. This commit- ment includes carefully sourcing the best ingredients from around the world. Talenti will continue to maintain and operate its production facility in Marietta, Georgia and will present the same unique flavor offer- ings in the brand's recognizable transparent packaging. "We are thrilled to join the Unilever family, work together to expand distribu- tion and share Talenti love with even more ice cream consumers," said Steve Gill, Talenti's CEO. As part of the acquisition, Talenti will have access to Unilever's extensive distribution network and supplier's resources to acceler- ate its growth and leadership in the premium ice cream category. Talenti is expected to complement Unilever's existing family of es- tablished ice cream brands, including Ben & Jerry's, Breyers, Fruttare, Good Humor, Klondike, Magnum and Popsicle. Founded by Josh Hochschuler as a store- front gelateria in Dallas, Texas in 2003, Tal- enti has since experienced strong growth with sales of over $120 million in the past year. Talenti is committed to using artisanal methods. The company uses only the finest, carefully sourced ingredients, such as Belgian chocolate, fresh whole Tahitian vanilla beans from Papua New Guinea, se- lect coconuts from the Philippines and real Argentine dulce de leche. Both Talenti's gelatos and sorbettos showcase the com- pany's commitment to providing frozen desserts that taste amazing. For a full list of Talenti products and to find retail locations that sell Talenti, visit www.TalentiGelato.com. To keep up with Talenti news, visit Talenti on Facebook or follow the company on Twitter. GN Talenti Gelato & Sorbetto Acquired by Packaged Food Leader Unilever

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