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General News BRIEFS GOURMET NEWS FEBRUARY 2015 www.gourmetnews.com GENERAL NEWS 4 Beer Attraction, International Craft Beer Show: February 21-24 Beer Attraction, an International Craft Breweries Show, is coming to the Rimini Expo Centre and Riviera in Rimini, Italy February 21-24. The first two days are open to the public, while the last two are trade only. Organizers of Beer Attraction hope the event will be able to please craft beer connoisseurs and industry representatives with a combination of taste- oriented activities and others more focused on the specific aspects of production and the import-export chains. The most eagerly awaited event at Beer Attraction will be the 10th edition of Beer of the Year, the most important Italian brewery contest, which will test the skills of the best craft beer masters, with a panel of judges of international importance. Over 600 craft beers were entered in the last competition. For more information on Beer Attraction, visit www.beerattraction.it/visitatori. The London Cheesemonger Course: February 16-19 The Academie Opus Caseus professional development center at the heart of MonS Fromager Affineur, has launched a new four- day course for English speaking cheese professionals focusing on the art of cheesemongering in the UK. The course will include two days of classroom work in London covering the art of discussing cheese, sensory analysis, cutting and wrapping, sourcing cheese and more, taught by Academie Director Sue Sturman and London cheese consultant Lee- Anna Rennie. The course is suited to cheesemongers wishing to increase their knowledge and skills, and those interested in cheesemongering as a career choice. Tuition for the course is $1870 and includes coursework, most meals, and ground transportation during the course. Lodging is not included. The course is limited to eight participants, and a minimum of 6 enrollments is required for the course to be run. Visit www.schoolofartisanfood.org to register. Aquarium of the Pacific Hosts Future of Food Series The Aquarium of the Pacific will present The Future of Food, a series of talks hosted by Los Angeles Times Food Editor Russ Parsons, featuring experts representing different sectors of the American food system. On February 4, Belcampo Inc. CEO Anya Fernald, an expert on the slow food movement and agritourism, will discuss humanely raised organic meat. On May 7, organic farmer David "Mas" Masumoto will discuss organic farming and its connections to the humanities. And on October 7, chef Michael Cimarusti will discuss how the fine dining industry can get involved with sustainable food. Tickets for this series are available by phone or online. Events will also be streamed live on the Aquarium's website. For more information, call 562.590.3100, or visit www.aquariumofpacific.org. The Urban School Food Alliance, a coali- tion of the largest school districts in the United States that includes New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago, Miami-Dade, Dallas and Orlando, recently announced an an- tibiotic-free standard for companies to fol- low when supplying chicken products to its schools. The Alliance's landmark actions is focusing on chicken, because the ingredi- ent is one of the most popular items served at cafeterias across the country. Serving nearly 2.9 million students daily, Alliance member schools procure more than $550 million in food and supplies an- nually. The coalition aims to use its joint purchasing power and influence to help drive down nationwide costs, while setting higher standards for the quality of food served in its schools. The Alliance seeks to ensure that students receive the highest quality meals and that ingredients exceed minimum USDA guidelines. "The standards we're asking from the manufacturers go above and beyond the quality of the chicken we normally pur- chase at local supermarkets," said Urban School Food Alliance Chairman Eric Gold- stein, Chief Executive Officer of School Support Services for the New York City De- partment of Education. "This move by the Alliance shows that school food directors across the country truly care about the health and wellness of students." Working with suppliers, non-profit partners and government agencies, the Alliance has committed to requiring that all chicken products must be produced under a USDA Process Verified Program, guaranteeing that animals are fed an all- vegetarian diet, that no animal by-prod- ucts are in the feed and that no antibiotics are ever used in poultry pro- duction. In addition, the Alliance is also focused on ensuring that all chickens consumed were humanely raised as out- lined in the National Chicken Council Animal Welfare Guidelines. "Purchasing meat and poultry raised without the unnecessary use of antibiotics is critical to ensuring the safety of our children," said Mark Izeman, Senior At- torney with the Natural Resources De- fense Council, one of the nation's leading environmental and public health organi- zations and a non-profit partner of the Al- liance. "[This] transformational move will not only have a dramatic impact on the quality of school meals, but will also help push the entire food industry to move away from animals raised with improper antibiotic use." According to NRDC, the vast majority of antibiotics in this country are used in animal agriculture. Antibiotics are often used not to treat sick animals but to speed up animal growth and to compen- sate for unsanitary conditions common at industrial farms. This misuse in meat and poultry production contributes to the spread of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, which travel off of farms and into our communities. As a result of this practice, antibiotic-resistant bacteria turn up not just on the meat itself, but also in our soil, air, and water. Leading public health and medical organizations including the World Health Organization have warned that the widespread overuse and misuse of antibiotics in food animals could con- tribute to the dangerous rise of antibiotic resistance in humans. The Urban School Food Alliance formed nearly two years ago to use its purchasing power to drive quality up and costs down while incorporating sound environmental practices. Members of the group share best practices in order to meet the expectations of students and parents, while meeting nu- trient recommendations for whole grain products, low fat dairy, fresh produce and lean protein. To learn more about the Urban School Food Alliance, visit www.ur- banschoolfoodalliance.org. For more infor- mation about antibiotic-free meat and poultry, visit www.nrdc.org/food/saving- antibiotics.asp. GN Nation's Largest School Districts to Procure Antibiotic-Free Chicken The National Confectioners Association re- cently announced the recipients of the 2015 Confectionery Leadership Awards. The awards celebrate the recipients' contri- butions to the category through their effec- tive business collaboration, category management best practices, and innova- tions in merchandising confectionery prod- ucts in-store. The Leadership Awards Committee took several nominations by in- dustry colleagues under examination and ultimately selected Mike Maslen, Vice Pres- ident of Sales for the Hudson Group and Dave Schulze, Senior Candy Buyer for the H.E. Butt Grocery Company (H-E-B), based on their creativity, innovative think- ing, leadership and support of the category. Maslen and Schulze will be presented with their awards in Miami at NCA's annual State of the Industry Conference, February 16- 19. "This award recognizes the talent and dedication of the industry's retail cus- tomers, those who go above and beyond expectations," says NCA's Vice President of Customer Relations Larry Wilson. "There were many deserving and worthy candi- dates submitted for the 2015 Confectionery Leadership Awards, but the committee felt strongly that Mike and Dave truly exem- plify the visionary thinking it takes to pro- pel the category forward." Maslen, whose company operates 770 newsstands and sundry shops, praised the entire Hudson Group team. "While I am truly honored to have been selected by the committee to receive one of this year's Con- fectionery Leadership Awards, the recogni- tion is a reflection of my colleagues at Hudson Group, the manufacturers and bro- kers I work with in the industry and my family. Without everyone's support, this would not be possible," he said. Schulze, whose San Antonio, Texas- based company operates 350 grocery stores, similarly credits his colleagues. "H- E-B is honored to be recognized with a Confectionery Leadership Award," he said. "The credit really goes to the entire H-E-B Candy Team, our store operations folks and our loyal Texas customer base. H-E-B is truly a great place to work and shop." NCA and Candy & Snack TODAY mag- azine created the Confectionery Leader- ship Awards program in 2011 to recognize and honor the confectionery industry's best and most innovative category cham- pions and leaders. The program allows NCA manufacturers and brokers to recog- nize outstanding retailers and wholesalers in the confectionery community for their effective customer marketing, shopper- driven shelving practices and promotion of new items. The National Confectioners Associa- tion is the Washington, D.C.-based trade group representing the $34 billion U.S. confectionery industry and comprised of 320 member companies that manufac- ture and market the vast majority of chocolate confectionery, sugar confec- tionery and gum sold in the United States. Serving as the voice of the indus- try, NCA advocates for a pro-business policy agenda, helps the industry under- stand and implement food safety and other regulations, provides information to help members strengthen their busi- ness in today's competitive environment and fosters relationships between all sec- tors of the industry. GN Confectionery Retail Leaders to Be Honored at NCA's 2015 State of the Industry Conference

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