Issue link: http://osercommunicationsgroup.uberflip.com/i/586338
P r o d u c e S h o w D a i l y 1 1 S a t u r d a y, O c t o b e r 2 4 , 2 0 1 5 MICHIGAN APPLES SYNONYMOUS WITH FALL Summer is gone, winter is right around the corner, and those delicious Michigan apples are finally ready to be devoured. Incorporating the flavor of fall into your produce section will appeal to your cus- tomers' fondness for the cool and crisp season. These tasty treats are exactly what consumers crave in the cool fall months. They are perfect for any situation. They can be a healthy snack, a cold refresher or if you're lucky, a tasty dessert covered in sugar; all of which will result in a big smile. A Michigan apple can be added to any meal, drink or dessert, giving it a per- fectly balanced flavor of sweet and tart. Michigan apples are symbolic of the magnificent fall season. They smell, taste, and look like fall. They remind everyone of the days they would rake leaves into a pile, only to be shortly fol- lowed by free-for-all destruction, cour- tesy of family and friends. They emit a refreshing aroma, making people feel as if they're relaxing in the great outdoors, giving them a com- forting sensation. The first bite will send a crunching noise to be heard by all of those around you, making you thankful for Michigan's climate and its abil- ity to create perfectly crisp apples. Michigan apples begin to be picked in mid-August and can be stored all the way through the cold winters while still managing to warm us. Evoke the feeling of hand-selecting freshly harvest- ed apples and sipping fresh cider right in the produce section of the grocery store. You can tap into your cus- tomers' fondness and excitement for fall apple harvest by running ads and building displays around the "Buy Local" theme. Retailers can celebrate the excitement and tradition of Michigan apples with retail and consumer pro- grams. Talk with your account manager or find information at MichiganApples.com. Visit Michigan Apples in booth #3347 at the PMA Fresh Summit. LACERTA'S NEW PRINTING EQUIPMENT DELIVERS UNIQUE PACKAGING In order to serve customers better and be able to provide unique solutions for their packaging needs, Lacerta recently installed new printing equipment. A new machine was built specifically for this application. The equipment is designed to print up to four colors on thin gauge film or much heavier materials. It's important for Lacerta to invest in tech- nology that will allow the company to provide a competitive advantage to cus- tomers. Lacerta has been providing cus- tomers with distortion-printed lids for several years for hummus and other dip products. Having printing capabili- ties in house, the company is able to provide customers unique options when they are deciding on a package. Customers are able to print graphics or their logo on the cover, differentiating their product on the shelf and increas- ing their brand awareness. Adding their logo will also eliminate the need for a label, saving money and time. Shelves will look great with printed pack- ages, merchandising becomes easy, and flavors and varieties can be color coded. By bringing the printing in house – with testing at Lacerta – customers will also have shorter development times. In addition to printing on lids, the company is offering a tamper-evident line of products, Fresh n' Sealed, with printed lids or customer logos on the cover. Currently, Lacerta is working on several new projects with customers, such as eliminating a label by printing with three colors onto a polypropylene cover and developing a package that has marble stone look. About Lacerta Group, Inc. Lacerta Group is a family- owned business that was founded in 1993 and spe- cializes in thermoformed packaging. Lacerta produces thermo- formed stock and custom food packaging with a primary focus on fresh prepared foods. With a full design team and in- house mold-making capabilities, Lacerta provides custom packages from design and material selection to molds and pro- duction. For more information, visit booth #5333, go to www.Lacerta.com or call 508.339.3312. MAINTAINING AN ONION FOOTHOLD IN FOODSERVICE It's been noted by many Idaho and Eastern Oregon Committee members that reaching out to culinary students with their onion message could prove benefi- cial for keeping demand for onions on the rise. According to statistics collected by the Culinary Institute of America, enroll- ment in the culinary field has almost dou- bled over the past two years. Within five years they estimate that it could rise another seven percent. Andrew Gold, Dean of Students at The Institute of Culinary Education located in New York City, talked about the huge rise in the culinary field. "Culinary Schools, particularly private for-profit schools enrollment has increased up to 20 percent a year in the last two to three years. According to Labor Department statistics, the number of jobs in food services has grown from 8 million to 10 million in the last two years," he said. "What this does say is that this is a growth industry, and with so many indus- tries being in an uncertain situation right now, if one is to invest in education now, it would make complete sense to do so in an industry that is not only thriving but is showing the growth rate that the food and beverage and hospitality industry is achieving," Gold said. Members of the Idaho-Eastern Oregon Onion Committee have seen that when you provide information about the benefits and uses of onions to culinary students and culinary educators, you have a bet- ter chance of building long-term loyal- ty from these individuals that they will carry with them throughout their careers. The Idaho-Eastern Oregon Onion Committee has partici- pated in numerous out- reach programs with culinary schools which has included student chef recipe competitions and training sessions, the goal being to make sure that when the stu- dents enter the workforce, they make concerted efforts to include onions in a wide variety of their menu items and look to onions for new trends in menu development. For more information, visit booth #1239, visit www.USAONIONS.com or call the Idaho-Eastern Oregon Onion Committee at 208.722.5111. AMERIFRESH: YOUR SOURCE-BASED SOLUTIONS PROVIDER Amerifresh consistently provides the best fresh fruit and vegetables to cus- tomers in the demanding retail grocery and foodservice industries. Because Amerifresh works with the best growers in the top-producing regions of North America and Mexico, customers are assured of superior quality, regardless of the season. As a produce distributor or retailer, your customers expect a wide selection of quality fruits and vegetables all the time, but consistently high-quality pro- duce is tough to secure if you have to rely on suppliers who source from a single grower or growing region. Amerifresh's seven individual branches specialize in handling the products grown in each region. Their proximity to the fields, orchards and production areas allows the Amerifresh quality assurance staff to take an active role in determining what growers, fields or blocks of fields are chosen for its cus- tomers. Being so close to the source, the Amerifresh quality assurance staff can assure that raw product attributes meet strict written standards and speci- fications before packing. The active role that Amerifresh takes on its cus- tomers' behalf means that you receive produce with consistent levels of fresh- ness, color, size and flavor. Amerifresh delivers this any time of year to any- where it is needed, regardless of weath- er or seasons. T r a d e m a r k e d in 1925 by Amerifresh's pre- cursor, Pacific Fruit and Produce, the Snoboy brand has been synonymous with high-quality produce and cus- tomer satisfaction for over 90 years. A symbol of quality and freshness, the Snoboy brand is nationally recognized for fruits and vegetables by grocers, wholesalers, food service operators and consumers alike. Amerifresh packs more than 80 different high-quality produce items for the Snoboy brand, making it one of the largest private labels in the industry. Additionally, Snoboy products are packed to order, which means that your individual Snoboy order is the freshest possible. As a wholly-owned subsidiary of Services Group of America, one of the largest privately-held companies in the U.S., Amerifresh has the financial and t e c h n o l o g i c a l resources to meet your needs for the long term. With these broad-reaching resources, Amerifresh is easily able to customize orders to fit your needs and to deliver a quality product every time. Whether you're buying Snoboy or another Amerifresh brand, the com- pany strives to fulfill your needs to ensure that day in and day out, the highest quality produce always makes its way to the tables of your cus- tomers. That's why customers choose Amerifresh as their primary produce provider and depend on the company for the continued success of their operations. For more information, visit booth #2852 or visit online at www.amerifresh.com.