Oser Communications Group

BY GREG GONZALES Gluten-free dog food, signs for gluten-free haircuts and even gluten-free lap dances are some of the jokes floating around these days, but the gluten-free market is serious business. Gluten-free options are everywhere now, and they're not going away anytime soon. Even so, the market is set to shrink a little as a result of high prices and trendy eaters quitting the diet. Research from NPD Group re- vealed that most consumers see gluten free as a fad, while they still seek natural, wholesome products. In addition, Packaged Facts reported that 53 percent of shoppers consider gluten-free foods overpriced, while 41 per- BY LORRIE BAUMANN A California produce company has found a way to make the Farm to Fork movement a reality for customers in urban areas across the state – including those who live in food deserts. Farm Fresh To You is a service that de- livers produce from Capay Or- ganic, the company's own farm, as well as from about 50 other or- ganic farms across the state di- rectly to customers' doors in the San Francisco, Sacramento, Los Angeles and San Diego metropol- itan areas each week. "Our phi- losophy is that for local produce to be successful, we need to make Farm Fresh from the Barsotti/Barnes Family to You Continued on PAGE 7 Continued on PAGE 6 it as easy as possible for people to make the best selection of local produce show up at their door each week," said Thaddeus Bar- sotti, one of the brothers who owns the business. "We've been very successful at keeping customers happy because we've made it really easy to fit into their lives." Capay Organic and Farm Fresh to You were originally founded in 1976 by Martin and Kathy Barsotti, Thaddeus' parents. Martin was a student at the University of California, Davis when he began developing his ideas about how to create direct relationships between farmers and consumers. He got a permit from the city of Davis to start a farmers market that's now one of the most robust in the country. Then, he and his wife decided that they wanted move out of the city and onto a farm, where they would use organic methods and make it their full-time careers. Eventually, Martin left the busi- ness, but Kathy carried on. She heard about the idea of Commu- nity Supported Agriculture from another farmer, and in 1992, she adopted some of those ideas and started delivering produce di- rectly to her CSA customers out KIND Asks FDA to Reconsider Label Requirements Gluten-Free Trend Peaks, Can Diversify cent said they'd purchase gluten- free items if they were more af- fordable. Though the trend may be at a peak, there's plenty of support for the market. According to research from Mintel, 37 percent of con- sumers eat gluten-free because they consider it good for overall health. Fifteen percent of U.S. consumers in a Nielsen survey said gluten-free is a very impor- tant factor in purchasing deci- sions. "The gluten-free trend is not disappearing," said Kim Holman, Marketing Director of Wixon. "However, we are seeing a greater emphasis on transparency and consumers being able to easily identify gluten-free products on the shelves versus new formula- tions of gluten-free products." Plus, consumers are increasingly expecting to know where their food came from, how it was made and if the product offers extra nu- trition. Meanwhile, food produc- ers are still moving to add "gluten -free" to their labels. "When a for- mula is already gluten-free or contains easily removable gluten, we are seeing many of our cus- tomers deciding to make the move to gluten-free in order to be able to put the claim on their packaging," Holman said. Moreover, 80 percent of re- spondents in a global Nielsen market research survey said BY MICAH CHEEK Halfway through my interview with Fabio Viviani, I had to in- terrupt the restaurateur, entre- preneur and Top Chef winner to catch up with the quote I was typing. He jumped at the chance to interrupt me back. "You can make it so much easier on your- self if you record everything, get a voice recognition program," he said. "Get in the 21st century!" Viviani had just reiterated an at- titude that has followed him through his restaurants, kitchen- Continued on PAGE 8 Chef Fabio Viviani Talks Practical Cooking ware collections and media out- lets – keep it simple. Viviani's outlook is worth lis- tening to, especially because of the media presence he com- mands. The "Fan Favorite" status he earned on his initial "Top Chef" appearance put the spot- light on the chef 's undeniable charisma, which he has leveraged into a variety of appearances and endorsements along with his restaurant interests. This media savvy has been placing him on everything from local newscasts to "The Rachael Ray Show," and the videos just keep coming. Aside from the celebrity factor, the appeal is clear. Viviani is feed- ing the desires of consumers who want to cook more, cook health- ier and do it all with a gentle learning curve. Viviani's history, growing up watching his grandmother cook and making his way up through the restaurants of Florence, made me expect to speak with a stickler for tradition. I was surprised to BY RICHARD THOMPSON KIND bars are healthy and the Food and Drug Administration should allow the labels to reflect that, ac- cording to KIND, LLC. Last year, the FDA sent a warning letter to KIND stating that the company's la- bels on four of its products were misleading, resulting in label changes to comply with FDA regu- lations. In December, though, KIND sent a citizen's petition to the FDA requesting a new look at how the term "healthy" is defined. While the FDA reviews the company's re- quest, KIND asserts that by updat- ing the definition of "healthy" to reflect current dietary and nutri- tional understanding, not only will its products warrant the use of the term, but consumers won't con- tinue to be confused about what foods are truly healthy to eat. "Under FDA's current applica- tion of food labeling regulations, whether or not a food can be labeled 'healthy' is based on specific nutri- ent levels in the food rather than its overall nutritional quality," reads KIND's citizen petition. "This is de- spite the fact that current science no longer supports those standards." Said Joe Cohen, SVP of Commu- nication at KIND, "We're proud of the ingredients in our products, VOLUME 81, NUMBER 2 FEBRUARY 2016 n $7.00 HOT PRODUCTS n PAGE 15 RETAILER NEWS n Wagshal's: Local Retailer with National Reach PAGE 16 SUPPLIER BUSINESS n American-Made Prosciutto from La Quercia PAGE 18 NATURALLY HEALTHY n Specialty Food Producer High on Hemp PAGE 20 SMALL ELECTRICS n Appliances for Preserving Fresh Foods PAGE 22 News & Notes.................................5 Ad Index .......................................23 Smorgasbord ................................23 www.gourmetnews.com HOT PRODUCTS: Green Dirt Farm SEE PAGE 15 UPDATE: Gluten-Free SEE PAGE 9 G OURMET N EWS T H E B U S I N E S S N E W S P A P E R F O R T H E G O U R M E T I N D U S T R Y ® SMALL ELECTRICS: Preservation Sensations SEE PAGE 22 Continued on PAGE 10

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