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News & Notes BRIEFS GOURMET NEWS MARCH 2016 www.gourmetnews.com NEWS & NOTES 6 Ralphs Grocery Company Charitable Campaign to Benefit Children's Hospitals Ralphs Grocery Company is raising funds to support children's hospitals in southern California. Ralphs customers and associates can support their local children's hospital through the supermarket chain's nonprofit arm, The Ralphs Fund, by donating their spare change in collection canisters located at the checkstands in their neighborhood Ralphs supermarket. The Children's Hospital fundraising campaign will run through May 24, 2016. Ready Pac Foods Partners with Daily Table to Help Poor Communities Ready Pac Foods, Inc. has partnered with Daily Table, a not-for-profit retail grocery store dedicated to bringing nutritious prepared meals and groceries to economically challenged communities. Starting this year, Ready Pac Foods will donate a variety of products and commodity items to Daily Table's Dorchester, Massachusetts, store twice a week. Study Reviews Accelerating Sophistication of Supermarket Fresh Prepared Foods Food Marketing Institute (FMI) and Technomic have released results of a survey detailing the sophistication of supermarket fresh prepared foods among 28 banners, representing 8,000 stores, and substantiated the$15 billion growth of supermarket foodservice over the last eight years. The study suggests that most stores (64 percent) witnessed 2014 prepared foods category growth of 9 percent or higher. FMI Vice President, Fresh Foods, Rick Stein, observed, "It's clear that food retailers are differentiating their businesses by leveraging fresh food selections to meet shopper demands for convenience, all while counterbalancing declining center store sales. The trends in consumers eating away from home are being fought among restaurants, supermarkets and even convenience stores. This work aims to offer insights that will help understand the issues as retailers try to gain share of the consumer's stomach." Albertsons Companies Expands Panzer's Role to Include General Merchandise, HABA Albertsons Companies announced that Mark Panzer, who was named the company's Senior Vice President of Pharmacy, Health & Wellness in May 2015, has accepted the additional responsibility of leading General Merchandise and HABA. Panzer will work out of the company's Boise, Idaho corporate campus. The Organic Consumers Association is joining forces with the Organic & Natu- ral Health Association, a new trade group committed to bringing together "a broad coalition to work towards preserv- ing and advancing the health and well- being of people, animals and plants, and the planet as a whole." "The Organic & Natural Health Asso- ciation fills a void in today's market for a trade group that is dedicated to serving the needs of suppliers, retailers and con- sumers who seek truthful, unbiased and credible information, based on the latest health- and nutrition-based science and research, about organic and natural products," said Ronnie Cummins, OCA's International Director. "America's 100 million organic consumers and 100 mil- lion natural health consumers, working together, can be a mighty force for posi- tive change, moving society toward a fu- ture which is organic and regenerative, while fighting off the increasing attacks against organic foods and natural health from Big Ag, Big Pharma, and their in- dentured scientists, propagandists and political officials." The Organic & Natural Health re- cently held its first annual conference, where Karen Howard, CEO and Execu- tive Director, announced that group's board has decided against advocating for development of a certification or seal for the word "natural" on product labels, in favor of instead strengthening the cur- rent definition of "organic." The U.S. Food & Drug Administration recently extended the public comment period on whether or not the agency should define "natural." Howard said, "Our research clearly shows that the majority of consumers do not differentiate between 'natural' and 'organic' and expect products labeled natural to also be organic. So, after care- ful consideration, we determined that in- troducing a new 'natural' certification seal would not be in the best interest of consumers and could contribute to fur- ther confusion. At this juncture, encour- aging people to go organic is more important, so we will focus on the exist- ing organic certification seal and do whatever we can to strengthen that pro- gram." According to a recent Consumer Re- ports survey, a majority of consumers falsely assume that products labeled "natural" are produced without the use of pesticides, and are free of genetically engineered and artificial ingredients. "Confusion around product labeling and false marketing claims makes it dif- ficult for consumers to know which companies and brands are trustworthy. OCA supports the Organic & Natural Health's mission to eliminate confusion and to hold brands to the highest of stan- dards relating to product integrity," Cummins said. In addition to educating consumers about the false assumptions around the "natural" label, the Organic & Natural Health will collaborate with IFOAM In- ternational, OCA and other organiza- tions to promote Organic 3.0, a more inclusive definition of organic, which takes into account the role agriculture plays in the global issues of hunger, in- equity, energy consumption, pollution, climate change, loss of biodiversity and depletion of natural resources. "We can no longer talk about food out of context," Cummins said. "Food and agriculture are inextricably linked to a host of environmental and social issues, all of which are intertwined. The OCA fully supports Organic & Natural Health's commitment to raising the bar for organics, and to holding all of those involved in the food supply chain ac- countable for the role they play in soci- ety as a whole. Our interaction with consumers leads us to believe that they understand these issues, support higher standards, and will support those brands that adhere to Organic 3.0 standards and Organic & Natural Health's values." GN OCA Joins New Organics & Natural Health Trade Association The National Association of State Depart- ments of Agriculture (NASDA) and Farm Credit joined together to celebrate 100 years of service to agriculture during a congressional reception in the United States Capitol on February 2. The recep- tion was widely attended by Farm Credit leaders, commissioners, secretaries and directors of agriculture, Members of Con- gress, leadership from federal agencies, and agriculture industry stakeholders. "NASDA and Farm Credit each have demonstrated an unwavering commit- ment to agriculture and rural America for 100 years," said Greg Ibach, NASDA President and Nebraska Director of Agri- culture. "State departments of agricul- ture collectively play a key role in advocating national policy and promo- tional activities that make sense for farmers, ranchers, agribusiness and rural communities," Ibach said. "Farm Credit provides access to vital financial re- sources for the agriculture sector and im- portant educational opportunities for the next generation of producers. Together, our organizations have led, and will con- tinue to lead, the way in supporting the evolving needs of all of agriculture, today and tomorrow." The Congressional Reception was the culmination of a full week of centennial activities for the members of both NASDA and Farm Credit, which were both founded in 1916. This week NASDA hosted 250 state and federal agriculture officials for its Winter Policy Conference, while the Farm Credit Council hosted its Annual Meeting, wel- coming 800 directors and staff to the na- tion's capital. Prior to the joint centennial celebration on Capitol Hill Tuesday evening, NASDA leaders and members focused on important public policy issues ranging from how to create more opportunities for beginning farm- ers to international trade, and domestic natural resource challenges. "NASDA and Farm Credit have been working side by side to support rural communities and agriculture for 100 years," said Todd Van Hoose, President and CEO of the Farm Credit Council. "Farm Credit is proud to partner with NASDA and its members to support pro- grams that ensure rural America is healthy and thriving today, and for the next 100 years." One such program is the Kentucky De- partment of Agriculture's Homegrown By Heroes program, a consumer product la- beling initiative for farmer veterans that Farm Credit has supported since its na- tional rollout in 2014. In addition to the centennial activities, both Farm Credit and NASDA have cen- tennial programs planned throughout the year, both in D.C. and in communi- ties across the country. Farm Credit will celebrate Farm Credit Week in June, while the Nebraska Director of Agricul- ture Greg Ibach, the 2015 – 2016 Presi- dent of NASDA, will host NASDA's Annual Meeting in Lincoln, Nebraska, in September. NASDA is a nonpartisan, nonprofit as- sociation which represents the elected and appointed commissioners, secre- taries, and directors of the departments of agriculture in all 50 states and four U.S. territories. GN NASDA Celebrates 100th Anniversary

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