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K i t ch e n w a r e N e w s & H o u s e w a r e s R e v i e w S h o w D a i l y Tu e s d a y, M a r ch 8 , 2 0 1 6 3 2 MASON JARS CONTINUE TO CAPTIVATE CRAFTERS A quick survey of crafters' blogs has revealed that America's fascination with the Mason jar has yet to wane. As far as the internet is concerned, we are still in the golden era of canning supply crafting. Craft blogs solely dedicated to craft- ing Mason jar items are still seeing inter- est and traffic, and their featured projects are leaning into the gift market. Preportioning treats or gifts into jars has become a great way to streamline the gift making process. Wedding favors are a classic exam- ple of this system. Wedding sites now devote entire pages to integrating Mason jars into the wedding to add rustic charm. One popular favor option is a jar full of matches, with a striking pad adhered to the jar's lid. These make a cute wedding favor with the addition of a label, along the lines of "Jeff + Mary, A Match Made In Heaven." This style of gift giving has expanded into the holidays by arranging small gifts in a jar, coordinated by color or theme. With custom label printing, a jar full of blue candies becomes "Joe's Blue Christmas Sampler." Jar gifting has given crafters even more reason to try out jarred cake and pie recipes. While the trend used to be to bake cake batter in the jar itself, many recipes now recommend baking the cake conventionally, then cutting the cake to fit inside the jar. The moti- vator behind this is the addition of icing, used in attractive alternating lay- ers between slabs of cake. Recently, Mason jar enthusiasts discovered that the two-part lid of a jar could be used as a tiny springform pan. This has led to a deluge of miniature pies and tarts on Instagram, complete with tiny pas- try lattices. The Mason jar centerpiece has yet to go out of style, possibly due to the resur- gence of shabby chic. As long as crafters have access to burlap and the ability to make distressed paint jobs, we will con- tinue to see arrangements of differently sized jars as vases, terrariums and candle holders. Using a jar to hold a single tea light or cluster of lights has remained a favorite, especially with battery-powered lights that allow the jar to be sealed and hung in strings. Integrating jars into the home seems to be leaning into a more func- tional state of mind. Companies like Loew-Cornell are producing custom lids and attachments for Mason jars, like spouts, soap pumps and tea light holders. Various companies make man- ual coffee grinders specifically designed to fit onto a Ball jar. Cocktail shakers are seeing the same increase in interest. This marks an interesting shift where Mason jars are working their way back to the kitchen that they were originally designed for, with complete- ly different functions. DMT CELEBRATES 40 YEARS OF MAKING KNIFE SHARPENERS IN THE U.S.A. In 1976, as the U.S. celebrated its bicen- tennial, a Massachusetts company began manufacturing diamond sharpeners in a facility 30 miles west of Boston. While it may not have been "the shot heard 'round the world," DMT did indeed start its own revolution, and changed the face of sharpening forever. Over the next four decades, the com- pany built its reputation as the worldwide leader by innovating and producing the highest quality knife and tool sharpeners available: reliable, durable and recogniza- ble through their iconic polka dot design. One hundred percent of DMT's sharpeners are made in the U.S.A., because quality is DMT's most important differentiator, and American ingenuity is just as big a part of the DMT story. The company holds more than 10 patents and has introduced more than 125 new prod- ucts, including 10 in the past five years alone, a testament to the manufacturer's tradition and spirit of innovation. "We have thrived and grown world- wide by sticking to tried and true princi- ples – superior products made in the U.S.A., backed by friendly customer service and delivered by people who care about their customers," said Mark Brandon, President of DMT. Today, DMT products are sold in dozens of countries from Canada to Australia. In recognition of its contribu- tions to the expansion of U.S. exports, DMT received a 2014 President's "E" Award for Exports and an Associated Industries of Massachusetts International Business Council (AIM-IBC) 2012 Global Trade Award. Prized by woodworkers, gardeners, chefs and home cooks, outdoor enthusi- asts and knife collectors alike, DMT's American-Made diamond sharpeners reflect a long-term commitment to excel- lence the world over. WHITE COFFEE'S BIOCUP HONORED FOR ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY White Coffee's packaging innovation, BioCup ® , was honored as a finalist in the 2015 World Beverage Innovation Awards for the Best Environmental Sustainability Initiative category. BioCup, one of the leading entries, captured the ecological niche for wholly biodegradable pods. The award ceremony was held on Wednesday, November 11 at BrauBeviale, one of the largest trade shows for the global beverage industry, held in Nuremberg, Germany. The awards feature 26 categories, including "Best Juice" to "Best Functional Drink" to "Best New Beverage Concept," plus categories for brands, ingredients, packaging, design, manufacturing and processing, sustain- ability and marketing and communica- tions. BioCup was selected from 360 entries representing 40 countries. With increased growth in single serve coffee offerings comes increased responsibility for waste disposal. The rev- olutionary compostable and biodegrad- able single serve packaging offers 90 per- cent degradation after six months. "We are very proud to be honored by the international beverage community for BioCup," says Jonathan White, Executive Vice President for White Coffee Corporation. "White Coffee is committed to be a leader in the industry in minimizing the effect of its activities on the environment." White Coffee presented the line of BioCup packaged coffees under the White Coffee brand. White Coffee's Bio-degrad- able and Compostable Organic Single Serve Coffee BioCup is available in 11 flavors: Colombian, Breakfast Blend, French Roast, Full City Roast, Mexican High Grown, Peruvian, Rainforest Blend, Hazelnut, French Vanilla, Sea Salt Caramel and Chocolate Morsel. White Coffee's BioCup is available in retail outlets nationwide and offered in 10- count and 80-count boxes. The cups are 2.0 compatible, for use with the Keurig ® system and similar coffeemakers.