Oser Communications Group

GOURMET NEWS JUNE 2016 www.gourmetnews.com Naturally Healthy NATURALLY HEALTHY 2 2 Consumers Thirsty for Healthier Beverages BY GREG GONZALES Need a quick caffeine boost and a blast of antioxidants? The ready-to-drink Matcha Love can do that. Maybe you prefer non- synthetic caffeine extracted from green coffee beans in fruit juice, along with a dose of vitamins — a company called Frava has you covered. Just like, "there's an app for that," beverages aren't just for hydration any more. "In general, consumers are getting the picture that empty calories are really causing our health problems in this country," said Chrissy Weiss, a registered dietitian who serves as Director of Mar- keting and Communications at Culinary Collective. "There's a movement. These big companies are seeing a decline in reg- ular soda sales and that's been going on for a couple of years now. There's a wave of information and a health movement that's going on in this country. What we're seeing today is that there's this whole other wave of people looking for healthy hydration, something that gives them health benefits." Some of these bev- erages include plant waters, low-sugar or natural-sugar juices, non-dairy probiotic drinks like kombucha and ready-to-drink simple beverages, like tea and coffee. Category growth has opened the doors for new producers and expansion oppor- tunities for larger ones, too. The tea mar- ket for instance, has grown by 15 times over since 2009. Loose leaf tea, ready-to- drink teas and cold-press coffee at home have become increasingly popular. According to Weiss, market success in functional and healthy beverages cate- gories is similar. "People are seeing these beverages like an affordable luxury, like specialty coffee drinks. I think these ap- peal to a lot of people because they're willing to do something that makes them feel good and buy a product that makes them feel better. … What people pay for these, even when a little pricier, they seem a little more affordable." Growth in better-for-you beverages may be coming at the expense of tradi- tional soft drinks. The last two decades have seen soft drinks taking a hard fall, by more than 25 percent, according to the New York Times — by more than $1 billion, since 2011. On the other hand, healthier beverage categories' double- digit sales growth is expected to continue for years to come. According to Nielsen reports, functional beverage sales in- creased by 6.9 percent in 2015 and will grow even more rapidly this year. The same report said that 90 percent of 2015 growth in juice beverages came from new product launches. GN Introducing Farmer's Pantry Farmer's Pantry™ is a company that's passionate about creating scrumptious, hearty snacks using the kind of authen- tic, identifiable ingredients you would find in a farmer's pantry. Every snack is lovingly crafted from meats, grains and vegetables, all sourced on American farms. Farmer's Pantry is debuting two snack lines: Farmer's Pantry Cornbread Crisps and Farmer's Pantry Meal Snacks. Both snack lines are designed to feed a nation that has moved away from the traditional three meals a day routine. "Americans are working longer hours and commuting more, so each snack is munchable, portable and totally deli- cious," said Josh Chaitovsky, Co-founder and CEO of Farmer's Pantry. "Farmer's Pantry Snacks are very relevant for today's hard-working Americans, and they are also highly distinctive as no one else in the marketplace is offering these kinds of products. In fact, there are no other cornbread crisps or meal snacks available to consumers." "We believe that it's high-time for snacks to be wholesome, substantial, made from natural ingre- dients and delicious," Chaitovsky added. "We also believe that to be truly sustainable, we must also pledge to give back to our American farmers and Americans in need by supporting important charitable or- ganizations such as Vet- erans Farm, Farm Aid, and The FamilyFarms Charities." Farmer's Pantry Corn- bread Crisps are made from 100 percent American farm-grown corn, and they're always baked, not fried. These are not tortilla chips. The company has transformed freshly baked cornbread or corn muffins into convenient, crunchy, mouthwatering crisps for a taste so delicious consumers will be instantly hooked. Cornbread Crisps come in three fla- vors: Original, Jalapeño, and Honey-Butter. Farmer's Pantry Corn- bread Crisps are avail- able in two sizes: 6-ounce bags of regular size Cornbread Crisps and 2-ounce bags of bite-sized Cornbread Crisps. Perfect for super- markets, mass market retailers, airport stores, and convenience stores, Farmer's Pantry Corn- bread Crisps are avail- able in 12 per case, and will retail in the $3.99 range for 6-ounce bags, and under $2.00 for 2-ounce bags. Farmer's Pantry Meal Snacks were de- veloped with proprietary natural spices and a proprietary slow cooking method for the beef, chicken and turkey, blended together with slow roasted, hearty and crunchy vegetables in an innovative dou- ble-pouched bag. Each meal snack is in- spired by traditional American recipes such as: Herb Roasted Turkey with veg- etables, cranberries and stuffing; Flame Grilled Chicken with slow roasted corn; Garden Harvest Chicken with vegeta- bles; and Mesquite BBQ Beef with roasted corn, and tomatoes. Every bite of Farmer's Pantry Meal Snacks has a sub- stantial serving of vegetables and protein as well as flavor and crunch. Farmer's Pantry Meal Snacks have a suggested retail price of $5.99, weigh 2.5 ounces, and are packed in an 8 pack case. They are perfect for supermarkets, mass market retailers, airport stores and convenience stores. For more information about Farmer's Pantry, visit www.farmerspantry.farm GN New Mini Pouches from SuperSeedz SuperSeedz, creator of gourmet, dry- roasted pumpkin seeds, is expanding its family of products with a convenient, new one-ounce size mini pouch available in six flavors, including Maple Sugar & Sea Salt, Sea Salt, Somewhat Spicy, Cinnamon & Sugar, Coco Joe and Super Spicy. The mini pouches are expected to be priced between $1.49 and $1.99 and will ship in a display-ready, 12-count caddy. "The new, smaller size pouch is a healthy, on-the-go snack that can easily be tucked inside luggage, school lunches, backpacks, purses or desk drawers," said Kathie Pelliccio, Owner and Founder of SuperSeedz. "One of the best things about them is that they are cute little standup pouches that don't fall over and spill on your desk after you've opened them." It has been a busy and rewarding 12 months for SuperSeedz. In 2015, it launched Maple Sugar & Sea Salt, a flavor that has quickly become one of its most popular flavors; shortly after the launch, the flavor was awarded The Most Innova- tive New Premium Snack Award at the 2015 Sweets and Snack Expo. In January 2016, SuperSeedz an- nounced it had become the No. 1 pre- mium pumpkin seed brand in grocery stores. Since becoming No. 1, SuperSeedz is now the fastest growing seed brand by dollar volume in the food channel, ac- cording to a recent Information Re- sources Inc. report. SuperSeedz offer more plant-based pro- tein than other nut sources such as peanuts, pistachios, almonds and chia seeds. It is Non-GMO Project Verified, free of cholesterol and trans-fats, vegan/vegetarian and allergen friendly – peanut-free, tree nut-free, egg-free, dairy- free, fish-free, shellfish-free, soy-free and made with gluten-free ingredients. The original idea for SuperSeedz was cooked up by Founder Kathie Pelliccio in her own kitchen as a healthy snack for her family. Soon after developing the tasty, nutritious treats, Pelliccio began selling them in local farmers markets and independent retailers, and since then, the brand has since grown from a small seedling into the fastest growing seed brand in America. The products are available in nine fla- vors: Sea Salt, Super Spicy, Somewhat Spicy, Tomato Italiano, Curious Curry, Coco Joe, Cinnamon & Sugar, Really Naked and Maple Sugar & Sea Salt. Su- perSeedz are dry-roasted in small batches without shells, using a proprietary, arti- sanal pan-roasting technique that bakes the seasoning right into each seed. Super- Seedz are sold at grocery, health food and gourmet food retailers across the U.S., in- cluding Whole Foods, Sprouts and Safe- way, Inc. stores. GN

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