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O C G S h o w D a i l y M o n d a y, Ju n e 6 , 2 0 1 6 2 0 BARIANI OLIVE OIL: A TASTE OF CALIFORNIA By Lorrie Baumann Bariani Olive Oil puts California on the table. The company, founded in 1990, offers California Balsamic Vinegar, Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Raw Honey, White Truffle-infused Extra Virgin Olive Oil and a small line of body care products. The family originally came to the U.S for university studies in Sacramento, California, then decided to stay and became citizens, said Emanuele Bariani. They founded a company in Sacramento and then found a piece of land in Zamora, California, that had 120-year-old olive trees growing on it. They started picking the olives and pressing them for oil that they gave to their friends, and after a while, they decided that they'd just make a business of it, Bariani said. A plug from Martha Stewart in 1999 helped the business take off, and the product line grew. "We have our own bee hives that produce the honey," Bariani said. "The only thing we import are the truffles. Domestic truffles are available from Oregon, but they're not as fragrant as the Italian ones." The company distributes its products throughout the U.S. and will ship direct- ly to consumers in areas where retailers are not available. For more information, visit www.bariani oliveoil.com. CHEWING THE FAT ABOUT EATING MEAT By Lorrie Baumann American demand for food that tastes better is helping some food animals live better lives, says D'Artagnan Chief Executive Officer Ariane Daguin, who credits chefs in fine dining restaurants for elevating Americans' expectations for how their food should taste. "Customers are getting more educated and are asking retailers to source these good pieces of meat for them," she said. "A happy chicken makes a tasty chicken. this is what we've been doing for 30 years, making sure the animals are not stressed and they're raised humanely. It makes a better piece of meat on the table." D'Artagnan distributes high-quality meat products in the eastern, southern and midwestern United States from warehouses and logistics facilities in Chicago, Houston and New Jersey. For much of the company's 30-year history, its primary market was fine dining restaurants, but the company's reach into the retail grocery market is growing because educated American consumers are demanding high-quality meats that have been raised humanely and without unnecessary antibiotics, Daguin says. "Over the past 30 years, I've found a tremendous drive for education and for wanting to know what you eat and being concerned about how the animals were raised," she said. "And the proof is our success. We are now in major retail stores, even in big supermarkets. It means something. It means that con- sumers are aware and don't mind paying a little bit more to have the security to know they are giving the right thing to their family." D'Artagnan has been a pioneer in requiring its suppliers to raise their ani- mals humanely, and the company is now working to educate consumers to under- stand what's on the labels they see on the meat in their grocery market and on their restaurant menus. She's particularly con- cerned about widespread misunderstand- ing of what the word "natural" means when it appears on a food label. "'Natural' on a meat label means absolutely nothing – literally," she said. For instance, consumers should look past the word "natural" on chicken labels to see if there's a statement there about a percentage of retained water, which would indicate that the product was chilled with ice water, which increases the weight of the bird they're buying because some of that chilling water is retained in the animal's tissue. A better choice would be a chicken, such as D'Artagnan's Green Circle brand, that was air-chilled rather than water-chilled – it costs more per pound, but it's a better product, says Daguin. D'Artagnan is also campaigning for better understanding of how antibiotics are used in the beef industry. Ranchers are allowed to give their animals non- therapeutic antibiotics to make them grow faster as long as they withdraw them a month before slaughter. "There is a huge difference between doing that and what we at D'Artagnan call antibiotic- free, which is a never-ever-ever program, which means that the animal has never had antibiotics," she said. "We got the attention of the USDA, and they are addressing it right now. We are going in the right direction. It just takes a long time." Over the past year or so, while the U.S. Department of Agriculture was con- sidering how to update the nation's dietary guidelines, animal rights activists and nutrition experts alike have been sug- gesting that perhaps, as a nation, we ought to rethink how much meat we include in our diets, using the argument that Americans' meat consumption is not environmentally sustainable. Daguin counters by arguing that it's factory- farming, not simply our carnivorous tastes, that's hard on the environment. "Factory farming pollutes, and pollutes big time," she said. She's an advocate of raising beef on pasture with naturally diverse vegetation and providing supple- mentary nutrition in the form of rich hay and silage during the winter rather than finishing beef in feed lots. "There's a sus- tainable way of having good meat with- out polluting," she said. Meat is more expensive to raise that way, and many are questioning how Americans will respond as those costs have an effect on what goes onto their plates. Restaurateurs and Slow Food advocates Dan Barber and Alice Waters have been suggesting recently that the time may have come to take meat off the center of the plate and to reduce restau- rant portion size to match the amount of meat normally served for a meal in other cuisines around the world. In many other cultures around the world, meat is used more for flavoring than as the main com- ponent of a meal, Barber observed. That won't necessarily decrease the cost of the meal, since the preparation of ingredients to take the place of that meat tends to be more labor intensive, but the result would be a healthier meal, he said. Daguin agrees. "In general, our U.S. portions are too big," she said. "That's not just about meat – it's everything. Portions are too big.... We associate big- ger with better. That is changing, but it is changing very slowly.... We want a full plate, and we've been raised to finish the plate, so we eat too much." She has a piece of advice for American restaurant diners: "Just realize that you have two portions instead of one, and just take half of it home in a doggie bag," she said. "It's going to be a tough uphill battle because it's so engrained in our culture in the United States that bigger is better." SUPERSEEDZ ANNOUNCES NEW MINI POUCHES SuperSeedz, creator of gourmet, dry- roasted pumpkin seeds, is expanding its family of products with a convenient, new one-ounce size mini pouch avail- able 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 fla- vor that has quickly become one of its most popular flavors; shortly after the launch, the flavor was awarded The Most Innovative New Premium Snack Award at the 2015 Sweets and Snack Expo. In January 2016, SuperSeedz announced 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 chan- nel, according to a recent Information Resources Inc. report. SuperSeedz offer more plant-based protein 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 ingredi- ents. About SuperSeedz Rooted in homegrown beginnings, the idea for SuperSeedz was cooked up by Founder Kathie Pelliccio in her own kitchen as a healthy snack for her fami- ly. Soon after developing the tasty, nutritious treats, Pelliccio began selling them in local farmers markets and independent retailers; the brand has since grown from a small seedling into the fastest growing seed brand in America. Currently available in nine mouthwatering fla- vors – Sea Salt, Super Spicy, Somewhat Spicy, Tomato Italiano, Curious Curry, Coco Joe, Cinnamon & Sugar, Really Naked and Maple Sugar & Sea Salt – SuperSeedz are dry- roasted in small batches without shells, using a proprietary, artisanal pan-roast- ing technique that bakes the seasoning right into each seed. The result is an enhanced snacking experience with unparalleled taste and a delightfully addicting crunch. SuperSeedz are sold at grocery, health food and gourmet food retailers across the U.S., including Whole Foods, Sprouts and Safeway, Inc. stores. For more information, visit www.super seedz.com.