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GOURMET NEWS SEPTEMBER 2016 www.gourmetnews.com NEWS & NOTES 1 0 The Specialty Food Association's board of directors has named Phillip M. Kafarakis as President of the not-for-profit trade as- sociation. Kafarakis brings more than 30 years of food industry experience to the Specialty Food Association, with a background in in- novative brand management, membership development, and strategic planning. Since May 2013, Kafarakis served as Chief Innovation and Member Advance- ment Officer for the National Restaurant Association, based in Washington, D.C. The National Restaurant Association is the world's largest foodservice trade associa- tion, supporting more than 500,000 restau- rant businesses in a $780 billion industry. Prior to that, he spent 10 years with Mc- Cormick & Company in Hunt Valley, Maryland, a $4 billion public food com- pany. Kafarakis has also held executive leadership positions at Cargill, Jones Dairy Farm, and Kraft. He has a bachelor's degree in marketing management from Northern Arizona University and an MBA from Georgetown University. "We are very pleased to have Phil join our organization," said Becky Renfro Borbolla, Chair of the Specialty Food Association's board of directors. "His experience and in- sight to the industry will provide us with an excellent blend of strength in strategy, member development and engagement, sales and marketing, and innovative partnership develop- ment. Each of those qualities will be essential to our association as we seek to serve our members and the industry in new and compelling ways." "The Special Food Association is re- garded as the food industry's innovation in- cubator, while also preserving and promoting traditional processes and tastes," Kafarakis said. "I look forward to extending the Association's member value platforms and working with au- thentic food creators and purveyors at a time when the American con- sumer's interest in food has grown to new heights. It's a great honor to join the Association, and to work with and lead these most passionate and entrepreneurial food companies as we expand our mission." Kafarakis will be responsible for the strategic direction and day-to-day opera- tions of the Specialty Food Association, which serves more than 3,200 innovative, entrepreneurial member companies in the food and beverage industry. GN Phillip Kafarakis Named President, Specialty Food Association Choosing organic is the best choice con- sumers can make to combat antibiotic re- sistance and protect themselves from antibiotic-resistant bacteria, concludes a re- view paper from research and education or- ganization The Organic Center. Overuse of antibiotics in conventional livestock production has been implicated as an important contributor to antibiotic resistance. Research demonstrates that live- stock produced without the use of antibi- otics—as in organic agriculture—is an important part of the solution. Of particular concern in conventional agriculture is the routine use of antibiotics not only to treat infections but to increase the growth and feed efficiency of animals and as a prophylactic agent. In conven- tional agriculture, livestock manure dis- posal is one of the biggest ways antibiotic residues and resistant bacteria enter the en- vironment. Organic livestock, in contrast to conven- tional, are raised without the use of antibi- otics, which are prohibited by federal organic regulations unless medically neces- sary. If medically necessary, a sick animal on an organic farm must be treated, but then removed from the herd, and its prod- ucts—such as meat or milk—may not be sold as organic. "Organic livestock production, which prohibits the use of antibiotics for growth promotion or prophylactic purposes, pro- vides a compelling example of successful, profitable operations and demonstrates the ability of livestock farms to operate without substantial antibiotic use. Organic provides a model for how agriculture can contribute to a solution," says the study's co-author Dr. Jessica Shade, Director of Science Pro- grams for The Organic Center. The paper looks closely at the role of an- tibiotic use in conventional agricultural livestock production. It covers the mecha- nisms by which resistance develops in bac- teria, the role that modern-day agricultural practices play in exacerbating the problem, and how organic agriculture provides a simple and effective means to combat the rise of antibiotic-resistant bacteria and to protect the health of consumers. The paper points out that while cooking meat at the proper temperature will kill an- tibiotic-resistant bacteria, consumers are still at risk due to cooking preferences—for instance, a medium-rare steak—or through cross contamination of kitchen surfaces and cooking utensils. Organic production directly reduces consumer exposure to an- tibiotic-resistant bacteria via contact and consumption of supermarket meat prod- ucts. Surveys of retail meat products have demonstrated repeatedly that organic chicken, turkey, pork, beef and even eggs are much less likely to be contaminated with antibiotic-resistant bacteria than con- ventional meat products. GN Study: Organic Practices Reduce Exposure to Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria There is a clear demand for multicultural influence in the lives of American adults, according to a Harris Poll conducted this June. More than three quarters of Ameri- cans (78 percent) agree they love trying new things outside of their own culture. This desire for novelty and variety is even higher among Millennials, of which 84 per- cent love the exposure to different cultures. These are some of the results of The Har- ris Poll ® of 2,034 U.S. adults aged 18+ sur- veyed online between June 7 and 9, 2016. What people eat One place where people look to fulfill their desire for multicultural influence is in what they eat. About one quarter of all U.S. adults (26 percent) say it is at least very important that the foods they buy and consume contain multicultural fla- vors. Millennials place more importance on buying and consuming multicultural flavors than any other generation, with 32 percent saying it is at least very impor- tant. Among those ages 35-44 and 45-54, 27 percent each find it important, while only 20 percent of those age 55-64 and 21 percent of adults ages 65 and over feel the same. However, multicultural flavor is still not as important as other factors when purchasing and consuming food. Locally sourced ingredients are at least very im- portant for 36 percent of American adults, followed by organic or natural in- gredients (32 percent). Buying foods with multicultural flavor is seen as equally im- portant as purchasing from a company with a strong social purpose (26 per- cent). What people buy Adults are also seeking multicultural in- fluence in the brands they buy. When it comes to shelling out extra money, about one third of adults (32 percent) say they would pay more for a brand that under- stands multicultural needs. Among Mil- lennials, however, the proportion jumps to nearly half (47 percent) who are will- ing to open their wallets a bit further. As for where adults are going to shop, about half (49 percent) agree they would shop more at a retailer that offers a wider se- lection of multicultural products. These multicultural products are even more tempting for Millennials, with 65 percent agreeing they would shop more where there is a wide selection of multicultural products. GN Consumers Seeking Multicultural Influences La Truffe Royale Continued from PAGE 1 black truffle essence and also turn it into a Balsamic Black Truffle Glaze.' The balsamic sweetness stays there, and the black truffle essence doesn't collide, so they go together very smoothly." The La Truffe Royale line, launched just this year, has been received well by con- sumers, retailers and chefs, who can pur- chase the products in foodservice packages. Consumers like the products partly be- cause they're affordable, while chefs appre- ciate both the quality and the marketability of the new brand, which works well on a restaurant menu, according to Fortunato. "We're going to be working on making a black truffle mayonnaise for that line also, for sandwiches, hamburgers or to top a steak with it. It's a little bit different," he says. "Americans are really taking to truf- fles." GN Widmer Continued from PAGE 1 a real cheesemaker. "After doing this for al- most 100 years, the government feels that we don't know what we're doing, and we have to stop now," Widmer says. "After making cheese almost 100 years, now they're going to tell us how to make a safe product." Widmer doesn't have a quarrel with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's desire to protect Americans from food-borne ill- ness, but he does take issue with the FDA's apparent lack of respect for the tried-and- true care with which his family has been making safe cheese for nearly a century. "I do understand that the FDA is trying to make things safer for people, but it sure hurts smaller producers and traditional cheesemakers," he says. "We don't want to stray too much from the tradition and the authenticity because the product wouldn't be the same.... We're constantly striving to keep the quality up. We're always perfect- ing it more and more, but we're sticking with tradition and original products – that's our niche." The remodeling and expansion at the facility has allowed Widmer to add aging space for his cheddar cheeses and to in- crease the size of his mail order packag- ing area. "Mail order business has been increasing every year – as well as whole- sale and the sales from the store," Wid- mer says. The next step will be to expand the size of the retail store and construct a glass wall between shop and creamery, so visitors can still see how the cheese is made. A video will show the whole process, and guests will still have the op- portunity to talk to a cheesemaker and try samples of the cheese. "Who in their right minds is not going to communicate with their customers?" Widmer says. "We try to communicate with everybody as much as possible. My dad and my uncle never turned their back on a cus- tomer." For more information, visit www.widmers cheese.com or call 888.878.1107. GN

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