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GOURMET NEWS NOVEMBER 2016 www.gourmetnews.com SUPPLIER NEWS 1 2 After exceeding $50 million in revenue in 2015, Verde Farms,which supplies grass- fed, grass-finished beef for both retail and food service, invests in the company's next phase with the hires of two food in- dustry veterans to the leadership team. Guiding the sales and marketing divi- sions, Joe Koch has joined the company as Vice President of Sales, and Pete Lewis has joined as Vice President of Market- ing. Both are newly created positions and happen in tandem with additional hires that have doubled the company size. Koch and Lewis will report directly to Co-founder and CEO Dana Ehrlich and will be key drivers in Verde Farms' growth strategy. Well established in the food industry, Koch, who has a background in sales, trade marketing, and category management, brings more than 20 years' experience with consumer brands in highly competitive cat- egories. He previously led the sales teams at Harry & David and Dole Fresh Vegeta- bles, along with stints at Frito Lay and Kraft. Koch joins Verde Farms as the com- pany prepares to launch new product lines which will introduce Verde Farms' grass- fed beef to a new audience of conscious consumers. As Vice President of Sales, Koch and his team will be responsible for increasing distribution of the entire portfo- lio in wholesale and foodservice channels nationwide. With a passion for the natural, organic and better-for-you food and beverages, Lewis is an accomplished marketer with extensive experience in the food industry. Of his 22 years working with consumer brands, Lewis spent eight years growing Stonyfield Farms' presence in the organic dairy market. He also led the marketing teams at Lightlife Foods, Backyard Farms, and Jasper Wyman & Son. Lewis brings to Verde Farms his expertise in creating and cultivating authentic brand to consumer re- lationships. "We had a very successful 2015 and it's clear the company is poised to take an even bigger lead in the rapidly growing grass-fed industry," commented Verde Farms' CEO and Co-founder Dana Ehrlich. "We are all very excited to wel- come Joe and Pete and to work alongside them as Verde Farms continues to charter new territory." The hires come as Verde Farms transi- tions to a new location in Woburn, Massa- chusetts. The new space is double the size of the former office to account for the growing team and to foster future product development and increased client services. Embracing the energy of a tech start-up as opposed to a traditional food producer, Ehrlich wanted a modern space that culti- vates innovation and reflects the company's mission to democratize the consumption of grass-fed beef. GN Verde Farms Hires New Execs to Propel Growth In 1990, B.R. Cohn Olive Oil Company was founded and began producing gourmet olive oil, one of the first made in Sonoma Valley in almost a century. The B.R. Cohn Estate contains over 450 picholine olive trees (French word from piccolo – meaning small, petite) imported from France in the mid-1800s. This historic grove of picholine olive trees led to the naming of the vine- yard as the Olive Hill Estate. B.R. Cohn Olive Oil Company was one of the founding members of the California Olive Oil Council. The mission of the COOC is to uphold the highest quality standards within the olive oil industry and encourage the consumption of certified California extra virgin olive oil. Today, all of its extra virgin olive oils have passed the COOC's rigorous testing and bear the extra virgin olive oil seal of quality. The California Blend Extra Virgin Olive Oil is B.R. Cohn's best selling light-bodied, aro- matic oil and is full on the palate, with bright olive fruit and floral under- tones. A custom blend of olives is pressed within hours of harvest to ensure freshness. It is a go-to daily extra virgin olive oil for sautéing and grilling. Certified organic by QAI, the Organic California Extra Vir- gin Olive Oil is m e d i u m - b o d i e d with sweet grass and floral undertones, fresh olive fruit fla- vors and a slight white pepper finish, crafted from organi- cally farmed olives that are grown, harvested and pressed in California under the strictest conditions. Grown in northern California, B.R. Cohn's Unfiltered Extra Virgin Olive Oil is a unique blend of olives. The delicate fruit flavor and peppery finish create a versatile olive oil for a variety of culinary needs. B.R. Cohn's Tuscan Extra Virgin Olive Oil is a blend of Tuscan varietals grown in Cal- ifornia with a defined pepper, spice and grassy flavor and a full-bodied finish. Driz- zle over pasta, sprinkle over salads or use to marinate meats. Find more information about B.R. Cohn's extra virgin and flavored olive oils, plus a full line of wine inspired and balsamic vine- gars online at www.brcohn.com. GN California Extra Virgin Olive Oils from B.R. Cohn Virginia Diner: A Passion for Peanuts BY LORRIE BAUMANN The original Virginia Diner, a roadside fam- ily diner along the main highway route across Virginia towards the beaches, Williamsburg and Jamestown, has an 87- year history as that place where you stop if you're making one of those road trips, and while you're waiting for your meal and letting the vibra- tions of the road work their way out of your bones, you get some free peanuts to nibble on. "In Vir- ginia and the Mid-At- lantic, people know the restaurant. They have a fond memory of going to the beach on vacation, and we're part of that ex- perience. It gives people a fond memory of what they've done," says Scott Stephens, Virginia Diner's Director of Sales. "People have been coming here since the Depres- sion and all through World War II. It's the longest-running roadside diner in the state." Customers loved it. Then they started asking if they could take a piece of that experience home with them, and sud- denly, Virginia Diner was in the peanut business. "The mail-order business grew from people com- ing into the restaurant, picking up peanuts while they were eating, and asking if we could send them some," Stephens says. Those peanuts were locally grown – they're a major crop for southeast- ern Virginia. "What we grow in this area is the Vir- ginia-type peanut, and we only buy the super extra- large size," Stephens says. "There are a lot of peanut companies in this area, but the Diner is the most well-known of all the re- gional brands because of the restaurant." Today, Virginia Diner has turned a pas- sion for peanuts, especially the super extra- large peanuts, a bit of nostalgia and home team pride into a product line comprising peanuts and cashews with multiple added flavorings or chocolate covering packaged in cans with art that honors the team mascots for colleges around the country and the artistic vision of Norman Rock- well. "We started licensing in 2007," Stephens says."Licens- ing really took off for us, and it became dominant." Salted Peanuts are the com- pany's best sellers, along with Chocolate-Covered Peanuts and Old Bay-Seasoned Peanuts. They do well in both gift shops and in specialty food markets. All of the company's salted and unsalted peanut products are non-GMO Project Ver- ified, kosher and certified by the American Heart Association. Products packaged in college colors do especially well during back-to-school sea- son, while the Norman Rockwell-themed packaging moves a lot of nuts during the winter holiday season. Virginia Diner is currently exploring other licensing partnerships to expand the products' appeal throughout the year as well as continuing to develop the ex- isting line of interesting flavors. "All of it's for the purpose of giving someone a reason to pick up the can, compelling them to buy peanuts," Stephens says. "We have some year-round licensing op- portunities that we're creating to pull the product off the shelf and into the shop- ping basket." GN

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