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GOURMET NEWS www.gourmetnews.com n JUNE 2017 n GOURMET NEWS 1 3 6 is just what the label says – very hot! The Gar- lic stuffed olive is offered two ways; the Nat- ural Garlic insert and the Italian Style with spices in the brine, making the garlic stand out a little more. Let's not forget the Jalapeno Stuffed Olive with a good balance of heat and olive. These five great products join the other MarDona favorites; Mild or Hot Muffuletta, Olive Antipasto, the Mild or Hot Giardiniera, the Sweet and Spicy Garlic Cloves and the Spicy Brussels Sprouts. No matter what your mood is, these items are great as snacks, salad additions, sandwich toppers and more. For more information, call 855.OIL.SPRAY (645.7772), go to www.truffleoilsandmore.com or email info@mardonaspecialtyfoods.com. MarDona (Cont'd. from p. 1) want to experience something new. Vivra is providing them something they never knew they wanted. The bars add color and brighten up any day. The chocolate feels and tastes timeless, sophisticated and international – in the tradi- tion of the great European chocolatiers. But the sweetness of each bite is perfectly matched to the ingredients, which add an air of intrigue and mystery – and most definitely make you smile. Vivra is a colorful brand that combines 30 years of chocolate-making with unexpected and innovative flavors and dynamic, colorful packaging. Vivra's chocolate satisfies the modern demand for surprise and connection while remaining true to the style and tradi- tion of European chocolatiers. Mixing inno- vative recipes with all-natural ingredients results in a line of vivid and fun chocolate that brings color and imagination to every- day life – and eating habits. The combinations may seem surprising at first, but they are winning fans and racking up awards worldwide at events around the globe. The Curry Cashew Bar won a Silver sofi Award this year. The Thai Satay bar has grabbed three awards, including the Silver for Best Ingredient Combination at the 2016 International Chocolate Salon. English Gar- den has won seven awards for its taste and creativity, including Gold for Best Mixed Chocolate Bar at the International Taste Awards. Chili Crunch has been the big win- ner so far, though: 11 awards, including a sofi award from the Specialty Food Associ- ation in 2016 and Gold for Best Milk Choco- late Bar with Inclusions in the USA and Asia at the 2016 International Chocolate Awards. Everyone wants to experience life better, taste great food, love what we do and go any- where we desire. But we can't always do or afford that. Vivra adds more color to our lives, makes it look better, taste better and feel better. Vivra is all about what you want and need. That's the power chocolate has to make us see, taste and feel something special. Vivra's line of artisan chocolate bars is sold nationally to specialty and grocery stores, and now has 10 fun and distinctive flavors in both milk and 65 percent dark. In addition, Vivra has solid white, milk and 65 percent, 72 per- cent and 85 percent dark chocolate bars, two caramel infused bars, as well as a line of Sin- gle Origin bars which are made bean-to-bar at its 15,000 square-foot third party certified production facility near Boston. From Chili Crunch, Thai Satay and Eng- lish Garden Bars, to basic solid chocolate, Vivra delights and surprises. For more information, visit booth #6107. Vivra (Cont'd. from p. 1) in the Specialty Food Association's 2017 sofi Awards competition. Coconut Cashew Crunch continued its winning streak at the NCA's Sweets & Snacks Expo, where it won the Most Innovative New Product award in the Gourmet/Premium category. The Most Innovative New Product Award winners, chosen from nearly 370 entries, were announced at an awards cer- emony celebration at the Sweets & Snacks Expo, held May 23-25 at McCormick Place in Chicago. Product submissions for all categories were rated on four weighted criteria: taste, packaging, innovation and go-to-market feasibility, by a panel of judges including leading candy and snack buyers, wholesalers, trade media and other food industry experts. A sofi is the top honor in the $127 bil- lion specialty food industry and represents the best of the best from members of the Specialty Food Association. Coconut Cashew Crunch with Dark Chocolate Driz- zle was selected from 3,000 entries across 39 categories by a national panel of 62 specialty food experts, including chefs, culinary experts, academics, food writers and category buyers. Products are judged in a blind tasting based on flavor, appear- ance, texture and aroma, as well as ingre- dient quality. "We are honored that Coconut Cashew Crunch has won a coveted Gold sofi Award as well as the Most Innovative New Product Award," said Phil DeWester, Vice President of Marketing for Las Olas Confections & Snacks. "We created a truly addictive con- fection for today's coconut-obsessed con- sumers. This tropical twist on a classic brittle is handmade in copper kettles with fresh shredded coconut, cashews, butter and brown sugar with a dark chocolate drizzle. The result is a deliciously crunchy, super sat- isfying snack and confection all in one." Anastasia's Coconut Cashew Crunch comes in three delicious flavors: Original, Dark Chocolate Drizzle and Jamaican Rum with White Chocolate Drizzle, and is avail- able in 4.35-4.5 ounce gable boxes and 5.75- 6 ounce re-sealable bags. "A sofi means a product, and the people behind it, have arrived," said Phil Kafarakis, President, Specialty Food Association. "This year's winners represent a devotion to excel- lence and innovation in specialty food that continues to fuel our industry, excite con- sumers and expand retail offerings around the world." About Anastasia Confections Anastasia Confections, makers of world-fa- mous Coconut Patties, has been committed to creating innovative tropical confections since 1984. Its products, made in an SQF Level 2 facility in Orlando, Florida, include Coconut Patties, Coco Bites, Salt Water Taffy, Choc-O-Gators and more. Anastasia is a Las Olas Confections & Snacks brand. Visit Anastasia at Las Olas booth #5702. For more information, contact Phil DeWester, Vice President of Marketing, at 407.816.9944 x204 or pdewester@ lasolasbrands.com. Las Olas (Cont'd. from p. 1) brothers realized that Argentinians were looking for a new kind of snack: something as healthy as it was delicious. Cachafaz has since become one of the first companies to introduce high-quality treats with whole, all- natural ingredients to the Argentinian mar- ket. Today, Cachafaz is a leading company throughout South America. The U.S. market is the next level. Cachafaz has had great feedback on its products so far from new clients in New York, Florida, California and Texas, and its just getting started. As a company, Cachafaz is constantly innovating to create new, high-quality products with a focus on natural, healthy food. Developing healthy, delicious and affordable food for customers is its top ob- jective. The Cachafaz philosophy is to select the best natural ingredients so that customers can enjoy a product with a variety of nutri- tional properties. It targets customers who care about ingredients, so Cachafaz empha- sizes right on the package what the cookies contain, and just as importantly, what they don't. Cachafaz is a great example of viral mar- keting success: simply through word of mouth, its customers have put the company at the top of national business. Enjoy the Cachafaz experience. Visit Cachafaz at booth #3734. Cachafaz (Cont'd. from p. 1) wonderfully intense flavors. It also features other unusual and traditional varieties such as the Gourmet PBJ. The DeBrand Truffle Collection, for chocolate fanatics, was created for those who intensely love chocolate – inside and out. They contain 12 incredible variations that seem almost too beautiful to eat … al- most. Each oversized piece is individually and artistically designed, but their true beauty lies within. Each silky, rich truffle is like a petite, luxurious chocolate dessert. The Connoisseur Collection, for the ad- venturous, is an exotic gift for the chocolate connoisseur. Created for those who have an appreciation for diverse flavors, textures and taste combinations, this artisan collec- tion will seduce your senses. By creating unique combinations of spices, rare ingre- dients and chocolate from around the world, this extraordinary palate of chocolates, with its unpredictable textures and tastes, will take you to a new level of chocolate appre- ciation! Currently sold in several gift shops, flo- ral shops, boutiques and more, each chocolate collection is no doubt a luxury item and a great gift for those who have everything or need nothing at all. In addi- tion to their three main chocolate collec- tions, DeBrand also offers twelve unique Tasting Bars, Sea Salt Caramels, Caramel Pecan Patties and Chocolate Thoughts™ Bars, which are available in both seasonal (Merry Christmas, Happy Halloween, Happy Valentine's Day, Happy Easter, etc.) and standard (Thank You, I Love You, Happy Birthday, Congratulations, Chocolate Makes Everything Better, etc.) varieties. Visit DeBrand Fine Chocolates in Atlanta, booth #2-3-210 and at NY NOW, booth #3186. For more information, call 260.969.8331, email wholesale@debrand.com or go to www.debrand.com. DeBrand Fine Chocolates (Cont'd. from p. 1) Specialty Food Sales Continue Strong Growth Trend The Specialty Food Association is reporting that dollar sales for the specialty food industry grew by 15 percent between 2014 and 2016 and reached $127 billion in annual sales in 2016, now accounting for 14.8 percent of all food sales at retail. Snack food sales reached $16.3 billion in 2016, and snacks now account for about 28 percent of the entire specialty food market. Jerky and meat snacks led the growth for the snack food segment, leaping ahead by more than 86 percent between 2014 and 2016, while sales of chips, pretzels and sim- ilar snacks grew by 13.6 percent between 2014 and 2016 and now account for more than $3.5 billion in annual sales. Cheese, including plant-based cheese alter- natives, still continues to be the leading cate- gory in the specialty food market, with $4.422 billion in sales during 2016, for a 12.4 percent increase between 2014 and 2016. The information comes from the Specialty Food Association's annual report on the state of the specialty food industry. "The State of the Specialty Food Industry 2017" is a col- laboration between the Specialty Food Asso- ciation and market research firm Mintel. The report indicates that while specialty food sales continued to climb in 2016, growth in retail and foodservice channels slowed over the previous year, partly due to an increase in online purchasing for these products. Some of the growth in the retail channel is coming in mainstream retail channels, with growth in sales in chain grocery stores and mass merchants outpacing that in natu- ral and specialty chains for the first time. Growth is also happening in the foodservice channel, as more fine dining restaurants adopt specialty food products into their menus. Foodservice represents more than one fifth of specialty food sales and grew by 13.7 percent between 2014 and 2016.