Oser Communications Group

GOURMET NEWS www.gourmetnews.com n JANUARY 2018 n GOURMET NEWS 8 2 Fran Bigelow Makes Her Name in Chocolates By Lorrie Baumann On Fran Bigelow's list of the most important things in life, chocolate is way up there. Like, really way up there. A visit to Paris planted the seed in 1969, when Bigelow walked into a chocolate shop and found something that had been missing from her life. "The smell and the taste of the chocolate was something we didn't have here. We just did- n't," she says. When she returned home to Seattle, Washington, that thought came with her. "I was very interested in fine food, and I was taking cooking classes, and I ended up pursuing my love of cooking at the California Culinary Academy," she says. "It's all been wrapped up in fine food and chocolate, and it's been really great." The seed planted during that trip to Paris blossomed in 1982 when Bigelow opened the first of what is now four retail stores, all in Seattle. The location is not a coincidence, and it's more than just that it's Bigelow's home. "Seattle is a really welcoming place for new businesses, and it still has that very supportive atmosphere," she says. In the early 1980s, chocolate wasn't a superfood — an entire concept that hadn't yet been born — and the American food movement was in its infancy. Bigelow's obsession with chocolate was a little odd back then. She spent a lot of time educat- ing her customers about what fine choco- late was supposed to taste like and why it was more expensive than the mass- marketed products, an effort that continues today. "At that time, great chocolate was not readily available. This was a commitment to finding high-quality choco- late and working with it," she says. "Because at Fran's, chocolate is the cen- tral focus, and when you eat a Fran's prod- uct, you should always taste the wonderful flavors of fine chocolate." "All along, we have been trying to educate people about what fine chocolate is," she adds. "Now we've developed some really fine tasters who are holding us to higher standards, so it's been a really nice ride." Her search for better and better chocolate has led her to a recent re- formulation of many of her products with all organic ingredients, follow- ing two years of work getting organic certification and fair trade certifica- tion. "We now use a very good or- ganic chocolate," Bigelow says. Fran's Chocolates' Almond Gold Bar, winner of the 2017 sofi Award for Best New Product in the Chocolate Candy category, and Macadamia Gold Bar are two of those. The Almond Gold Bar is made with caramel and roasted almonds and dark chocolate, and the Macadamia Gold Bar is the same, except that it has macadamia nuts instead of al- monds. Frans' Chocolates' Gray Salt Caramels, made with 67 percent dark chocolate and fin- ished with sea salt harvested off the coast of Brittany, and Milk Chocolate Smoked Salt Caramels, dipped in 39 percent deep milk chocolate and sprinkled with sea salt smoked over Welsh oak, were the first of Fran's Chocolates' products to go organic, and the company's Park Bar, made of milk chocolate with roasted peanuts, is now or- ganic as well, as is the Fran's Chocolates Dark Chocolate Sauce, Caramel Sauce, and Raspberry Sauce. "Those have been a huge hit," Bigelow says. "With the Chocolate Sauce and Caramel Sauce, you're going to have it on ice cream, and particularly for children, people are incorporating organic ingredients and sustainable philosophy in all of their food decisions." Bigelow's children, small when she began making chocolate and feeding a good deal of it to them, have now joined her in the business. Her son, Dylan, is now the company's Director of Chocolate and does a great deal of work on recipe devel- opment. Her daughter, Andrina, with a master's degree in business administration from Cornell University, is the company's Chief Executive Officer. Bigelow herself stays busy with quality control and staff training, which is particularly vital for a company that's still a very seasonal busi- ness. The company has a permanent staff of about 85 employees, but additional em- ployees come on board as production ramps up for the holiday season. "All the wonderful staff at Fran's have worked so hard to- gether to get to this place, and everybody's been totally on board. It's made expan- sion doable while keeping the quality everything we want it to be. ... It's been a wonderful 35 years and a great way to enjoy the family and build something we're really proud of." Argentinian Extra Virgin Olive Oil Launches into American Market By Lorrie Baumann Lucini Italia, a subsidiary of California Olive Ranch, has launched a new Everyday Extra Virgin Olive Oil from Argentina under its Lucini brand. Lucinia Italia's Premium Se- lect Extra Virgin Olive Oil and Organic Pre- mium Select Extra Virgin Olive Oil will continue to be produced on partner estates in Italy, and the Lucini oil coming from Ar- gentina is packaged in bottles clearly labeled with the oil's origin. Argentina has been known over the past several years for making really great award- winning olive oils, but they hadn't found fans yet in the U.S., and as a result, much of that oil that came into the U.S. market was coming as a component in a blended oil, with its Argentinian origin obscured by its label mention in a country code on the back of the bottle, according to Mike Forbes, Executive Vice President and General Manager of Cal- ifornia Olive Ranch. This Lucini's new 100 percent Argentinian oil is a mild, green, fruity oil, a blend of the Arbequina, Picual, and Italian varietals including Coratina, Frantoio and Arbequina varietals, that's great for everyday use, he said, adding that, "Once we tasted it, we fell in love with it." All of the olives for the new Lucini oil are grown in the wine regions of Mendoza, which is also where the grapes for Malbec wines are grown, and in south San Juan. "We work di- rectly with the producers. We visit directly with our team," Forbes said. "We hand-select all of the oil at harvest. ... We take every con- tainer of olive oil and test it to make sure that it meets our specifications and the specifica- tions that define extra virgin olive oil." The olive growers from whom California Olive Ranch Lucini sources the oils are mostly family farmers, some of Italian her- itage as the result of a wave of Italian immi- gration that happened in Argentina at the beginning of the 20th century, just as many Italians arrived in the U.S. at that time. It's estimated that around half of Argentina's current population has some degree of Italian descent. Other contributors of fruit to the Lu- cini oil are Argentinian growers who've be- come attracted to the olives as a new crop over the past decade or two. These Argentin- ian producers are entrepreneurial and pro- gressive, bringing a New World perspective to their craft as well as the savvy to team up with Lucini and California Olive Ranch, which have established roots in the American market and the distribution network that goes along with that, according to Forbes. "The U.S. is a pretty tough place to do business," he said. "We can help growers with that be- cause we're taking the product and bringing it to the shelf all the way to the consumer." California Olive Ranch also offers the strength of the Lucini brand, which is al- ready familiar to American consumers. "We're taking this great Argentinian oil and we're showcasing it as a 100 percent Argen- tinian oil, and that's really exciting for the growers," Forbes said. "What we have seen in the U.S. is that there's a huge and increas- ing demand for high-quality olive oil. People want to know where it's from. They want high-quality oil with good flavor." Adding the Argentinian oil into the com- pany's product range will help ensure the availability of fresh oil on the shelf through- out the year, since Argentina's location in the southern hemisphere means that its olives are ready for harvest during the United States' spring. "There's obviously a freshness ben- efit," Forbes noted. California Olive Ranch is offering the Lu- cini Everyday Extra Virgin Olive Oil in 500 ml and 1-liter bottles. The 500 ml bottle re- tails for $10.99, with the liter retailing for $17.99. "That's a price point that works for the consumer," Forbes said. "We find that consumers are willing to pay a little extra to get something they know is good." Frozen Food Section Heats Up From frozen desserts to appetizers and meals, the frozen section in U.S. grocery stores has the ability to be a one-stop shop for consumers on the go. Twenty-six percent of total U.S. grocery shoppers are shopping in the frozen foods department more fre- quently than last year, and it's being led by Millennials and households with children, according to Acosta, a full-service sales and marketing agency in the consumer packaged goods (CPG) industry, and the company's latest report, "The Future of Frozen." This research and insights report released by Acosta focuses solely on the frozen category and shoppers' behaviors and preferences in these aisles. "Frozen food is certainly its own umbrella category, but its versatility allows it to span multiple mealtime occasions, which is why there has been a lot of room for growth and innovation across items and brands," said Colin Stewart, Senior Vice President at Acosta. "Competition in the category is heat- ing up as fast-paced Millennials, who often take greater interest in the health benefits of food than older generations, look to frozen as a way to eat well in a convenient and has- sle-free manner." Fresh foods continue to reign supreme in the grocery store, but attitudes toward frozen products might be thawing out as the category is starting to prove itself as stiff competition for the store perimeter. In particular, although most shoppers feel fresh food is healthier than frozen, each generational demographic has reported buying more frozen food than last year, in- cluding 43 percent of Millennials; 27 per- cent of GenXers; 19 percent of Baby Boomers; and 19 percent of Silents. For shoppers purchasing more frozen foods this year, the following factors are ranked as most important in making purchasing deci- sions: No antibiotics (76 percent); hormone free (76 percent); all natural (73 percent); sustainable (71 percent); and low sodium (69 percent). Among respondents who an- ticipate buying more frozen foods in the coming year, 41 percent cite convenience as the reason why, while 32 percent of shoppers said they were expecting to pur- chase more in the frozen food aisle because those products don't spoil as quickly as fresh foods. "Retailers and brands should keep in mind that a majority of consumers are looking for quick and easy options, while continuing to search for products that provide variety and health benefits to their households," said Stewart. "However, frozen foods are one of the few categories that are still more fre- quently purchased in store than online, so these items just might be the key to drawing shoppers from the perimeter into center store, as shoppers can check many items off their grocery lists at once. Retailers should ensure the frozen section is easily navigable, and should keep end-cap freezers stocked with a variety of teaser items as to what else is available down the aisles."

• Cover