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Gourmet News April 2018

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BY LORRIE BAUMANN Ariel Davila and her mom, Naomi, were first in line for the February 28 grand opening of the Sprouts Arizona Town Celebrates Sprouts Opening store in Sahuarita, Arizona, a bed- room community about 22 miles south of Tucson. "I love Sprouts. We like their produce, their chick- ens, their bulk items," Naomi said. "I told my family we're getting up early and going, even in the dark and the rain." She and her family arrived at the store's doors at 5:15 a.m. in hopes of being one of the first 200 in line who'd get a coupon good for a 20 percent discount on their initial purchase after the store opened its doors at 7 a.m. When that hour came, Store Manager Randy Williams had the entire store staff lined up at the front of the door to greet customers with cheers while he wheeled out carts to shoppers bundled up against a 40 degree temperature and driz- zling rain – downright wintry Registration for the inaugural SmartFood Expo™ is now open. This new event is the only busi- ness-to-business event solely fo- cused on fresh, healthy and better-for-you food and beverage products across all categories. Food retailers, industry leaders and amazing innovators will con- verge in Chicago June 25-27, 2018 for three days of education, networking and product discov- ery, where the future of better-for- you foods are on display. The focus of SmartFood Expo is on food that makes a difference – in food companies' brand port- folio, in retail and foodservice Registration Opens For Inaugural SmartFood Expo Continued on PAGE 10 Continued on PAGE 14 Continued on PAGE 8 operations, and in the mind, body and wellness of your customers. Attendees will discover a wide va- riety of consumer products, in- cluding natural foods, plant-based foods, fresh and healthy, organics, raw foods, products with clean labels and limited ingredients and much more. "This June, retail buyers will find a total store solution at Chicago's McCormick Place with the addition of SmartFood Expo," said United Fresh President and CEO Tom Stenzel. "Today's shop- pers are more zeroed in on healthy foods than ever before and that trend is only growing. The SmartFood Expo & Confer- ence is a one-stop shop for retail buyers and foodservice profes- sionals looking to learn about this dynamic market and discover new and innovative healthy foods to help their customers meet their lifestyle goals." New Expo Partner Pavilions Within the SmartFood Expo, the Plant Based Foods Association and its member companies will feature a wide array of new plant based foods, and shine a spotlight on this exploding category. "The Plant Based Foods Associ- ation is thrilled to team up with our friends at United Fresh at the new SmartFood Expo," said Michele Simon, Executive Direc- tor, Plant Based Foods Associa- tion. "We know our members will gain great value by collaborating with a neighboring industry also committed to offering consumers healthy, sustainable foods." Also on the show floor will be the Chicagoland Food Incubation Hub, which is hosted by the Chicagoland Food & Beverage Network, allowing locally based start-ups to gain exposure to a na- tional audience. The Scramble to Find New Sugar Substitutes BY LORRIE BAUMANN Red Duck Foods started with the idea that discriminating eaters who were putting great thought into their foods, sourcing them carefully, cooking them with all the skill they could muster and setting them proudly onto the table – only to see them doused with mass-produced condiments. "We went to a local campus bar, and over a basket of Tater Tots and some beers, we recognized there was a disconnect," says Jess Hilbert, co-Founder and Market- ing and Sales Manager for Red Continued on PAGE 13 Red Duck Foods Seeks Condiment Domination Duck Foods. "Restaurants were calling out suppliers on the menu for their proteins, but people were happy to dump junk on thoughtfully sourced proteins." This disconnect was significant to Hilbert and the friends who were with her because they were fellow students in a university class called "New Venture Plan- ning," and they had an assign- ment to design a business. The assignment was to conclude with a presentation to their class. "We made the ketchup and brought in some french fries, and everybody really liked it," she says. The three friends who'd part- nered on the project: Jessica Hilbert, Shannon Oliver and Karen Bonner, decided that they didn't have to end their project after they'd gotten their grade – they could actually start a com- pany and go into production. In 2013, they launched their Red Duck condiments in six stores in Eugene, Oregon. From the begin- ning, they made their ketchup and barbecue sauces with fresh, BY ROBIN MATHER As evidence mounts about sugar's effects on the body, consumers across generational segments are driving new demand for alterna- tive sweeteners, and manufactur- ers are responding. Millennials may lead the charge, says global market re- search company Mintel, but the desire to cut back on sugar spans all generational segments. "Sugar reduction is a trend among most consumers (89 percent)," Mintel says in a 2017 re- port, not- ing that Millenni- als have more rea- son than other segments to make this change. While almost all consumers agree that cutting sugar helps with weight loss, younger con- sumers also cite other concerns, such as dental health and improv- ing the appearance of their skin, Mintel says. What's new is that consumers want to avoid both sugar and chemical artificial sweeteners such as aspartame and saccharine, not just sugar alone. Instead, VOLUME 83, NUMBER 4 APRIL 2018 n $7.00 NEWS & NOTES n Albertsons Companies Appoints Jim Donald President and Chief Operating Officer PAGE 5 RETAILER NEWS n Sahadi's Opens Second Location in Industry City PAGE 10 SUPPLIER NEWS n Northern Wind Celebrates 30 Years with Brand Refresh PAGE 12 NATURALLY HEALTHY n Putting Dairy Back on the Menu PAGE 16 SUPPLEMENT n Creative Flavors PAGE 17 News ..............................................5 Ad Index .......................................22 Calendar.......................................22 www.gourmetnews.com G OURMET N EWS T H E B U S I N E S S N E W S P A P E R F O R T H E G O U R M E T I N D U S T R Y ® RETAILER NEWS: Harmons SEE PAGE 10 SUPPLEMENT: Creative Flavors SEE PAGE 17 HOT PRODUCTS: Bare Snacks SEE PAGE 21

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