The side dish by Anna Wolfe

Kehe to buy Tree of Life

awolfe@gourmetnews.com (Anna Wolfe) — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 15:29:00 +0000

Kehe Food Distributors in Romeoville, Ill., had made an offer to buy its competitor specialty food distributor Tree of Life. Tree of Life sent out a press release this morning announcing the deal.
The deal, which includes Tree of Life's U.S. and Canadian operations, is expected to close early next year. Terms were not disclosed.
As I reported earlier this year in Gourmet News, Royal Wessanen NV announced its plans to sell its Tree of Life division. The Dutch conglomerate purchased Tree of Life in December of 1985 as their entry into the rapidly growing natural and organic food business in the United States.
Your thoughts?

Anna Wolfe, editor of Gourmet News
check out my gourmet news twitter feed: twitter.com/annawolfe

Friday afternoons

awolfe@gourmetnews.com (Anna Wolfe) — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 14:54:00 +0000

Ever notice how big announcements come about on Friday afternoons?
Two months after the International Housewares Association and the George Little Management teamed up to survey the industry on whether there was a need for one or two gourmet housewares show, the two parties in a joint statement Dec. 11 said they have concluded their discussions “without being able to reach an agreement to work together.”
Ten minutes later, I received an email from the GLM saying the Gourmet Housewares Show was moving once again to the New York International Gift Fair in January 2011. Dates for the winter NYIGF are Jan. 29 – Feb. 3, 2011.
A quick email to NYIGF’s Cathy Steel confirmed there won’t be a 2010 Gourmet Housewares Show.
In recent years, the Gourmet Housewares Show has moved from San Francisco to Las Vegas to Orlando, Fla., back to Vegas and then back to San Francisco. Its dates too have jumped to August from May. As much as I like a gourmet-centric show, this makes me wonder—has this show moved too many times? I’m curious to hear your thoughts. The collocation benefits buyers and exhibitors at the Winter NYIGF – but there’s also the AmericasMart in Atlanta that’s been receiving solid reviews for its new space from buyers and attendees alike.

See related story in Gourmet News’ archives:
Two shows? IHA, GLM team up to survey housewares industry on tradeshow need 11.2009
http://www.gourmetnews.com/index.php?p=article&id=gn200911ZnryYI
Check out the Gourmet News digital edition at http://gourmetnews.epubxpress.com

Anna Wolfe
editor of Gourmet News
Check out my gourmet news twitter feed at www.twitter.com/annawolfe0

Moving in the right direction…

awolfe@gourmetnews.com (Anna Wolfe) — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 16:22:00 +0000

Numbers out earlier today show that the economy is on the up and up.
According to the National Retail Federation, November retail industry sales (which exclude automobiles, gas stations, and restaurants) rose 0.6 percent seasonally adjusted from October.
According to numbers released today by the U.S. Commerce Department, November retail sales (they throw in sales for autos, gasoline stations and restaurants) moved ahead 1.3 percent vs. October and increased 1.8 percent vs. last year.

Anna Wolfe
editor of Gourmet News
check out my gourmet news twitter feed: annawolfe

YouTube to the rescue

awolfe@gourmetnews.com (Anna Wolfe) — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 22:31:00 +0000

Finally, I can say with a straight face that YouTube has contributed to my productivity.
Last week, I was trying to tune into the NASFT’s Trend Spotter web cast. And as my luck would have it, the ol’ internet connection kept flaking out. And to make matters worse, we at Gourmet News had planned to run this story in the January issue.
Lucky for me and for you, the Trend Spotter Web Cast is on You Tube in five segments…and best of all, its free.

Anna Wolfe
Editor of Gourmet News
Check out my gourmet news twitter feed: annawolfe

Here's to the holidays...

awolfe@gourmetnews.com (Anna Wolfe) — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 15:37:00 +0000

I hope your holiday shopping season is off to a solid start. Black Friday data is starting to trickle in....and according to the National Retail Federation, the number of shoppers out and about on Friday were up, but total sales were down.

Shoppers were out in force but looking for deals. And perhaps a short checkout line. My sister dragged me to one of those big box stores in the wee hours Friday morning, and before we even found a parking space, I was struck by the number of shoppers coming out -- without any purchases. We managed to find a parking spot, and upon entering the store, noticed the lines were wrapped around the store. We left and drove across town to another location where there were parking spaces and merchandise aplenty.

I'm curious to hear what you've noticed? Drop me a line.

Anna Wolfe
editor of Gourmet News
skype anna.wolfe
520.777.1402

Hit up by bloggers?

awolfe@gourmetnews.com (Anna Wolfe) — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 14:03:00 +0000

What's your opinion on bloggers? Do you "need" to send them free swag? Are you pursuing this marketing channel? I'd like to hear from you on this subject.

This is an interesting article on the topic from the LA Times.

Effective Dec. 1, bloggers are required by the FTC to state whether they have paid for a review. Learn more here.

Anna Wolfe
editor of Gourmet News
520.777.1402
Check out my gourmet news twitter feed at www.twitter.com/annawolfe

Black Friday Magic

awolfe@gourmetnews.com (Anna Wolfe) — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 16:23:00 +0000

What are you doing to create a little of that black friday magic at your stores? Our friends at Target will be offering $3, yes that's three dollars, small electrics, according to CNN Money.
You might not be able to give coffeemakers and toasters away, but maybe you can afford TV or radio ads, or newspaper ads? Or better yet, if you're in a business district, maybe you can share the cost of advertising with some of nearby neighbors.
In this digital age, don't underestimate the power of email to drive traffic to your stores. Use email send out store specials, holiday hours, and maybe even an e-coupon for an item or two in your store.
It's not too late to create your own holiday magic.

Anna Wolfe
editor of Gourmet News
skype: anna.wolfe
520.777.1402

Slashing inventory? not so fast

awolfe@gourmetnews.com (Anna Wolfe) — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 16:06:00 +0000

Over the weekend, the Washington Post ran an article about how some of the nation's biggest retailers—-Macy's, Walmart and J.C. Penney-- have slashed inventory and cut back on staff as consumers continue their frugal ways.
After last year's holiday season, retailers of all sizes were left with inventory they had to clearance out after the holidays. This year, retailers big and small, are making do with less and carrying less backstock.
On Nov. 7, The Gourmet Gallery's owners Cindy Utecht and Janet McDonald hosted their annual holiday open house at their two Oklahoma City area stores. For the holidays, they lease a 3,000 square foot space to house their wildly successful custom gift basket business and to store excess inventory. After 8 years in business, Utecht and McDonald thought they were adequately stocked for Q4. They were wrong. At the open house, they sold out of at least 5 items -- and had to reorder them last week. You can read more about The Gourmet Gallery here.
Here's to a prosperous holiday season.

Anna Wolfe
editor of Gourmet News
520.777.1402

Here's to branded products...

awolfe@gourmetnews.com (Anna Wolfe) — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 18:47:00 +0000

With unemployment reaching a 26-year high of 9.7%, frugality continues to be the new cool. Battling its 'whole paycheck' moniker, organic retailer Whole Foods Market launched its Whole Deal campaign showing that it is sensitive to today's price-sensitive consumers. Even house of cheap chic Target is branding its fashion-forward yet frugal shoppers as "frugalistas." Saving money is hip.

It's no wonder that house brands, or private-label products are in the limelight. First and foremost, they cost less than branded products—and that alone has piqued the interest of today's frugal consumer.

I received a letter to the editor earlier today that's worth sharing. It's in response to the Consumer Reports' article in this week's Gourmet eNews that says house brands taste as good or better than their branded counterparts. Rose Pierro, owner of Wild Rose Marketing in Boulder, Colo., wrote me earlier today to say not so fast! Thank you, Rose, for sharing your two cents. Her sound-off is below.

As always, I welcome you to send in your feedback as well.

Anna Wolfe, editor of Gourmet News
Check out my gourmet news twitter feed at www.twitter.com/annawolfe

Letter to the Editor:

I’d like to comment on an article that came out today in Gourmet News.

The name of this article is:

Magazine: Store brands equal to or better than name brands

Articles praising the store brands have been abundant lately with the downturn of the economy. I have been in the natural/specialty food industry for over 25 years on different sides of the industry. I currently am a specialty food broker in the Rocky Mtn Region.
My comment is in favor of the name brands (small preferably) and why a person should spend their money on them and not on store brand products. Ingredients are #1.
In the last few years I have been approached by bottlers/canners that have proudly shown me pictures of their private label products they’ve produced for companies that shall remain nameless, requesting that I take them on and represent them to my other clients.
My first questions to these peddlers are: where were they made, what are the ingredients and can I have samples? All of which come back – no - that no one else asks for this. Taste is obviously not a priority and it makes me worry about the ingredients and manufacturing processes of many of our private labels. This is all kept a dark secret. Look at the labels – they carry the name of the store brand, not where it was manufactured or by whom.
Most of us in the specialty food industry are label readers. I will not buy a product without reading the label first, let alone represent it. I must know where it is made and who makes it. Unfortunately that is not true for the mainstream population who tasted the products in this small sampling for this consumer report, however that doesn’t make it right. We need to educate the population about our products and be proud of the fine ingredients from which they are made and from where they come. Many times the name brand can be stretched further due to enhanced flavor properties – which will negate the original reason for purchase – low price point.
There have been very few times if any where I have tasted a store brand that was equal to the product that it is copying. I’m bothered by these articles and all of us in the specialty, gourmet, natural food industry should be also.
Where would we be without our small entrepreneurs who bring new ideas and products to market? Purchasing store brands that try to mimic them does nothing for them.
Rose Pierro, owner
Wild Rose Marketing

Gearing up for the holidays

awolfe@gourmetnews.com (Anna Wolfe) — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 17:48:00 +0000

Recently, I interviewed Pam Danziger, retail expert and the author of Shopping: Why We Love It and How Retailers Can Create the Ultimate Customer Experience. Worried about the state of the economy, shoppers will be spending—albeit less than in years past—this holiday season. The hot price point for general gifts—such as hostess gifts—is $25, Danziger said.
Consumers are still willing to pay a bit more for perceived value and quality, industry experts agree.
What items do you expect to be hot-sellers this holiday season? Email me.

Bring on the holiday foods & gourmet gift items

awolfe@gourmetnews.com (Anna Wolfe) — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 17:39:00 +0000

For the September issue of Gourmet News, we're doing a buyers guide on Holiday Foods and Gifts. Suppliers and importers -- do you have any gourmet gift items or items in holiday packaging? Please send in one product for consideration. We will try to include as many HF&G items as we can in the September issue of Gourmet News.

Here's what I need:

1. company name
2. phone # for retail (wholesale orders) orders
3. URL
4. Product name
5. a brief description of the product not to exceed 100 words.
6 Is this product gift wrapped for Xmas? Other holidays? (Please describe.)
7 Suggested retail price
8 1 high rez photo - 300 dpi jpg eps or tif.

I apologize for the super-short notice -- but I need this info by end of day July 23. Any questions, please call or email.

Thanks!

Anna Wolfe
Editor of Gourmet News

207.775.2372

Check out my gourmet news twitter feed at www.twitter.com/annawolfe

It's not too late to send in Summer Fancy Food Show new products

awolfe@gourmetnews.com (Anna Wolfe) — Tue, 05 May 2009 14:25:00 +0000

Gourmet News is wrapping up the Summer Fancy Food Show issue, and we want to hear from you.

We define new products as items being unveiled at the show. (This includes updated packaging, additional sizes of existing products & gift sets, etc.) This is a free editorial listing. For consideration please email the following:

In the subject head: "FFS" + your company name.
Please include your booth number
-product name(s) and brief description of the product(s) not to exceed 300 words
-colors/sizes/materials/flavors you will debut
-month product (s) will be available to retailers
-suggested retail price
-phone number for retail orders
-complete mailing address and
-URL.
-one high rez color photo smaller than 2 mb in jpg eps or tif format. If you are sizing the image, it should be 2 inches wide/high without any text.

If you're introducing new products at Americasmart in Atlanta (AA) or the Gourmet Housewares Show (GHS), follow the steps above.

I will confirm receipt of all emails with a “thank you” email.
Please note: We can not use pdfs, power point files, sales sheets or Word attachments with embedded graphics. Please note I can not guarantee placement, but I will try to use as many FFS new products as I can in the July issue of Gourmet News. What we don’t use in July, we’ll try to use in the August issue. Sorry, previously introduced products do not qualify.

See you at the show!

Anna Wolfe
Editor of Gourmet News

Check out my gourmet news twitter feed at www.twitter.com/annawolfe

Silver sofi finalists announced

awolfe@gourmetnews.com (Anna Wolfe) — Wed, 29 Apr 2009 15:29:00 +0000

Would you be up for the challenge of sampling almost 1,500 products in three days? My hat is off to a team of specialty food veterans who recently assisted the National Association of the Specialty Food Trade judge 1,433 food and beverages in 33 product categories.
In the end, 111 products received silver sofis, short for Specialty Outstanding Food Innovation. In the specialty food industry, these awards are the equivalent of the Oscars.
Entries were judged on quality, taste, innovation, packaging, ingredients and pricing.
You can see the complete list of silver sofi finalists here:
And if you want a glimpse behind the scenes of the three days of judging, check out this blog:
Winners will be announced during an awards reception on Monday, June 29, at the Summer Fancy Food Show in New York.
In June, the NASFT will bring the judges to New York once again to judge the entries for Outstanding New Product of 2009 and Outstanding Product Line of 2009. Stay tuned...

Amid discussions with EU, USTR delays tariff til May 9

awolfe@gourmetnews.com (Anna Wolfe) — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 19:59:00 +0000

Just yesterday, the U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk said he was delaying the tariffs scheduled to go into effect today on a whole new list of European specialty foods—until May 9. Kirk, in a statement, said the delay allows the USTR more time to negotiate with the EU.
In the statement, Kirk said there was recent signs of progress in negotiations with the E.U. “(European) Commissioner Ashton and I have been working to deal with this difficult problem, and I appreciate her commitment to resolving it. The EU has demonstrated seriousness in their efforts to solve this problem, and two additional weeks should be sufficient to establish whether we can address the remaining issues successfully,” he said.
Good news for importers stockpiling European chocolate bars, Italian mineral waters and Roquefort cheese. Or is it? If the negotiations are successful, what will everyone do with all the extra inventory. Time for a sale? Let me know your thoughts.

Anna Wolfe
editor of Gourmet News

report from the Associated Buyers show

awolfe@gourmetnews.com (Anna Wolfe) — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 18:48:00 +0000

It's not too often I make it to a distributor show. I was glad to make the quick drive down to Portsmouth yesterday to attend the third annual Associated Buyers tabletop show.

Not to get sidetracked, but I do travel to this seaside town quite often. I was just there last weekend for lunch and some beverages, and one of my favorite places to eat breakfast and lunch is the Friendly Toast. So I feel that I have a good lay of the land of this quaint New England town. But one thing that throws me, a Midwesterner, for a loop is the traffic circles combined with the median. It's like the one-two punch. You see it coming but you can't do anything about it. So after driving by the Frank Jones Center not once but twice, I finally made it to the sold out show.

For the the specialty food distributor, this was their largest show to date—with 170 participating vendors. Last year's show was 120 and back in 2007, the show's first year, there were 60 vendors on hand.

This year's show was at maximum capacity, and the plan is to keep the show about the same size for years to come.
About 170 vendors packed the space—20 more than expected, and there were vendors who were turned away because of the lack of space. I was there, so I can attest, there were companies in every nook and cranny.
Karta Owens, owner of the specialty food distributor, would like for the annual show to remain the same size in order for it to be a doable, one-day show. “If we made it too big, people may not come. I want the customers, the retailers, to have time to get through everything, and I want the vendors to get the chance to talk to everyone,” he said.
About 500 retailers had preregistered for the event, and the show had a steady stream of walk-in attendees, Aurise Randall, director of marketing for Associated Buyers, told me.
The show featured vendors new to the industry, suppliers new to Associated Buyers, and long-time suppliers with new and tried-and-true products.
First-time exhibitors included Naturally Nora line of all-natural baking mixes; Tizane Beverages ready-to-drink, 100 percent organic, all-natural, caffeine free beverages sweetened with blue agave; Culinary Collective line of Spanish specialties and its sister company Zocalo Gourmet for South American specialty foods and Kathie’s Kitchen Super Seedz seasoned pumpkin seeds.

Tariff update - Beef Hormones dispute

awolfe@gourmetnews.com (Anna Wolfe) — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 21:04:00 +0000

As a follow-up to my stories in the March and April issues of Gourmet News, and my earlier blog post here, the revised tariff schedule in the Beef Hormones dispute goes into effect April 23.

Originally set to go into effect March 23, the U.S. Trade Representative delayed the new tariff schedule implementation by one month, it announced March 13.

I reached out to the USTR again this week, and USTR spokesperson Nefeterius McPherson said "we delayed them to April 23 in order to see if we could reach a negotiated settlement (with the European Union.) If we don’t reach a negotiated settlement by April 23, then the additional duties that were announced on January 15 will automatically go into effect.”

Products being removed from the tariff schedule, such as rusks and mustard, were dropped from the list on March 23 as originally announced “in order to respect commercial arrangements that have been made in the period since January 15,” according to the USTR statement.

One day after the Senate approved U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk to the top trade post, he was meeting with EU Trade Commissioner Catherine Ashton on March 19.

You can read their joint statement here.

I continue to follow this ongoing story. If there’s any updates, I’ll post them.

Anna Wolfe, editor of Gourmet News

Create your own virtual housewares show

awolfe@gourmetnews.com (Anna Wolfe) — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 19:34:00 +0000

Didn’t make it to the International Home + Housewares Show in Chicago? No problem!

I didn’t make it to the International Home + Housewares show in Chicago last month. It was the first time in eight years I missed the show. In case you missed out on the housewares show, like I did, not all is lost. I’m here to help you create your own virtual housewares show.

Take some time out for education

Maybe you went to the show but didn’t have the time to check out the educational sessions? Now, you can listen and learn at your leisure. There’s three days of sessions from which to choose . Maybe the merchandising sessions could inspire a few creative ideas for your store’s kitchenware displays.

The International Housewares Association has posted MP3 files of all the education programs here.

Listen to them from your desktop or download them to your iPod. Plus, you can download the Powerpoint presentations. What great resources that’s at our fingertips, and for free. Personally, I plan to check out the following sessions:

10 Consumer Trends to Help You Create New Housewares Business in the Next 12 Months
Experience of the Future: Retail and Packaging Top Trends for 2010
& my perennial favorite, Color & Design by Leatrice Eiseman of the Pantone Color Institute.

Look at the new housewares products

And what’s a show without new products? Our sister publication, Kitchenware News and Housewares Review, has the show’s hottest items in its February, March and April issues. Click here to flip through the pages via the epubxpress tool—in full color. Plus, you can share and print this information easily.

Want to know what was abuzz at the show? Check out Karen Martin's show recap in my previous blog post or here.

If you were at the show, I’d love to hear what you thought of the show and what caught your eye. Drop me an email.

Anna Wolfe, editor of Gourmet News

Guest blog: Kitchenware News' Karen Martin on the 2009 International Home and Housewares Shows

awolfe@gourmetnews.com (Anna Wolfe) — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 17:13:00 +0000

Buyers come out for the 2009 IH+ HS

By Karen Martin, Managing Editor of Kitchenware News

Retailers searched for new products, rubbed elbows with celebrity chefs, sought the perfect colors and bonded with vendors at the 2009 International Home + Housewares Show held March 22-24 in Chicago. And, most importantly, early reports suggest that retailers were ready to buy. Exhibitors report successes.

“Overall, I think it was our best show in the last five years,” reported Juanita Coumbias, international sales and marketing director for Starfrit, a Canadian based distributor and product developer of kitchenware products. “I feel the show attracted fewer but more serious buyers,” said Coumbias. “There were no browsers. The buyers in attendance were there to look for something different to offer their consumers, and I guess we lucked out and had what they were looking for.” Was it luck, or perhaps good planning? When asked about Starfrit’s strategy going into the show, Coumbias explained, “We went in with the same strategy that we developed at the introduction of our Starfrit line: great value at a fair price. This being said, the economic climate did make this strategy more relevant.” Monika Schnacke, Frieling USA’s chief executive officer, employed an interesting and, apparently successful strategy for the show. “Our mindset was to simply pass on the recession, and I am pleased to say the response was fabulous,” explained Schnacke. Her definition of passing on the recession was to bring some 160 new products to the show.“Such a strong strategy was certainly a bit unorthodox, especially in this climate, but we went into the show better prepared than ever,” said Schnacke. “Retailers recognized that Frieling has something for everybody, at all price points and in various product categories.”

Frieling’s success at the IH+HS show bodes well for other shows in 2009. She commented, “The success of the IHA Show prompted us to sign up for the San Francisco Gourmet Show in August.”In the Electrics divison, Bill Booth, vp, sales and marketing for Toastess International, was also having a good show. Booth may have benefitted from the change in the line-up in the Lakeside exhibit hall. Some of the larger vendors in the electrics category did not exhibit this year.

Regarding this change up, Booth commented. “We had meetings with some people that we probably would not have met with before, and we had more time to spend with people that we usually are in front of.” About the show in general, Booth was clear, “There is no question that it was worthwhile. We never even considered not going to the show. In a matter of days we were able to interface with many people. This is a major event for us,” Booth added. Escali’s president and CEO, Theo Prins, echoed previous comments, “The show was great for us. We fortunately had a good location.” Prins agreed with others that the traffic felt like it was down, but those in attendance were serious buyers. Prins also had some celebrity star-power drop by the booth. Paula Deen stopped and chatted with Prins. Deen is no stranger to Escali scales; she picked this brand of scale as one of her favorite kitchen items last year.

Chantal, the Texas-based cookware, bakeware and accessories manufacturer, embraced the new frugality of consumers with a slight twist. Kristen Kauffman, SPM Communications, said “With Chantal, we stayed on strategy. We are not a budget line, but we are looking at ‘elegant frugality’.” She added, “You don’t want to bring a paper plate wrapped in foil to the neighbor’s pot luck; you want to bring an elegant, functional item like Chantal’s new Make & Take™ collection.” Kauffman wants consumers to know that you can be frugal with style. While these veterans of the show did well, Leslie Haywood was also having a pretty good show for a newcomer. Attending her first show as founder and president of Charmed Life Products, LLC, Haywood’s one word summary of the show was “fabulous!” Charmed Life Products produces dime-sized “grill charms,” designed by Haywood, to be placed in food before grilling. When asked about her strategy going into the show, she said, “I just knew I needed to sell sell sell .” Haywood commented, “I was amazed at the connections and relationships that are built at the show. I hired a whole fleet of sales reps and learned where to go for my next big idea. Going is invaluable.”

New products reflect “burrowing” consumers.

Lee Eiseman, the International Housewares Association’s color and trend expert, characterized the current mood of the consumer as “burrowing.” During her remarks on consumer trends to a ballroom packed with show attendees on March 23, she explained that consumers are retrenching deeper into their homes and seeking old fashioned comfort in response to an out-of-control world. New products on display at the show aimed for the heart of these comfort-seeking, burrowing consumers. With a back-to-basics theme, catch words such as value, frugal, and environmentally responsible were heard throughout the show. The value side of the equation appeared as manufacturers refined their good, better, best lines for distribution. But manufacturers also reached out to consumers with new approaches to comfort foods. Chicago Metallic had the meatball baker; Progressive International introduced the collapsible cupcake carrier; Toastess International reinvented the slow cooker with its new Multipot; and Heartland Bakeware showed off the new Convertible AireGourmet™ cake pan. In a seminar dedicated to the top trends in 2010, Tom Mirabile,vice president global trend and design for Lifetime Brands told the audience, “The recession is a life changing event for consumers.” Learning to live within our means has produced a new look at frugality. “Consumers are canning, growing herbs, brown bagging and eating at home,” added Mirabile.??While consumers may be embracing these activities, don’t forget Chantal’s frugality-with-style approach mentioned above. Todd Hannon, president of the Hannon Group, is definitely out in front of the brown-bagging-with-style trend. His Sachi insulated lunch bags were introduced at the end of last year. At the show, he previewed additional styles of chic lunch carriers. Hannon said, buyers liked the new styles, but “functionality was key, with a lot of interest in extra pockets.” Another of Mirabile’s top trends focused on environmental accountability. Consumers are clear. He said, “They want you to have ecologically sound products without charging more.” He added that consumers will demand the environmental accountability going forward, so manufacturers better figure out how to deliver the product without charging a premium. J.K. Adams exemplified this trend with their new Forestry Stewardship Council certification. In 2008 the company was certified under the chain of custody certification program of the FSC. The FSC is a worldwide program with the mission to ensure forestry practices are environmentally responsible, socially equitable and economically viable. According to John Rodrigues, J.K. Adams’ vice-president, what was a 15% difference in price points for their FSC certified product line versus their non certified product lines, dropped to five percent. This pricing drop occurred as more of their original wood suppliers acquire FSC certifications. Color is always a hot topic. No accounting of the IH+HS is complete without reporting on the color forecast developed by Lee Eiseman and her colleagues. In her seminar “De-Mystifying Future Forecasts”, Eiseman explained that the color forecast is as much about new color combinations as it is about the colors themselves. She said, “We are not re-inventing the color wheel, just working with new combinations.” Particularly in this economy, most consumers are not bringing in a completely new set of colors to their home. They are looking for ways to freshen their look, not replace it. Eiseman said, “Consumers are resenting thoughtless waste; sustainability will continue to be a key feature.” Eiseman presented Pantone®’s color forecast for 2010 including eight palettes: Greenmarket, Resourceful, Transformations, Ambiance, Gatherings, Galaxy, High Definition and Pastiche. The color combinations for each palette can be found on the Pantone website, www.pantone.com.??While Eiseman tries to steer the audience away from the idea that there is one “in” color for housewares in any given year, she pointed out that Pantone® did select Mimosa Yellow as their color of the year. Yellow is a hopeful, inspirational color choice, noted Eiseman. Yellow might be a great way to sum up the 112th annual IH+HS. Retailers and exhibitors were hopeful and inspired by the show. Hopefully, a little green will find its way into the pockets of both retailers and manufacturers as consumers are lured into stores by fresh, value-oriented products.

Creating a buzz with a promos

awolfe@gourmetnews.com (Anna Wolfe) — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 21:32:00 +0000

I live in Portland, Maine, where the winters are dark and long. As I write this in early April, snow is in the forecast.
Imagine the audacity of a local public relations firm, inspired by big cities like New York and Denver, to plan a Maine Restaurant Week promotion in the height of winter—in a down economy no less. Restaurants—everything from the local brew pubs to the James Beard nominated Fore Street—participated in the promotion. Taking advantage of social networking, the organizers set up a Web site listing all the participating restaurants and their Restaurant Week menus. It also created a Facebook group and a Twitter feed to keep everyone in the loop.
Hungry for excitement and a good meal, diners bucked the stay-at-home trend and went out to eat. Restaurants were booked solid, even on Tuesday night, and one participating restaurant that had to turn away hungry diners extended its special menu and pricing through the entire month.
In the end, the promotion was a success, according to local reports. And as a multi-night participant, I wholeheartedly agree. I braved the winter forces to test out new restaurants and to visit favorite standbys. My only complaint is that I didn’t get to try all the restaurants on my wish list.
My point in telling you this is that well-executed promotions work. They create interest and drive sales—even in what’s being called a “reset economy.” So put on your thinking cap and get creative to drive traffic to your retail store.

Anna Wolfe, editor
awolfe@gourmetnews.com

Preparing for the worst...

awolfe@gourmetnews.com (Anna Wolfe) — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 17:53:00 +0000

I've spent a lot of time talking with importers and retailers of European imports and getting their reactions to the pending revised trade action in the Beef Hormones dispute. And as the senate is scheduled to vote on Ron Kirk's nomination as the U.S. Trade Representative this week, I thought the time is right to revisit what is looming around the corner for select European specialty food products.

Importers, retailers ready for tariffs

By Anna Wolfe, editor of Gourmet News

WASHINGTON—Retailers and importers are hoping for the best and planning for the worst as the March 23 effective date for new tariffs approaches.
Days before the U.S. Trade Representative’s Revised Trade Action goes into effect, the Senate is scheduled to vote on the nomination of former Dallas Mayor Ron Kirk to be U.S. Trade Representative this week.
The new list of E.U. foods slated for 100 percent duty was announced by the USTR on Jan. 15, during the final days of the Bush administration.
It is unclear what triggered the change in products. "The goal of these modifications is to reach a resolution of the dispute under which the E.U. would allow market access for U.S. beef, and the United States could end its trade action," said former U.S. Trade Representative Susan Schwab in a Jan. 15 statement. If the trade action is not repealed or delayed, it will be the first change since 1999 to the list of European Union products subject to additional duties in connection with the World Trade Organization dispute settlement rulings in the E.U.—Beef Hormones dispute.
When asked by Gourmet News why certain products were targeted with 100 percent tariffs while products, such as mustard and rusks were removed from the list, Roger Wentzel with the USTR office declined to elaborate.
Even though his company is not affected, David Hauss, national sales manager of Couturier NA, importers of French goat cheese, described the USTR’s revised rulling as "totally ridiculous.
"If they wanted to do something that would really impact France, the USTR would have picked Champagne," he said. "Roquefort is such a specialty product that’s symbolic of the country."
The same, Hauss said, goes for other products on the list—lingonberry jam from Sweden, bone-in cured pork from Spain and Italian mineral waters.
After the Roquefort with 100 percent duty worked its way to the cheese cases, sales dropped by 50 percent, said Trish Pohanka, director of purchasing for Chicago-based European Imports.
Roquefort sales did not go unnoticed by the U.S Trade Representative. "The reason Roquefort was increased to 300 percent is because it has been on the current trade list—and it was still coming in," said USTR's Wentzel. "One-hundred percent duty was not deterring trade. These are trade sanctions. The idea is to deter that trade. We’re trying to get parties to comply with WTO ruling."
Retailers and importers interviewed in February by Gourmet News—including Taylor Griffin, The Rogers Collection; Stephanie Ciano-Pace, Crystal Foods Imports; and Dave Giambalvo, The Cheeseworks—were cautiously optimistic the Obama administration would repeal or delay the action that will add 100 percent duty on European products.
Roquefort cheese, on the original 1999 list, will have its tariff increased to 300 percent from 100 percent. Retailers and importers interviewed by Gourmet News in February agree the 100 percent tariffs could double the retail prices of the targeted European imports—and push Roquefort cheese in the market of $65-$80 per pound.
Fretting over the upcoming price hikes, importers and retailer too were stockpiling product at press time. Importers interviewed by Gourmet News including European Imports, Chicago; Rogers Collection, Portland, Maine; Crystal Food Imports, Lynn, Mass.; and The Cheese Works, Alameda, Calif.—were all looking at bringing in additional inventory of some of the targeted products before the March 23 deadline.
Griffin, co-owner of The Rogers Collection, imports the Jamon Iberico bone-in hams and other Jamon Iberico products through its Fermin USA division. "People are madly trying to ship to get product in the door" before the March 23 date, he said. If the measure goes through, it will kill the market for the bone-in Iberico ham. "Forget it, we can’t sell $400 pound meat," Griffin said.
Don Harris, owner of La Tienda, an online purveyor of Iberian specialties based in Virginia Beach, Va., agrees with Griffin that the sales of Jamon Iberico will dry up if the tariff goes into effect.
"We sold 400 in the last few months," said Harris about the expensive bone-in ham. "The market is limited as to who will buy it."
Even before the news of the tariff hit, Harris was already planning to sell pre-sliced Jamon Iberico from the paleta or shoulder, which isn’t subject to the tariff. Griffin already imports a presliced Jamon Iberico product to the U.S. market.
Also preparing for the worst and hoping for the best is the Italian National Association of Meat Processors. "We don’t know if it is going to hit," said David Biltchik, chairman of Consultants International Group, Washington, which represents the Italian National Association of Meat Processors in the United States. Biltchick believes Obama’s message of change might prevail. "They (the Obama administration) don’t want to start their relationship with the European Union in a negative way."
Just in case, Biltchik has advised the Italian National Association of Meat Processors "to anticipate for the worse."
If the revised tariff schedule goes into effect, it will be the first change to the list of E.U. products subject to additional duties in the Beef Hormones dispute since 1999.
In 1998 the World Trade Organization ruled that the European Union’s ban on U.S. hormone treated beef was not based on science and was inconsistent with WTO rules. With the WTO’s authorization, in 1999 the U.S. imposed additional duties on a list of E.U. products with a total trade value of $116.8 million.
On Jan. 15, the USTR published its revised trade action on www.ustr.gov, listing 65 classes of E.U. products targeted with 100 percent duty. The duty on Roquefort, on the original list, has been increased to 300 percent from 100 percent.
Items removed from the list include mustard, preserved tomatoes and rusks. Truffles and goose liver are among the products staying on the list with 100 percent duties. -end-

Quality and relationships

awolfe@gourmetnews.com (Anna Wolfe) — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 16:44:00 +0000

Over and over again, I keep hearing two words in my conversations with people in the industry—quality and relationships.
Both are backbones of the gourmet retail industry. If you’re not offering a quality product at a fair price, why bother? And if you’re not maintaining relationships—with your customers in your community, your neighbors, your suppliers and lest we forget your staff, your chances for success are greatly diminished.
Recently I spoke with Ric Rhinehart, the executive director of the Specialty Coffee Association of America about their annual exposition—which is April 17 to 19 in Atlanta. And while we talked about how the show has evolved—as a result of listening to their members’ feedback—we also touched on some issues facing the coffee industry in general.
Like with so many other gourmet food products, the quality of coffee and its availability has greatly improved in the past decade or so. I could say the same about tea, cheese, wine, breads and private label—just about every food category.
With coffee, you no longer have to go to a local coffee shop to get a great cup of joe. Last March, the folks over at Consumer Reports did their own black coffee taste test—lining up black coffee from McDonald’s, Burger King, Dunkin’ Donuts and Starbucks. The Consumer Reports panel named McDonald’s Premium coffee the best. I’ll take their word for it. My point is 10 or 15 years ago, Consumer Reports wasn't talking about the quality of coffee. And a sign of the times that quality is an increasing concern, Folgers has switched its blend to 100 percent Arabica.
So for some veterans of the specialty coffee industry, they may think the sky is falling. But really, the floor is rising beneath them, Rhinehart said. What a great point. The takeaway for all of us is that quality isn’t a gourmet industry exclusive.

Anna Wolfe, editor of Gourmet News

Gourmet Buzz

awolfe@gourmetnews.com (Anna Wolfe) — Thu, 19 Feb 2009 22:20:00 +0000

Right here and now, I'm starting a new feature here on The Side Dish... The Gourmet Buzz.
The Gourmet Buzz will be a regular round-up of consumer media mentions of gourmet goodies. As folks in the trade, its good to know the skinny on trends. Plus, it's great to share good news.

So here's my inaugural post.

The March issue of Real Simple features the Fusion Brands’ IceOrb, the ice bucket/cooler as one of its cool product picks. Pictured above, the Ice Orb Makes 21 cubes of ice on a vertical wall and also chills wine and other bottled beverages. Plus its top rack dishwasher safe.

Tortuga Rum Cake Co., Miami, is featured in the February issue of Coastal Living magazine. Inside, there's a feature article on how the Hamaty couple turned a family rum cake recipe into the Tortuga Rum Company, whose cakes are the biggest export of the Cayman Islands.

For the second time, the Snack Factory's Pretzel Crisps were featured as the Rachael Ray show's Snack of the Day. The All Natural Dark Chocolate Covered Pretzel Crisps were featured on Ray's Emmy winning show on February 3rd.

Want to make sure something is on my radar? Email me or call 207.775.2372 x 12.

Anna Wolfe, editor of Gourmet News

Anna Wolfe's podcast interviews from the Winter Fancy Food Show

awolfe@gourmetnews.com (Anna Wolfe) — Sat, 14 Feb 2009 18:04:00 +0000

At the Winter Fancy Food Show last month, I taped some of my interviews with a digital recorder. Here's my first attempt at podcasting. (Click on the headline above to be routed to the audiofiles stored at box.net)

An interview with Nirmala Narine, founder of Nirmala's Kitchen line of exotic spices and seasonings. In this interview, Anna Wolfe gets the scoop on Nirmala's second cookbook, published in Fall 2009 by Chronicle Books. Yet to be named, the book focuses on street food.

At the Winter Fancy Food Show, Dinesh Perrera talks with Anna Wolfe about the launch of the Spicy Gourmet line of fairly traded & whole spices from Sri Lanka. This nifty set includes a spice grinder and whole spices so home cooks can createe their own Spicy Gourmet blends.

In this interview Anna Wolfe discovers the Sprouted Almonds at the Winter Fancy Food Show. Ray Longhurst of Sprouted Almonds explains. Sprouted almonds are about 20 percent protein and contain all the essential amino acids.

Betsy Power of the Culinary Collective is the founder of Rooted Foods, a seal of transparency that assures consumers the products they purchase are fairly traded by ethical companies that use the money from their products to benefit their communities. This year, Power hopes to spin off Rooted Foods into a non-profit group. Editor's note of full disclosure: Anna Wolfe is a member of the Rooted Foods board.

Zeke Freeman, owner of Bee Raw Honey, talks with Anna Wolfe about sourcing single varietal honeys from small apiaries throughout the U.S. Why should we all be concerned about Colony Collapse Disorder? Listen and find out...

Harvard educated Paulina Penaloza is the founder of Chilean Gourmet. In this interview with Anna Wolfe, Paulina explains how Chilean Gourmet works with indigenous peoples of Chile, such as the Mapuches, to manufacture Merken. Chilean Gourmet introduced a Chocolate Bar with Merken, a seasoning made with roasted goat's horn peppers.

Mike Gingrich of Uplands Cheese Co. talks with Anna Wolfe about Pleasant Ridge Reserve, a seasonal farmstead cheese that has won the coveted Best in Show award at the American Cheese Society twice. Learn more about what makes this washed rind cheese, in the style of a Beaufort D'alpage, so unique and an American orginal.

Good news, bad news

awolfe@gourmetnews.com (Anna Wolfe) — Thu, 12 Feb 2009 22:17:00 +0000

So let's start with the good news first. The National Retail Federation, a trade association for the nation's retail industry, sent out a bit of good news today....

Retail Sales Show Unexpected Rebound in January, According to NRF

January sales were up .5 percent for the month vs. December. I know a half a percent isn't a lot, but positive growth, in the month where retailers are deep discounting winter merchandise, is still good news.

But here's more bad news. Sales for the month of January were down 9 percent vs. a year ago. Ouch.

Gourmet smackdown

awolfe@gourmetnews.com (Anna Wolfe) — Fri, 06 Feb 2009 22:34:00 +0000

The U.S. Trade Representative’s revised trade action couldn’t be more ill-timed. Or rather, should I say better timed to wreck more havoc on the gourmet retail industry?
Pushed through during the last days of the Bush administration, the USTR unveiled its new

Publish Post

list of targeted products in the ongoing EU-Beef Hormones Dispute on January 15. You can see the full documents here. Back in November, the USTR publishes a notice in the Federal Register seeking public comments on the list of products subject to additional duties. If nothing is done by the Obama administration, we’ll be facing 100 percent duties on many European specialties such as bone-in hams, chocolates, Italian mineral water, lingonberry and raspberry jams come March 23. And for Roquefort, on the 1999 original list, the tariff jumps to 300 percent from 100 percent.
And while the clock is ticking, the USTR is running on auto-pilot while we wait for Ron Kirk, the former Dallas Mayr, to be approved by Congress.
For importers of European specialties, I feel for you. Between this list, the weak dollar and the current economy, it seems that the road to profit is more like an obstacle course. Maybe there are alternatives to import and domestic alternatives for distributors to source and retailers to stock. But we all know there are some gourmet food products that have no equals—imitators and good knock-offs maybe. Roquefort, Prosciutto di Parma, Jamon Serrano and Jamon Iberico—all are in a class by themselves. And if these products are zapped with these tariffs—fewer people will enjoy these unique delicacies. When customers can’t stomach the price increases, retailers won’t be able to move products at a higher price point and importers may not bring in as much— or any—of these products.
The Jan. 15 statement from the USTR, states “An interagency committee of trade experts and economists reviewed the public comments and provided recommendations to the USTR with respect to modifications that would result in a more effective action, while taking account of effects on the U.S. economy, including consumers.”
If the goal here is to hamper the gourmet trade, I’d say “Mission Accomplished.”

Anna Wolfe, editor of Gourmet News