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Rumiano Cheese Commits to Carbon Neutrality by 2030

Rumiano Cheese Company, California’s oldest family-owned cheese company, has committed to achieve carbon neutrality by 2030. As a first step, Rumiano has introduced a climate impact program to accelerate efforts to improve the sustainability of its supply chain.

Rumiano has partnered with the CDIC, a coalition of California dairy producers, processors, major universities and the California Dairy Research Foundation, created to collaboratively drive dairy innovation and productivity. Established by the California Milk Advisory Board, the CDIC supports industry innovation through grants, internships, research projects and educational training.

With support from the CDIC’s Dairy Business Innovation Initiative, Rumiano has hired its first sustainability impact intern to assess the company’s entire ecological footprint. Cal Poly Humboldt environmental science major Ellie Frazier has spent two months collecting and documenting comprehensive baseline measurements on all business activities that contribute to energy and water consumption, resource usage and carbon emissions.

With baseline data in place, Frazier has entered the second stage of her research where she is analyzing areas of the business that have the greatest opportunities for optimization and environmental outcomes. Frazier’s research has already identified a number of climate impacting opportunities around transportation and sustainable packaging and she will be exploring additional ways Rumiano can further reduce emissions by decreasing miles traveled of raw materials and finished goods.

This collaboration with the CDIC builds on Rumiano’s long commitment to advancing sustainable farming and production practices and a record of innovation. Rumiano has already made significant investments in sustainability on several fronts.

Ambitious initiatives range from its zero-waste cheese manufacturing plant that recycles and repurposes everything from cardboard and plastic to whey and wastewater, to the company’s in-house wastewater treatment facility that biologically treats 20,000 gallons of cheese production wastewater per day. This process not only prevents 99 percent of milk solids from entering the environment through groundwater and rivers, it enables the water to become potable and usable for its community and puts clean water and food grade compost equivalents back into the land.

Last year, Rumiano opened an energy-efficient 46,766-square-foot state-of-the-art cheese packaging plant in Willows, Calif., that will soon run on 100 percent renewable solar energy generated on-site like the company’s existing facilities.

As we work toward our long-range sustainability action plans, we are committed to continuous progress across the entire supply chain. We know that over time, small changes in our farming, manufacturing and packaging processes will lead to big transformations. But the greatest impact on the health of our planet will lie in our collective ability to make pasture-based, regenerative farming practices more affordable and accessible to all farms,” said Joe Baird, Rumiano Cheese Company’s CEO. Regenerative agriculture promotes healthier soils that absorb more carbon into the ground and keep more greenhouse gasses from the atmosphere.”

Progress relies on innovation and collaboration,” said Veronique Lagrange, director of the CDIC, “We value our partnership with processors like Rumiano and are pleased to offer support through the Dairy Business Innovation Initiative to help them achieve their business objectives.”

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Inflation: Americans Fear Losing Lifestyle, Change Food Shopping Habits

Nearly half of Americans (45 percent) feel like they can’t afford their previous lifestyle and 76 percent of American consumers say their family has changed how they buy food with prices on the rise. In addition, two-thirds (66 percent) are more mindful of how they are spending their money. These findings are part of a new consumer sentiment survey on inflation commissioned by NCSolutions, a leading company for improving advertising effectiveness.

Eighty-five percent of Americans are very concerned or extremely concerned about inflation and almost unanimously (93 percent) they said we’re in an inflationary time. On the same economic theme, over half (57 percent) are concerned about the country’s financial situation, while 47 percent say they’re concerned about their family’s financial situation. Eight out of 10 or 83 percent of Americans expect the cost of living will become somewhat more or much more expensive in the coming year. Sixty-five percent of Americans agree with the statement ‘my income has not increased as fast at the cost of food, beverage and personal care products.

“For the second time in a little over two years, consumers are pivoting to new purchasing behaviors at the grocery store,” said Alan Miles, CEO, NCSolutions. “Since the start of the pandemic, they’ve been swapping their favorite brands for what’s available. Today, though, value is the centerpiece more often than availability, consumers are selecting brands and products to stretch their budgets as far as possible. CPG brands that meet customers where they are both in this inflationary moment and as prices ease have the best shot at keeping them for the long-term.”

NCSolutions’ proprietary purchase data, which reflects the buying trends of consumers for CPG products, shows an almost 13 percent price increase on average. In a six-year price trend analysis, we see that price increases in 2022 are pacing at an accelerated rate compared to other years.  The survey findings bear this out with 58 percent of consumers believing the cost of living will be much more expensive in the coming year and 71 percent feeling the U.S. economy is declining.

On a consumer packaged goods category level, there are wide variations in percentage increases.

Compared to one year ago, 6 in 10 Americans believe CPG product packaging has gotten but costs the same. Consumers still feel the strain of supply chain issues as 69 percent say there are fewer items of the same product on the shelves. Thirty-six percent of Americans said there is less variety of  brands available on the shelf today compared with one year ago.

Over half (53 percent) of American consumers say they find basic food staples more expensive; 40 percent believe a recession will occur in 2023. For almost half of consumers (46 percent), this means buying fewer non-essential items on the food aisle, or for 43 percent, it means buying only the essentials.  Seventy-one percent of Americans say the increased price of groceries is straining their savings. For other American consumers, increased prices on the grocery aisle mean seeking out less expensive brands (45 oercent).  Other ways consumers are coping with the increased price of groceries are loading up the pantry (27 percent) or freezer (26 percent) or shopping closer to home (24 percent).

When it comes to consumers’ preferred brands, they have to make tough choices. Sixty percent of consumers seek less expensive alternatives when their favorite brands reach a price beyond their budget. Forty-six percent of consumers plan to go without their favorite brands, and 43 percent of consumers look for sales to offset the cost. In the survey, respondents could select multiple ways they react.

“Though it may be tempting to pull back on advertising, a more effective strategy is to recognize and respond to consumer ‘stress-flation.’ Brands have an opportunity now to build loyalty and attract new customers with empathetic marketing,” said Leslie Wood, Chief Research Officer, NCSolutions. “We’re heading into a period of heavy CPG purchasing moments, such as back to school and the approaching holidays. Compelling, well-targeted advertising is a proven strategy for increasing brand equity and sales both in the short- and long-term.”

Respondents were asked, “When shopping for groceries, which products are most important.” The majority ranked:

  1. Affordable products that provide a clear value for my money
  2. Finding food products that feed their families for several meals
  3. Products they know their families will enjoy eating

The online survey of 2,141 respondents was fielded from June 17- 20.  Responses presented in this survey were weighted by location, education, income and other demographics to be representative of the overall population.

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505 Southwestern, Famous for Hatch Chile Products, Celebrates 25 Years of Flavor

505 Southwestern, the country’s leading flame roasted green Hatch chile brand, celebrates 25 Years of Flavor this year and is hosting a major event in Albuquerque to celebrate the milestone in the location it was originally founded by local restaurateur and entrepreneur Roy Solomon.
The public event, hosted at Solomon’s food hall Tin Can Alley, will feature celebrity chef and Food Network star Aaron May, and the world’s largest portable green chile roaster which will be roasting fresh Hatch chiles live for attendees. In addition, guests will enjoy music from iHeartRadio affiliate 100.3 The Peak and a food demo from Cgef May with tickets starting at $25.

The celebration is scheduled for Thursday, Sept. 15 at 6:30 p.m. at Tin Can Alley, on Alameda Boulevard just east of I-25. Tin Can Alley has gained national recognition as an innovative venue featuring locally inspired food, beverages, and entertainment. Santa Fe Brewing is an anchor tenant alongside several other local vendors.

As part of the year-long silver anniversary celebration of the brand, 505SW invited its fans to submit recipes featuring its world famous green chile. The winner of the contest, Southern California resident Merry Graham, is scheduled to be in attendance, and Chef May will share his twist on the winning recipe, Air Fryer Southwestern Salsa Verde Corn and Bacon Rangoons.

The event is open to the public (subject to capacity limitations) and the first 150 people to buy tickets will receive a commemorative gift bag. General admission tickets are $25 and include food from all Tin Can Alley food vendors. Tickets can be purchased through Eventbrite HERE.

Fans who are unable to join for the event can celebrate with 505SW virtually by participating in 25 Years of Flavor contests and virtual events by following 505SW on Facebook, TikTok, and Instagram.

“For 25 years, 505SW has been committed to creating the highest quality products using the best and most simple ingredients from the Hatch Valley. Now we want to celebrate with the people who have made our success possible,” said Rob Holland, executive chairman of 505SW. “We will be demonstrating our commitment to our fans and communities with a recipe contest featuring incredible prizes, other giveaways, special offers, and charitable giving all year long.”

505SW started in 1997 when Albuquerque resident Solomon began bottling and selling his unique recipes for green chile sauce and salsa. Honoring his local area code to develop the brand, Solomon’s “magic ingredient” was fire-roasted, Hatch chile.

With humble beginnings as a local favorite, the brand has grown today to become the largest nationally distributed jarred green chile sauce brand. 505SW is sold in every U.S. state and internationally. 505SW’s parent company, Flagship Food Group, operates multiple facilities in New Mexico throughout the state and created the 505SW – New Mexico True Scholars program in 2017 to support local New Mexico high school students interested in studying agriculture in college.

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