Specialty Food Magazine is the leading publication for retailers, manufacturers and foodservice professionals in the specialty food trade. It provides news, trends and business-building insights that help readers keep their businesses competitive.
Issue link: https://specialtyfoodmagazine.epubxp.com/i/235863
trends & happenings SPECIALTY FOOD ASSOCIATION SUBMITS FSMA COMMENTS TO FDA On November 22, the Specialty Food Association submitted detailed written comments to the Food and Drug Administration on its Food Safety Modernization Act and how regulations proposed last February for preventive controls in food facilities stand to challenge small specialty food manufacturers. The Association recommends the FDA classify small and very small businesses more accurately and provide suffcient fexibility for these businesses to comply with the complex proposed regulation. The Association's full activities on the preventive control proposals this year include testimony in March at FDA public hearings by president Ann Daw in Washington, D.C., and Association members Tom Knibbs of Urban Accents and Elizabeth Fujas of Rising Sun Farms. In April, the Association had a listening session at the FDA attended by members Lenny Berl and Joy Bryant of Mrs. Bryant's, Reggie and Martha Rodgers of Rodgers' Banana Pudding Sauce and Eric Gertner of feast.—D.P. Shape Determines Taste Changing the shape of popular chocolate confections can also change their appeal—and not for visual reasons. As it turns out, shape determines how quickly chocolate melts in the mouth, which affects the order and speed that food molecules are released on the tongue and into the nose, according to the Centre for the Study of the Senses. What shape gives the best end result? A round chocolate scored among the best when it came to melting and smoothness.—D.S. NEW ORLEANS POST-KATRINA RESTAURANT SCENE IS BOOMING Though New Orleans has fewer people than it did before Hurricane Katrina hit in 2005, the city has 70 percent more restaurants, not counting fast-food or chain restaurants. More than 10 percent of the jobs in the metropolitan area are in the restaurant business, compared with an average of 8.2 percent nationwide, reports the New York Times. IN OUR TRAVELS Chocolate Addict: Toronto's Eclectic Confectionery With its brightly painted graffti exterior and illustrated logo, Chocolate Addict is hard to miss, even in the heart of Toronto's Kensington Market, a neighborhood of eclectic shops that bombards the senses with sights and sounds. Inside, the small retail space looks more like a corner candy store than high-end chocoPHOTOS: DENISE PURCELL late shop where truffes, bark and other confections are handmade on the premises by owner Jeremy Xing. Xing offers about 25 varieties of truffes in favors that range from traditional (caramel with sea salt, raspberry) to inventive (wasabi, ice wine). Seasonal favors such as watermelon are also available. Other confections include chocolate bark with Smarties candies, chocolate river rocks and chocolate-covered potato chips and gummy bears. Xing customizes confections year-round for special orders, such as chocolate-covered fortune cookies with a personalized message.—D.P. 16 ❘ SPECIALTY FOOD MAGAZINE specialtyfood.com