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/328566
Entering a room with six giant hot-smokers, Bajo notes that this is the very space in which the company began in 1954. Each smoker holds up to 2,000 pounds of fish at a time. The process requires, at minimum, internal temperatures to reach 145 degrees Fahrenheit for at least 30 minutes, Viteri explains. Cold-smoking is a longer process that involves drying the fish. The cold-smoking room, at 2,585 square feet, houses 20,000 pounds of fish for a 20-hour smoking time. Temperatures average 70 degrees, Viteri notes, never exceeding 85 degrees (at which point fish would begin to cook). Slicing and Packaging. While high-end buyers can get orders hand-sliced, Acme uses slicing machines for its commercial products. The company recently upgraded its slicing machines to high-tech models that can process about 200 fillets per hour per slicer. These slicers aren't just fast; scanners and measuring devices make them truly smart tools. "Many of the slicers adjust automatically to the shape and size of the fillet to optimize [slicing] and efficiency," Viteri explains. Packaging is the final step, prior to which the smoked fish is cooled to 38 degrees or below to preserve freshness. The continual challenges of maintaining freshness and maxi- mizing shelf-life have pushed Acme to test new methods. "One of the challenges is keeping products fresh when exposed to the elements of a supermarket," Viteri says. To adapt to growing concerns about nitrites in recent years—which came into play after vacuum-packing technology came along in the late 1970s—the company began sub- stituting green tea in the Acme line as a natural antioxidant. Regulations and Certifications All Acme production facilities are BRC certified, but Acme's adher- ence to safety, quality, and sustainability standards extends beyond on-site production. The company requires its suppliers to have Marine Stewardship Council or Best Aquaculture Practices certifica- tion, and representatives regularly visit fisheries as part of its quality management program. Those visits not only ensure high-quality materials, but they also help build long-lasting relationships. One of the company's big- gest suppliers in Chile has been working with Acme for more than 20 years. "We've built these very long and loyal relationships to the point where, today, many of their sites have been designed to spe- cifically produce for Acme so that their product complies with our standards and guidelines," Viteri says. "There's a lot of involvement." In an industry where a large percentage of customers are Jewish communities, kosher certification is essential. Virtually all of the company's smoked fish products—excluding sturgeon, marlin, and keta salmon candy—are kosher certified. A rabbi oversees produc- tion at the facility, and materials that don't meet kosher standards (such as sturgeon) are kept separate from all other products. Every year, in the weeks leading up to Passover, Acme makes modifica- tions to production to adhere to kosher pareve rules, such as the substituting certain oils used in its salads, Bajo explains. It's one of the company's busiest times of year, with production and sales climbing by 15 to 20 percent, Viteri notes. Opening Doors to the Community While Jewish communities are still among the biggest consumers of smoked fish, the demographics are evolving as younger and experi- mental shoppers get hooked on the product. In fact, Acme's launch of the Ruby Bay line in 2006 had foodies and millennials specifically in mind. "The ones that are willing to try new things, new flavors," Viteri says. The line includes recently introduced salmon jerky, which Viteri calls "incredibly popular." Nowhere is the growing interest in smoked fish more evident than at Acme's Fish Fridays, a day when the factory opens its doors to the local community to buy its fresh and packaged products at sharply reduced prices. Every Friday, from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m., the packaging area turns into a minimarket, offering up fresh smoked salmon fillets, packaged smoked fish, salads, jerky, herring, and more across the Acme, Blue Hill Bay, and Ruby Bay lines. Shoppers are primarily neighborhood locals, but people have been known to come from all over the city and as far as Westchester County. Area news coverage—from the New York Times to smaller community papers—have brought in plenty of new customers. From young Brooklyn hipsters and parents with kids in tow, to Polish and Every Friday, the packaging area turns into a minimarket, ofering up smoked salmon fllets, packaged fsh, salads, jerky, herring, and more at sharply reduced prices. PHOTO: EVA MESZAROS SUMMER 2014 131 factoryTour_Summer14.indd 131 6/2/14 3:08 PM