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/79798
cheesemakers, producers, importers—we are all a powerful group. We must create things we are proud of. People put their trust in us to put forward what we believe in." Andrés called on the industry to be part of a bigger picture, beyond creating and selling products. "Food is behind a lot of the world's problems, such as hunger and obesity," he said. "But it can also be a solution to problems. It can create jobs, give people a way to make a living. The power of food is key in building community and making connections, even between countries." His words clearly resonated: Andrés received a standing ovation for his speech. Following his keynote, Andrés presented, alongside NASFT president Ann Daw and Ron Tanner, vice president communications, education, government and industry relations, the Gold Awards. In total 35 Gold statues were presented due to ties in the Outstanding Cookie, Cracker and Perishable Foodservice Product categories. Each winner was invited on stage to make a brief acceptance speech. Several remarks reflected the spirit of Andrés' speech as Winners shared their products and company's overarching purpose. "Chef Andrés elevated the whole ceremony, which prompted the Winners to talk about a bigger picture of food beyond the nice honor they were receiving," Kramer notes. "For us, this is a movement, not just a kit," said Jared Abbot of Back to the Roots, winner of the Outstanding Food Gift Award for its Grow-Your-Own Mushroom Garden. "We want to inspire families to grow their own food and get back to the notion of eating healthy to be healthy." Sanjog Sikand of Sukhi's Gourmet Indian Foods, winner of the Outstanding Frozen Savory Award, mentioned the importance of sharing her heritage with the world through Sukhi's products. "My mother's dream was to bring Indian food to the American table," said Sikand. "Thank you NASFT for giving us a forum to do it." After the ceremony, Winners, Finalists, leading buyers and members of the press enjoyed a post-Awards party complete with a DJ and a menu featuring sofi Winner and Finalist products as well as foods from the Chesapeake region prepared by DC Central Kitchen's culinary program. "We used to hold the reception before the Awards ceremony but changed it to give people a chance to celebrate their honors as well as taste and enjoy the sofi products," Kramer explains. This year's Winners range from young entrepreneurs to estab- lished brands, first-time recipients to multi-award honorees, but they all share a passion for bringing quality products to the marketplace and a spirit of innovation. Specialty Food Magazine spoke with the 35 Gold Award recipients to learn more about the story behind the win- ning products. Read on to learn more about the 2012 Gold Winners, as well as to see listings of the Silver Finalists in each category. |SFM| Alexandra Menglide is a New York–based freelance writer; Eva Meszaros and Nicole Potenza Denis are associate editor and contributing editor, respec- tively, of Specialty Food Magazine; and Lynn Santa Lucia is a freelance writer whose work has appeared in Health, Food Arts and Yoga Journal. T HE 2012 SOFI AWARDS CEREMONY also honored the recipients of this year's Outstanding Retailer Awards. Read more about each at specialtyfoodmagazine.com in the May/ June 2012 issue, beginning on p. 61. Here are the honorees. Outstanding Retailers of 2012 Caviar & Bananas City Feed and Supply Eli's Manhattan Mollie Stone's Markets Pastoral Artisan Cheese, Bread & Wine Turn to the following pages to discover the Winners in 32 categories: Appetizer, Antipasto, Salsa or Dip ....................... S26 Baked Good, Baking Ingredient or Cereal ............ S19 Cheese or Dairy Product .................................... S14 Chocolate ....................................................... S24 Classic ........................................................... S11 Cold Beverage ................................................. S31 Condiment ..................................................... S12 Confection....................................................... S22 Cookie ................................................... S16, S17 Cooking Sauce or Flavor Enhancer ...................... S13 Cracker .................................................. S28, S29 Dessert or Dessert Topping ................................ S25 Diet or Lifestyle Product ...................................... S18 Food Gift ........................................................ S40 Frozen Savory .................................................. S43 Hot Beverage .................................................. S33 Innovation in Packaging Design or Function ........... S37 Jam, Preserve, Honey or Nut Butter ...................... S27 Meat, Pâté or Seafood ...................................... S35 New Product ..................................................... S8 Non-Food Specialty Item .................................... S42 Oil ............................................................... S36 Pasta Sauce ..................................................... S32 Pasta, Rice or Grain .......................................... S23 Perishable Foodservice Product ................... S20, S21 Product Line ..................................................... S10 Salad Dressing ................................................. S34 Shelf-Stable Foodservice Product .......................... S39 Snack Food ..................................................... S15 Soup, Stew, Bean or Chili .................................. S30 USDA-Certified Organic Product .......................... S38 Vinegar ........................................................... S41 SEPTEMBER 2012 S5