New Product Line - Oser Communications Group

82
GOURMET NEWS www.gourmetnews.com ■ JULY 2011 ■ GOURMET NEWS
Stahlbush Island Farms Shows
Commitment To Sustainability
Stahlbush Island Farms is a real family
farm in Oregon’s Willamette Valley. In
August 1985, company founders Bill and
Karla Chambers planted and harvested
just two crops. Today, Stahlbush Island
Farms has become a diverse farm and
food processor with a commitment to the
customer and sustainability. With a full
industrial, retail and foodservice line,
Stahlbush can offer more than 300 product
options. Along with their product diversity,
Stahlbush has a full R&D,
custom-processing facility with the ability
to create unique products specifically
for your needs.
With dedication to the customer,
Stahlbush also has a strong commitment to
sustainability. Stahlbush has created a delicate
management system for all parts of the
farm including the water, soil, air and
wildlife. The newest addition to the sustainability
commitment is a biogas plant, the first
in North America. This plant produces electricity
from fruit and vegetable byproduct,
and will be able to supply approximately
1,100 homes, nearly double what the farm
and processing facility uses in a year.
From biogas to biodegradable, Stahlbush
Island Farms recently launched the newest
type of packaging for their frozen retail line
of fruits and vegetables. This new biodegradable
bag is the first of its kind for freezer
packaging, proving that Stahlbush Island
Farms continues to be a leader in innovation.
Stahlbush Island Farms is a real farm, on
a real place, with a real family.
Twenty-five years after its founding, the
farm continues working to find innovative
ways to care for the land while producing
high quality fruits and vegetables. So please
stop by booth 3313 to see how they can meet
your needs.
Talking To The Nantucket
Pasta Goddess
Gourmet News spoke with Liliana Dougan,
founder of Nantucket Pasta Goddess, about
her growing start-up company.
GN: Tell our readers a little about your company.
What’s your main line of business?
LD: Nantucket Pasta Goddess is a glutenfree
pasta company. We make fresh and
frozen gluten-free pastas, currently selling in
the northern New England area. I have been
making the pasta for about a year and have
received excellent feedback from all my
stores and clients. I wanted the pasta be more
authentic and similar to the traditional pastas,
so I developed a recipe that I believe reflects
this concept. After a few months of
testing recipes, I launched NPG at the 2010
Nantucket Wine Festival―it was hugely
successful, which encouraged
me to start
selling at the local
farmer’s market. After
a summer of selling out
all my pastas every
week, I decided to get a
wholesaler’s license
and sell my pastas in
stores. I sold to my first
store in December of 2010. NPG products
are now being sold in 18 stores and growing.
GN: What would you say makes your
company unique?
LD: My pastas make the company unique,
the gluten-free market is rapidly expanding,
however, the specialty pasta segment has
room for growth. I guess it is the right product
at the right time.
GN: What was the most significant event or
series of events effecting your company in
the past year?
LD: I think the most significant event was
the incredible feedback I received from people
who are gluten-free and had not eaten fresh
pasta in years due to their illness. It made me
realize that I had something people really want
and need. I had one person come up to me and
say “I’ve been starving for years.” She literally
could not stop eating my ravioli. I hear
these stories every day from complete
strangers. It fuels my desire to see my products
sold regionally and, eventually, nationally.
GN: What do you anticipate to be your
greatest challenge in the year ahead?
LD: My greatest challenge is building the
company. There are so many details to tend to
and decisions to make. Fortunately, I surrounded
myself by an amazing board with the
skills and talents that I need to help make this
business successful, and we are working very
closely together to nurture NPG’s growth.
GN: What products do you see as being
hottest this year?
LD: I absolutely see gluten-free products as
the hottest products in the market. As more
celiac diagnoses are being made and more
people have decided to eliminate glutens
from their diet for other health reasons, I
see this market exploding. Large food producers
are spending millions redesigning
their packaging so it includes GF, companies
have developed the GF alternative to
many popular products. We are looking at
over 6 million people in the U.S.A. alone
who’ve been diagnosed. This does not take
into account the undiagnosed and people
who have made this their life choice. It’s all
about supply and demand. There is a need
for gluten free products and the market is
responding to this need.
GN: Who are your target end-users?
LD: My target users are people who have
celiac or have been instructed to go gluten
free by their doctors. However, I have clients
who do not have gluten problems, yet they
choose to eat my pastas simply because it
tastes great and it does not weigh them
down. So in the end, my target users are people
who like a good plate of pasta.
GN: Tell our readers about your trade show
objectives, plans, products, promotions, etc.
LD: My objective is very simple. To give
Nantucket Pasta Goddess and products as
much exposure as possible.
GN: To what do you attribute your company’s
success?
LD: The pasta is exceptional, it has taken on
a life of its own and growing in leaps and
bounds. I have exhibited at two of Nantucket
Wine Festivals and both times my sampling
table was the busiest and most popular. I’ve
had people approach me and say “I’ve been
waiting all year to have your pasta again,”
my response to them is they don’t have to
wait a whole year any more.
For more information, call Liliana Dougan
at 508-494-5209, email liliana@nantucket
pastagoddess.com, visit www.nantucket
pastagoddess.com or stop by booth 2327B.
Fischer & Weiser (Con’t. from p. 78)
industry honor. “sofi” stands for Specialty
Outstanding Food Innovation.
“With the health concerns that many have
today, we are very proud to offer so many
excellent products to those with gluten intolerances,”
states Ashley Seelig, Director
of Quality Assurance/ Product Development.
“It makes a world of difference to
those with such intolerances to have a
source for great products―available to them
so conveniently through our website and
throughout the country in specialty, club and
grocery markets around the world.”
For a complete listing of all of Fischer &
Wieser’s gluten free products, go to
www.jelly.com/glutenfree. For more information
on all of the fine Fischer & Wieser
products, visit www.jelly.com, or contact
Jonathan Pehl, Director of Marketing and
Branding, at jonathan.pehl@jelly.com or
800-369-9257. And, of course, be sure to
stop by booth 5112.
Tulocay & Co. (Con’t. from p. 78)
Seal of Approval.
Over 10 years Tulocay & Co has built an
impressive reputation for creating awardwinning,
high-quality, all natural condiments
and pantry products. Each of its five
brands is designed to target a specific consumer.
Retailers have the opportunity to
look to Tulocay for all natural quality pantry
items that fulfill the needs of their specific
customers, at a variety of price points.
For more information, visit www
.tulocayandco.com.