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://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/523050
Specialty Food Week Debuts The Specialty Food Association is launching the first-ever Specialty Food Week in New York City to celebrate the market's innovative products and the people behind them. The five-day program includes trade and consumer activities, partner events, and networking opportunities, culminating in the Summer Fancy Food Show, held at the Javits Center, June 28–30. "The idea of Specialty Food Week is to harness the collec- tive excitement that's generated by many of the industry events happening during the week of the Fancy Food Show, and to build on that," says Chris Nemchek, senior vice president, business development and member relations. "We have a broad range of constituents and we want them to know and feel that Specialty Food Week and the Summer Fancy Food Show is the place to be and the must-attend event of the year." Events kick off with an opening night party at the River Pavilion in the Javits Center at the close of day one of the summer show. Open to all exhibitors and attendees, the party will bring the specialty food industry together for a night of innovative food, craft cocktails, and special events showcasing the producers and purveyors on the front line of innovation. Throughout the week, the Association is hosting or partnering with a number of events and programs, including the Good Food Mercantile and the Cheesemonger Invitational, both on Saturday, June 27. The Good Food Mercantile showcases products of past Good Food Award winners and finalists and members of the Good Food Guild. At the Cheesemonger Invitational, some of the country's best cheesemongers vie for championship in areas like blind tasting, selling, plating, and preparation skills. On Wednesday, July 1, the Association, in cooperation with Liz Young of Culinary and City Tours, will be conducting bus tours of specialty food stores in Manhattan and Brooklyn. Stops include Meyer's of Keswick and Kalustyan's in Manhattan and Sahadi's and Oriental Pastry & Grocery in Brooklyn. Consumer Events Specialty Food Week is also raising consumer awareness of spe- cialty foods. The Specialty Food Association is working with three New York area retailers to promote specialty foods in-store and online, including Kings, Morton Williams, and Fresh Direct. "These retail partners understand the importance of the specialty category in driving overall store sales," says Laura Santella-Saccone, vice president, chief marketing officer for the Association. "Our vision is that more retailers will support spe- cialty food with integrated in-store shopper programs. We would love to see retailers commit to year-round execution of Specialty Food Week as they do in other categories." The retail promotion includes demos, in-store merchandising, advertising, and social media outreach. The Association is also launching a campaign to educate consumers on what it means to be a specialty food, introducing them to the producers behind the products and connecting them with the brands and the makers. ITALY SIGNS ON AS SUMMER FANCY FOOD SHOW'S FIRST COUNTRY SPONSOR For the frst time, the Specialty Food Association has engaged a partner country sponsor for the Summer Fancy Food Show. Italy, long the show's largest international exhibitor, serves as the sponsor for the 2015 event. Italy's presence at the show includes more than 325 companies from across the country, with special- ties from nearly every region. "We welcome Italy as our partner country sponsor," says Ann Daw, presi- dent of the Specialty Food Association. "Italian food virtually defnes the craft, care, and joy food artisans bring to their work producing top-quality products." "We are very proud to be the frst partner coun- try for the Summer Fancy Food Show. We consider it a prestigious recognition of all the efforts that Italian food producers put into their products, and the qual- ity and excellence of the food they are bringing to the global marketplace," says Donato Cinelli, presi- dent of Universal Marketing, organizer of the Fancy Food Show's Italian Pavilion. In conjunction with Universal Marketing, the Specialty Food Association held a press event April 15 (pictured above) at its offce in New York to celebrate Italy's participation in the Summer Show. Guests from major publications and media outlets enjoyed Italian hors d'oeuvres and pasta from Tradizione Italiana Consortium and its affliated companies, cheeses and ham from Legends from Europe, wines from Wine Worldwide, chocolates from Monardo, taralli from Colacchio, and limoncello and Italian liqueurs from Caffo. Food was prepared by chef Pasquale Cozzolino of Ribalta and Prova in New York City. —Louise Kramer association news SUMMER 2015 151