Food & Food Equipment News

CupDepot Now Carrying Karat Dispense Napkin & Cup Holders

CupDepot.com now carries a line of dispense napkins by Karat^®called Dispense Naps, as well as new cup holders, both widely used for restaurants, cafes, and other establishments in the foodservice industry. Karat Dispense Nap is compatible with existing napkin dispensers, sold by the case for $48.35, and available in 1-ply 12.5" x 8" white or kraft.

To prevent hot beverages from spilling or burning hands, Karat cup holders are widely used by customers on-the-go, providing a convenient way to carry multiple beverages. CupDepot.com offers two sizes: 8-32 oz 4-cup carrier or 8-32 oz 2-cup carrier, for as low as $44 per case. Karat eco-friendly cup jacket sleeves are also available in kraft or stock-print, and made from 100% recycled paper.

Karat has also released a new summer color for their colored teaspoons line: a bright green, fit for yogurt or dessert shops. Offering a wide range of plastic food utensils in a variety of colors, Karat plastic utensils are heavyweight and comprised of top-grade material to ensure they are durable and resistant to breakage. The green-colored heavy-weight teaspoons are available for as low as $35 per case.

Up next for release are Karat deli containers, made from premium plastic and translucent for easy viewing. Used for both hot and cold foods, the deli containers are versatile and widely used in quick-service restaurants, bakeries, convenience stores, and deli shops.

EcoTensil Gives Food Retailers Remedy to Expensive, Wasteful Sampling

Everyone loves a free sample! And the samplers are not the only people to benefit; according to a study entitled "Report on In-store Sampling Effectiveness," providing free samples can increase sales by as much as 475% on the day of event! The dark side to sampling is the waste created when plastic spoons and cups are used for a single taste then tossed in the trash, only to crowd a landfill. "That is money that grocers practically throw in the trash," said Peggy Cross, founder and CEO of EcoTensil. "I understand that disposable tasting spoons provide businesses with convenience and profit potentials, but there is a better way that doesn't involve nearly as much cost or plastic waste."

Made in the US from renewable materials, EcoTensil's innovative silky-smooth paperboard spoons are crafted from sustainable materials.The spoons take up much less space than plastic or wood utensils—5,000 EcoTasters fit in the same box as 1,000 comparable utensils— making them cost-effective to ship, store, and use, saving businesses hard earned cash. EcoTasters, EcoTensil's greenest product, are compostable, recyclable, and made from sustainably forested material (FSC), making them perfect for in-store, event, and other types of sampling. With the demand for sustainable options growing daily, now is the perfect time for businesses to introduce EcoTensils.

Business owners have been sharing their feedback about how EcoTensil's EcoTasters have enhanced their demonstrations: "The customer response to EcoTaster was overwhelmingly positive and the demo specialists absolutely loved them," shared Melissa Taverse, Demo Program Coordinator at Whole Foods Market.

David Kampner, Community Marketing Manager for Stonyfield Farms, shared how EcoTensil helps them communicate their commitment to sustainable practices: "We continue to use EcoTensil spoons all over and love the message it communicates to our consumers!"

"We want to spread the word that sampling can be a win-win situation with EcoTensil! Customers will be satisfied with their delicious bite, business owners will increase their market share while showing their commitment to sustainability, and the planet will be saved from plastic utensils," says Cross.

Prima Supply Unveils "Try Before You Buy" Beta Program for the Restaurant Equipment Supply Industry

Prima Supply, an online retailer of restaurant and foodservice equipment located in Louisville, KY, is beta testing a "Try Before You Buy" program throughout the month of July. The program is the first of its kind in the foodservice industry as it has not been tested on large business to business purchases in the foodservice industry. Participants in the Try Before You Buy program may try out the equipment for 14 days from the date of shipment before purchasing the equipment. If they do not like the equipment they can return it for free to Prima Supply.

Try Before You Buy enables the purchaser to provide a credit card number and then try out the equipment without having their card charged. At any point during the 14 day trial period the customer may cancel the order and have the equipment picked up from their location at no cost to the purchaser. If the purchaser does not request a cancellation within 14 days then their card will be charged for the sale price of their order.

The Try Before You Buy beta program by Prima Supply will be available on certain pieces of equipment manufactured by Bunn, Vitamix, Manitowoc, Ice O Matic, and Scotsman starting July 1.

Prima Supply is an online retailer of restaurant and foodservice equipment. You can find out more about the Try Before You Buy Program at: http://primasupply.com/tb4yb.

NYC Lawmakers Propose Polystyrene Foam Ban

 Local lawmakers in New York City announced a bill on June 12 to ban the sale of polystyrene foam foodservice products, a decision which will negatively impact thousands of New York City businesses, as well as millions of local consumers and taxpayers. The proposal, supported by the Bloomberg administration, has the potential to cost New York City and state nearly $100 million per year and will do little to reduce solid waste.

"A ban in New York City would cost businesses, consumers and taxpayers millions of dollars, as well as threaten jobs in the restaurant industry, in upstate manufacturing plants, and in companies that reuse foam in the greater metropolitan area," said City Council Member Peter Vallone. "Foam can and should be recycled, and I urge the mayor to work with the council to explore this option instead of a ban."

Local restaurant owners joined business leaders at a press conference this afternoon at City Hall to express concern about the effect of a ban on their businesses and bottom line, and encourage the city to explore a recycling initiative.

"I use foam containers because they're great at keeping food fresh and because they're economical," said Rosemary Nunez, Owner of La Nueva Estrella El Castillo Restaurant in Brooklyn. "This is just another example of the administration trampling on the interests of the people who create jobs in this city."

With a ban in place, New York restaurants would need to purchase more expensive alternatives which would pressure already squeezed profit margins. In addition, these more expensive products often don't insulate as well as their foam counterparts for hot drinks, leading to double cupping or the use of a sleeve, which actually raises costs for businesses and increases solid waste.  According to a recent study published by MB Public Affairs, for every $1.00 now spent on polystyrene foam foodservice and drink containers, businesses will have to spend at least $1.94 on the alternative replacements, effectively doubling costs.

"Manufacturers throughout upstate New York will suffer significantly with this ill-advised proposal in New York City," said National Federation of Independent Business NY State Director Mike Durant. "Both the mayor and city council need to spend more time focusing on sensible solutions to the economic ills of both the city and state rather than promoting unproven and onerous nanny-state mandates such as this."

Beyond the economic impact, polystyrene foam foodservice is lighter and more energy efficient than its most common alternatives – which are also not currently recycled in New York City.  A new study completed this month by Moore Recycling Associates on behalf of ACC found that access to polystyrene foam foodservice recycling has expanded much quicker than the recycling of alternative products, and determined that 50 percent of the population of major cities in California have access to foam recycling, compared with 15 percent of those same cities recycling or composting paper-based alternatives. By implementing a foam recycling program, New York would join these other leading cities on the cutting edge of resource recovery, building on the recently announced expansion of recycling in the city.

"This proposal will have adverse impacts that will be felt far outside New York City.  A ban on these containers is expensive and will result in the loss of jobs across the state," Assembly Minority Leader Brian Kolb said. "This is bad for business, bad for communities and bad for New York."

MICROS Software Helps Deliver Food Products Safely, Quickly, Efficiently

Food retailers, food manufacturers and quick-service restaurants across North America can bring their products to market more safely, quickly and efficiently, employing innovative software solutions from MICROS Retail and Supply Chain. 

The company, a leading provider of product lifecycle management and food-safety compliance software, is launching its myCreations portfolio in North America. A complete suite of integrated applications, myCreations enables food-industry clients to:

• Ensure that consumers get safe, high-quality food products 
• Bring products to market faster, through better collaboration and innovation within the supply chain
• Protect their brands
• Achieve greater profitability through greatly improved efficiencies

Employing myCreations, food-industry clients can immediately access reliable data on product ingredients, ingredient sources and manufacturing processes to ensure a high level of product quality and to meet all regulatory compliance and quality standards—protecting consumers and vastly reducing potential risk to their brands. In the event of a product recall, myCreations users can respond quickly and reliably, with incident response time improved by as much as 90 percent.

Based on the experiences of current clients around the world, myCreations has proven to deliver efficiency gains of up to 40 percent. Users of the software applications can overcome existing challenges to their businesses, such as inconsistent data input. For example, clients currently obtain product information from their suppliers by a variety of methods, including “snail mail,” which then has to be re-entered into their systems. Workflow tools employed within myCreations improve data entry speed by about 70 percent. 

MyCreations also delivers better data accuracy over fragmented and legacy internal systems, and it automates several manual processes. Multiple processes are handled through a single portal, eliminating the need for multiple systems and addressing the issue of time-consuming access to limited, uncontrolled data. Approximately 60 percent of administration time is eliminated from the entire supply-chain process.

“MICROS Retail and Supply Chain has been a global-leading provider of product lifecycle management and food-safety software since we introduced the first-ever PLM solution for private-label goods in 1995,” said Paul Woodward, CEO, MICROS Retail and Supply Chain. 

“Now, clients across North America can ensure greater food safety and higher quality for consumers utilizing our complete solutions that are specifically designed and developed for the food industry.” 

Woodward noted that MICROS Retail and Supply Chain is poised to take advantage of the enormous growth potential in private label goods consumption in North America. Current estimates show that, in the U.S. alone, consumption of private label products is about 20 percent of the market, compared to about 40 percent in the U.K.

MICROS Retail and Supply Chain has an active North American supplier on-boarding program in place, which has established sites with numerous clients in the USA and Canada. These and other myCreations clients are offered the best of both worlds, either an off-the-shelf solution or a fully customized option tailored to meet their specific needs.

Ryder Expands Food Packaging Capability

Ryder System Inc., a leader in supply chain, warehousing, and transportation management solutions, today announced it has expanded its food packaging and distribution capability by investing in significant enhancements to its 327,000-square-foot food packaging and distribution center in Beaver Dam, Wis.

Strategically located in the heart of the Midwest’s agricultural region, the Beaver Dam Logistics Center serves food manufacturers with distribution, packaging, and production capabilities for a wide array of frozen and refrigerated foods. The facility, which features a low-temperature environment (-10° to 45° degrees Fahrenheit), was recently expanded with a 15,000-square-foot, temperature-controlled addition that has been equipped to package refrigerated and frozen foods, vegetables, fruits and meats. Ryder also added a state-of-the-art packaging line with seven-station blending capability that includes high-speed robotic palletizing and automatic and semi-automatic cartoning. With a total expanded space of 342,000 square feet and the new technology, the BDLC will be able to add lines quickly and easily to meet increased volume requirements as well as provide packaging for a greater variety of products, packaging sizes, and blends.

“Increased consumer demand for frozen and refrigerated foods in convenient formats is driving food manufacturers to look for unique and cost-effective ways to better manage how they process, package and distribute their products,” said Darin Cooprider, Vice President of Consumer Packaged Goods, Ryder Supply Chain Solutions. “With this large, multi-client facility, our customers can take advantage of the investments Ryder has already made in the technology, equipment, and processing capabilities, while also enjoying the flexibility of a space that can be adjusted to meet their changing needs.”

Overall capabilities at the BDLC include vertical form-fill seal for vegetables, fruit, and other foods; blending and mixing; individual quick freeze; vegetable processing, including cleaning, cutting, inspection, and sorting; and high-speed robotic palletizing. Packaging formats include zipper top, pillow pack, steamer, and upright (doyen) bags. The BDLC processes approximately 75 million pounds of goods per year and features 40 shipping doors and three rail doors. It has a “Superior Rating” from AIB International and is Safe Quality Food certified.

“Ryder offers primary and secondary packaging facilities in many U.S. markets,” said Cooprider. “With our logistics footprint across North America, our full suite of capabilities and our focus on excellence in execution, Ryder is well suited to provide both a turnkey solution that handles the entire food packaging and distribution process for our customers, as well as a solution adapted to meet specific customer needs, such as supplemental capacity during peak seasons.”

Ryder Supply Chain Solutions is a business segment of Ryder System, Inc. The SCS network includes more than 28 million square feet of warehouse space and more than 230 warehouses in the U.S., Canada, Mexico, China, Singapore and Europe.

Harbortouch Promoting Multiple POS Innovations at NRA Show 2012

Industry leading point-of-sale (POS) system provider Harbortouch today has been presenting several of its innovative solutions from at the NRA Show 2012, the annual conference of the National Restaurant Association. The company's free POS system is a sophisticated solution for restaurants and food service companies that need to accomplish both operational and customer satisfaction goals. It's a touch-screen system that offers customizable solutions for restaurants of any size.

Harbortouch is promoting its recently launched Tableside iPad-based ordering system at the NRA show. It is a unique solution that enables servers to use the iPad for customer orders, providing restaurant management with a more efficient ordering process that can also provide a cutting-edge dining experience for customers and improve word of mouth marketing.

In addition, Harbortouch showcases its new integrated reservation system that accepts online reservations and the capability to track them all directly through the POS system with a simple and easy-to-use interface. The solution is designed as a replacement to cumbersome reservations systems that can cost hundreds of dollars per month.

Harbortouch is providing details about its new QSR & Delivery product at the show, a custom software package for its POS system designed for quick-service-restaurants and delivery-based establishments. This software complements the company's existing Hospitality software package. The QSR & Delivery software features driver management functions that allow management to assign drivers to specific orders and dynamically view wait times. Integrated caller ID in Harbortouch QSR & Delivery provides customer contact information and order history, allowing the staff to serve customers more efficiently and engage them in discussion about possibly trying undiscovered menu items.

An additional solution presented at the NRA show is the Harbortouch Lighthouse POS management portal, which allows owners/managers to view their POS reports remotely as well as edit, delete or add menu items from any computer with an Internet connection. They can review sales and inventory reports as well as merchant account data including chargebacks, deposits, and statements.

To learn more about Harbortouch's multiple cutting-edge POS solutions, visit Booth #6473 during the NRA show or visit www.harbortouch.com.

Emerald Coast Restaurants Turn to Disaster Relief Supply After Emergencies

The gulf coast of northwest Florida is world-renowned for its beaches, shopping and illustrious restaurant industry. Recently, some of these restaurants have been turning to a new supplier for things like cleaning supplies, pest control products, and safety gear. The emergency preparedness retailer Disaster Relief Supply unintentionally stumbled upon a thriving local market after reaching out to customers through regional cable TV advertising. With products matching necessary goods kept at most eateries (i.e. mops, absorbents, pest products, blowers, safety fixtures, etc.), restaurant owners have become the newest group of customers to grace both the aisles of Disaster Relief Supply.

“We never thought we’d be selling to restaurants,” says Mike Fisher, General Manager of the Disaster Relief Supply store in Destin, Fla., “outside of disaster preparedness and cleanup, restaurants weren’t in our minds at all as a potential customer base.”

But given recent store and website traffic, the mindset of DRSupply management is shifting towards appealing to more of the hospitality industry. Equipment rentals have become a major focus for the emergency supply retailer, offering generators, carpet cleaners, pumps, and more. Along with a brand new rental stock, cleaning supplies, caution tape and signage, protective gear, and oil and chemical absorbents like Nature’s Broom Absorbent, have been the main focus of promotions and ads.

Fisher explains, “What’s great is that a lot of these local guys want to invest in the community. We’re a local business that goes out of our way to help our customers.”

Fisher said Disaster Relief Supply goes out of their way by offering special ordering, on-the-spot discounts and keeping a strong online presence in their national website where people can find what’s available, and order products to be picked up in the store.

For Disaster Relief Supply, the focus of the summer season was hurricane and storm preparation, but now the conveniently located retailer has something else to look forward to; tourist season.

“Now that we know we have restaurants to cater to, we’re going to be doing everything we can to accommodate their needs,” Fisher vows. And with a catalog offering thousands of products in hardware, maintenance, furniture, appliances, and more, Fisher is confident that Disaster Relief Supply can handle it.

PURE Hard Surface Showcased at NRA Show

Intercon Chemical Co. is showcasing the PURE Complete System, a patented silver dihydrogen citrate antimicrobial created by PURE Bioscience Inc., in conjunction with its Clearly Better Solutions product line at this year’s National Restaurant Association Show, May 5-8 at McCormick Place in Chicago (booth 1085). The annual NRA Show draws more than 58,000 restaurant and food service industry professionals from all 50 states and more than 100 countries, and presents the newest innovations and latest information on trends and issues.

The PURE Complete System product line includes PURE Hard Surface disinfectant and food contact surface sanitizer, PURE Multi-Purpose Cleaner Concentrate and PURE Floor Cleaner Concentrate.

Jim Epstein, President of Intercon, stated, “The NRA Show is an excellent venue to present PURE Hard Surface, as restaurants bear tremendous responsibility for national food safety. Americans are spending more time and money each year eating away from home, and studies show that at least 50 percent of foodborne disease outbreaks can be attributed to restaurants. We know that disinfection and food contact surface sanitization is a key element of pathogen control in restaurants because bacteria and viruses survive on, and can contaminate, hard surfaces such as counters, door handles, appliances, tables, chairs and trays. Restaurants can be confident that PURE Hard Surface quickly stops the contamination cycle.”

Tom Myers, PURE Bioscience’s Executive Vice President, Sales and Marketing, added, “Even just one outbreak of foodborne illness can have devastating effects on a business, and Intercon’s presentation of the benefits of implementing PURE Hard Surface will resonate with distributors and customers. The quick kill times of PURE’s low-toxicity and odorless formula, along with SDC’s GRAS status as a contact biocide, set PURE apart from toxic chemicals currently used in restaurants. PURE Hard Surface is an ideal choice to meet the health and business challenges of food safety in the restaurant industry.”

Ecolab Launches Enhanced Large Fly Elimination Solution for Food Industry

Ecolab Inc. is launching the STEALTH Fly Station at the National Restaurant Association Restaurant, Hotel-Motel Show, May 5-8, in Chicago. This proprietary addition to Ecolab’s industry-leading Large Fly Program attracts and eliminates flies before they enter a facility. Presented with a Kitchen Innovations 2012 Award by the National Restaurant Association Restaurant, Hotel-Motel Show, the STEALTH Fly Station has shown the ability to reduce flies in full- and quick-service restaurants and other food industry facilities by up to 50 percent.

“The presence of large flies inside a restaurant is considered a potential threat to food safety as large flies can easily transmit common pathogens such as Salmonella and E. coli,” said John Barcay, Senior Scientist and Urban Entomologist, Ecolab Pest Elimination. “In addition to presenting health risks, flies may indicate a sanitation issue and can reflect negatively on a business’s brand and reputation. Ecolab is committed to providing proactive and discreet fly elimination solutions, and is excited to add the STEALTH Fly Station to its Large Fly Program.”

The STEALTH Fly Station is a dark, reflective device that uses multiple stimulating characteristics to attract and eliminate flies around the exterior of a facility before they can become a problem inside. The device can be placed near common fly areas, such as dumpster corrals, to discreetly keep flies from interrupting daily operations. The STEALTH Fly Station also helps reduce pesticide use, resulting in a lower impact and more sustainable approach for the environment.

Ecolab's Research and Development team developed the STEALTH Fly Station through extensive testing of fly behavior and evaluation of environmental characteristics to understand how flies adjust and react to different types of stimuli. By studying flies under field conditions and when released into controlled environments, the team gained new understanding of fly exploration behavior and utilized the findings to develop STEALTH Fly Station technology.

The STEALTH Fly Station is the latest in a series of Ecolab Pest Elimination innovations, including the STEALTH Maxima Fly Light, CheckPoint Interior and CheckPoint Exterior Rodent Stations, and Finito, a ready-to-use solution for food contact surfaces.

To learn more about Ecolab’s STEALTH Fly Station and expanded Large Fly Program, visit booth #2440C at the Kitchen Innovations Pavilion or the Ecolab booth (#4000) at the NRA Show, May 5-8, in Chicago. For informational videos on the STEALTH Fly Station and the food safety risk posed by large flies, visit http://video.ecolab.com/videos/pest-elimination. Additional information will be presented during a free Food Safety and Large Flies webinar on May 16 (10-11 a.m. Central Time). To register for the webinar, visit http://event.netbriefings.com/event/pestecolab/Live/FSLF0516.