Food & Food Equipment News

This Is What Your Grocery Store Looks Like Without Bees

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

One of every three bites of food comes from plants pollinated by honeybees and other pollinators. Yet, major declines in bee populations threaten the availability of many fresh ingredients consumers rely on for their dinner tables.

To raise awareness of just how crucial pollinators are to our food system, the University Heights Whole Foods Market store temporarily removed all produce that comes from plants dependent on pollinators. They pulled from shelves 237 of 453 products-– 52 percent of the department's normal product mix.

Products removed included:

• Apples
• Onions
• Avocados
• Carrots
• Mangos
• Lemons
• Limes
• Honeydew
• Cantaloupe
• Zucchini
• Summer squash
• Eggplant
• Cucumbers
• Celery
• Green onions
• Cauliflower
• Leeks
• Bok choy
• Kale
• Broccoli
• Broccoli rabe
• Mustard greens

To help support honeybee populations, for every pound of organic summer squash sold at Whole Foods Market stores from June 12-25 the company will donate 10 cents to The Xerces Society for pollinator preservation.

"Pollinators are a critical link in our food system. More than 85 percent of earth's plant species... require pollinators to exist. Yet we continue to see alarming declines in bee numbers," said Eric Mader, Assistant Pollinator Conservation Director at The Xerces Society. "Our organization works with farmers nationwide to help them create wildflower habitats and adopt less pesticide-intensive practices. These simple strategies can tip the balance back in favor of bees."

Whole Foods Market offers more ways to "bee part of the solution." 

• Bee organic: Buying organic is an easy way to support pollinators.
• Bee savvy at home: Most pest problems can be solved without toxic and persistent pesticides.
• Bee a gardener: Plant bee-friendly flowers and fruits.

Dei Fratelli Truly Expands Line to Tomato Products

Hirzel Canning Company & Farms, a fourth-generation, family owned and operated company and producers of the Dei Fratelli brand, announces the addition of Dei Fratelli Truly Tomatoes to its extensive line of tomato products. The three new products are the only chopped tomatoes grown, produced and packaged in the United States that are available in shelf stable cartons. Crafted for “home chefs,” these products offer a premium tomato product packaged in an environmentally responsible carton. Consumers can find Dei Fratelli Truly cartons on their grocers’ shelves beginning July 2013.
 
The three product varieties include: Petite Cut Tomatoes in a Light Puree, Finely Chopped Tomatoes in a Light Puree with Onion, Carrot & Celery and Rustic Cut Tomatoes in a Light Puree.  All Dei Fratelli Truly Tomatoes weigh 26.46 ounces and can be easily substituted in recipes requiring a 28 ounce can of tomatoes.
 
The eco-friendly packaging allows Hirzel Canning Co. & Farms to use a more delicate cooking process, thus preserving the fresh-tasting flavor that nature provides. The BPA-free carton provides an environmentally friendly and convenient package. Because the carton is comprised of 75 percent paperboard, which is 100 percent recyclable, it has earned the certification from the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC).  
 
Dei Fratelli Truly Tomatoes are grown on local, family farms in the rich, fertile soil of the Lake Erie Basin.  After a short journey from their growers’ fields, the tomatoes are carefully selected for the distinctive Truly Tomato products. Moreover, the tomatoes are preserved within a maximum of 10 hours after harvesting.  This innovative concept and traceability is called, “Field to Carton.”  The tomatoes are packed in a delicate, light puree providing a rich tomato flavor and contain no artificial additives or preservatives.  
 
“It’s about quality. When a product’s ingredients are so simple, they have to be quality and that has always been a focus for the Hirzel family. With local growers, we are able to monitor every aspect of the production from seed to shelf – ensuring that only the highest quality tomatoes make it into our products.” shared Stephen Hirzel, President of Hirzel Canning Company & Farms. “Each variety of our Truly Tomatoes offers “home chefs” a premium foundation for authentic soups, stews and sauces. We anticipate this new line of products generating renewed enthusiasm in the shelf-stable tomato category."

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."

USGBC's Newest Headquarters Offer a Glimpse of All Things Green

Since its inception, the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) has been the beacon for green building and design. It’s the lifeblood behind the LEED^R (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) building certification program, which quickly set the stage for today’s best practices in green building. And, like the green movement itself, it has experienced rapid and sustained growth.
The present demand for LEED certification for building projects is so high that the USGBC has expanded significantly in recent years to accommodate its growth. After just two years at its Dupont Circle headquarters in Washington, D.C., the USGBC outgrew its office space. But true to its mission, the 16- year-old non-profit embraced the opportunity to renovate a circa 1970s office building—and to become the first project to achieve LEED Platinum under the newest version of its green building rating system.
During the design and construction phase, the USGBC and architecture firm Envision Design worked closely with green product manufacturers to specify products that made significant contributions to LEED criteria while meeting the classic aesthetic of the new space. Excel Dryer, Inc., manufacturer of the high-speed, energy-efficient XLERATOR^R hand dryer has been a corporate member of the USGBC for nearly seven years and the XLERATOR has been a featured green product at USGBC headquarters.
“Restroom fixture technology has evolved significantly in the last 10 years,” said Ken Wilson, Principal, Envision Design. “XLERATOR continues to be the specified hand dryer of choice at USGBC headquarters because it meets the aggressive energy and waste reduction objectives for designing state-of-the-art green restrooms.”
Wilson specified the XLERATOR XL-SB-1.1N stainless steel hand dryer. “In architecture, performance and design are inextricably linked,” he added. “XLERATOR delivers both.”
The green movement shows no signs of slowing. With the industry projecting to soar to $60 billion in 2010, the USGBC and its more than 16,000 member companies are well poised to guide the next generation of builders, architects, specifiers, teachers and environmentalists in creating a sustainable future through cost-effective and energy-efficient buildings.
For more information, visit booth 6831 at the NRA Show, go online to www.exceldryer.com, call 1-800-255-9235 or email [email protected].

Tim Hortons Celebrates Earth Day with its first LEED-Certified Restaurant

To celebrate Earth Day, Tim Hortons executives have cut the ribbon on the company's first LEED® certified restaurant, located at 969 Upper Ottawa Street in Hamilton, ON. Knowledge gained from this location will help Tim Hortons build more efficient restaurants across the chain, as the company works towards its goal of registering 30 projects for LEED certification by the end of 2016.

"At Tim Hortons we acknowledge we have an environmental impact in the communities we serve, and we are committed to continuously improving our restaurant footprint, from how we source material, to how we use energy, to how we design our restaurants and manage our waste," said Paulo Ferreira, Senior Director, International Strategic Design and Building Standards, Tim Hortons. "Our first LEED certified restaurant in Hamilton represents a significant achievement for us in our sustainability journey."

LEED certified buildings meet one of the highest environmental performance standards in the world, assessed by site development, water efficiency, energy efficiency, material selection, indoor air quality and innovation in design.

"I'd like to congratulate Tim Hortons on their first LEED certified restaurant," said Thomas Mueller, President and CEO of the Canada Green Building Council. "This certification is significant not only because one of Canada's most well recognized brands is demonstrating its commitment to sustainability, but for the excellent example it sets for other national companies and restaurant chains. Sustainability can only be achieved through tangible efforts like these, and we look forward to working with Tim Hortons as they roll out their sustainability initiatives."

A LEED certified restaurant benefits from a 23 per cent cost reduction in regulated energy which translates to thousands of dollars in annual savings in operating costs.

"The benefits of a green restaurant are long-lasting and for business owners they pay off in the long run," said Sharon Kennish, Tim Hortons restaurant owner, Upper Ottawa Street, Hamilton. "Not only does environmentally friendly design result in a significant bottom-line savings over time, but it helps create a greener community, supports local suppliers and encourages individuals to make simple greener choices, like taking advantage of the priority carpool parking spots available or using our bike racks."

The Upper Ottawa Street restaurant was newly-constructed two years ago on a former parking lot near downtown Hamilton. As part of the green design, more than 40 per cent of construction materials regionally manufactured and extracted within an 800 km radius of the restaurant, or recycled from the site, were used. The parking lot surface itself was crushed and reused as granular fill. And, a total of 99 per cent of construction waste materials were diverted from landfill through recycling and innovative salvage efforts.

Some additional Green Restaurant Design features include:

• A white roof to reduce heat island effect of the building, keeping the interior temperature cooler in summer and warmer in winter
• LED Interior and exterior signage lighting to reduce energy consumption by more than 18 per cent
• Use of low "E" glazed windows across the building to increase insulation, thereby reducing energy consumption and maximizing the amount of natural light coming in
• Use of locally manufactured millwork using Forest Stewardship Council Certified wood
• Use of local drought-resistant plant species for the exterior landscape, which don't require an irrigation system to maintain, reducing water consumption
• Use of low VOC adhesives and sealants throughout

In 2012, Tim Hortons registered four restaurants for LEED certification in Toronto, Ancaster and Nepean, ON and Syracuse, NY, with five additional restaurants in the process of being registered in Scarborough, ON, Vancouver, Surrey and Langley, B.C., and Syracuse, NY.  The company plans to register an additional 20 restaurants across North America within the next three years.

For more information on Green Restaurant Design and environmental stewardship at Tim Hortons visitwww.sustainabilityreport.timhortons.com.

New SUBWAY Catering Trays Made From Recycled Materials

The SUBWAY® restaurant chain, which has made a commitment to make its restaurants and operations even more environmentally responsible, is now using catering trays that are made from 95 percent post-consumer recycled PET.

The brand estimates that the move will keep about 1.8 million pounds of plastic materials from going directly into the waste stream annually. Each tray and lid is made from about 19 recycled plastic soda or water bottles and can be recycled where commercial facilities exist.  The new catering trays are used in almost 29,000 SUBWAY restaurants in the United States and Canada.

"We have made a commitment to look at every facet of our day-to-day operations in order to make our restaurants more environmentally responsible," said Elizabeth Stewart, Marketing Director, who also oversees the brand's corporate social responsibility initiatives. "With every step we take towards sustainability, such as with the improvements we've made to catering trays this year, and those that we made to salad bowls and lids last year, we are closer to our end goal of being able to show a significant difference in the Subway brand's overall footprint. The catering trays and salad bowls alone will keep more than 4 million pounds of plastic from going directly into the landfills each year, and we are proud to roll these out just in time for Earth Day.  While we are proud of the steps we have taken so far, we recognize there is more to be done and are committed to increasing our green efforts."

Like the salad bowls and lids that were introduced in 2012, the catering trays and lids were created by Pactiv of Lake Forest, Illinois. Pactiv works with a state of the art facility that cleans and recycles PET soda and water bottles, creating the materials used in the new trays. The SUBWAY chain is looking at additional pieces of plastic packaging that can utilize these recycled materials. The brand estimates that the salad bowls and lids, which are made from two-and-a-half recycled plastic soda and water bottles, are keeping about 2.62 million pounds of plastic from the waste stream annually.

The new catering trays display the sandwiches in a very unique way, showing off the fresh ingredients and allowing guests to take the sandwich they want without having to touch the other sandwiches to determine the ingredients in each.  

"Along with creating a better display of sandwiches, the new catering trays were designed so they can be easily stored and transported, as they now feature handles on the sides of the platters and a structure allowing trays to be stacked," said Michael Fox, the Packaging Technologist for the brand. "The lids for the new platters were designed based on consumer and franchisee feedback; they are designed to snap on very easily and securely – and to be easily removed as well. We even incorporated a space for sauces and napkins so that everything comes in one package."

 

White Castle Going 'Green' With Compost Made From Food Scraps

White Castle is stepping up efforts to become 'greener' this Earth Day by using a new compost made from restaurant food scraps. To celebrate Earth Day, White Castle planted flowers using the new compost.

"We saw this program as an opportunity to improve the environment and make a difference in our community," said Shannon Tolliver, social responsibility and environmental sustainability manager at White Castle. "Our team members are excited to participate and have embraced this new plan for going green. We don't know if the daffodils will be onion-scented, but it's a great way to make the most of all our resources."

The Columbus-based company is conducting a six-month pilot program to compost food scraps from six central Ohio restaurants. The new compost replaces other premium garden-soil mixes transported from Michigan. This program began in October at the home office on 555 W. Goodale St. in Columbus.

White Castle's discarded food is picked up and hauled to Ohio Mulch where it is made into a high quality garden soil and compost called Green Envy Enriched Garden Compost. This product is available to the public for $5.99 per bag (.65 cubic feet) at Ohio Mulch's central Ohio locations.

After completing the trial, White Castle will consider expanding this program to other restaurants in central Ohio and other regions.

 

Motor Supply Co. Bistro Joins Sustainable Farms for Summer Harvest Week

Executive Chef Tim Peters of Motor Supply Co. Bistro puts his money where his mouth is. A supporter of the Slow Food movement, which promotes “good, clean and fair” food systems, Peters ensures that a significant portion his weekly food purchasing budget goes to small, local, sustainable farms. In fact, Peters was recently chosen by Slow Food Columbia as one of the organization’s Slow Food at Indie Grits 2012 Sustainable Chefs; a distinction given to only 10 chefs in the Midlands culinary scene.

To highlight the restaurant’s relationships with organic and near-organic farmers, Motor Supply has launched a twice-yearly event series, Harvest Week at Motor Supply. This week-long happening showcases Peters’ personal passion for working with small-scale, sustainable farms in the Midlands region, including Caw Caw Creek Pastured Pork, Doko Farm, City Roots Urban Farm, Freshly Grown Farms, and Wil-Moore Farms.

Recently featured in a three-page feature in the April 2012 issue of Columbia Metropolitan Magazine (“Not Your Average Chef”), Peters has distinguished himself not only as an avid huntsman, fisherman and mushroom forager in his spare time, but Peters also makes his own charcuterie at the restaurant, including house-cured bacon steaks, cocoa nib sausages, duck liver mousse, and a wildly popular country pork pate with apricots and pistachios—not to mention the mustard and pickles, as well. Peters also encourages bar staff to experiment with infusing liquors, like a recent thyme and grapefruit-infused gin, a three-chile infused tequila, and a smoked orange peel bourbon.

Having worked on an organic farm on Wadmalaw Island near Charleston, S.C., during the period when he cooked at Anson with Mike Lata and at S.N.O.B. with Frank Lee, Peters understands well the extra effort required of farmers who avoid spraying pesticides on their produce and who forego using antibiotics and hormones in their poultry and livestock operations.

“It's a no-brainer for us to choose small, sustainable farms like Wil-Moore and Caw Caw Creek for our chicken, lamb, and pork, for example,” says Peters. “It's not just that they treat their animals humanely—the actual product tastes miles better than what you get from mass-production suppliers." Peters recently has had to make a concerted effort to buy less lettuce from the local hydroponic lettuce grower, Freshly Grown Farms, so that the farm has enough supply to build relationships with other restaurants as well.

The restaurant as a whole walks the walk, as well. "We're blessed to have eco-conscious staff, and we're excited that the City of Columbia instituted curbside recycling pickup for Vista businesses in late 2011,” says Owner Eddie Wales. Recent staff initiatives have included vegetable scrap composting and an organic herb plot at USC's Green Quad community garden.

"Owning a green business in Columbia, SC is great—you can feel the enthusiasm for sustainable projects radiating from City Hall and even from the SC State House,” adds Wales. “Columbia City Council passed an initiative in 2011 to pursue a 30-year zero waste policy, and the lawmakers who come down the hill for lunch & dinner at Motor are backing more green legislation than ever."

"Being green has been such an easy choice for us, ideologically,” notes Wales. “It's just right in line with what Tim is doing with the food, buying from local, sustainable farmers."

During Summer Harvest Week at Motor Supply, June 12-17, a unique, farm-to-table dish featuring ingredients from a different local, sustainable farm will be added to Motor Supply’s a la carte dinner menu each evening, and owners of the corresponding farms will be on deck June 12-13 for “Meet the Farmer Happy Hours” at Motor’s expansive wooden bar and communal table. From 5:30-7 p.m., the public can come and have artisan cocktails, nosh on Motor's daily changing menu, and chat with farmers like 26 year-old City Roots urban farm manager Eric McClam, a local leader in aquaculture, vermicomposting, and organic micro-greens production. In addition to conversing with some of the local farmers, guests can also enjoy the recent installation of paintings by one of Columbia’s hottest up-and-coming artists, Whitney LeJeune.

Star dishes during Harvest Week in November, 2011 included a hand-rolled porchetta of Caw Caw Creek pastured pork, and handmade vegetarian ravioli with a ragout of City Roots vegetables. Farmers had a great time with Meet the Farmer Happy Hour, and a rosy feeling arose from the week’s events in general.

“If we don’t support these guys,” notes Peters, “who will? We feel that if we stick with these sustainable farmers, then it will pay off for everyone in the long run.”

Sealed Air Debuts Complete Foodservice Portfolio

Foodservice organizations can now look to Sealed Air as a partner uniquely positioned to protect, enhance and differentiate their food and beverage operations via a complete portfolio of products and services unprecedented in the foodservice industry.

At the 2012 National Restaurant Association Show, Sealed Air will showcase the organization’s unrivaled breadth of solutions for the foodservice industry, derived from the strength of its Diversey brand known for providing cleaning products, dispensing systems, equipment and tools and its Cryovac brand food packaging solutions expertise. Recently combined within Sealed Air, the brands now form a complete foodservice portfolio focused on product protection, value creation, food and workplace safety, sustainability and operating efficiency.

“This new platform really stems from the needs of our international foodservice customers,” said Pedro Chidichimo, President of Sealed Air’s global Institutional & Laundry business unit. “Globally, the foodservice industry has the same key issues related to safety, sustainability and operational efficiency. The integration of Diversey branded cleaning and sanitation solutions into Sealed Air’s complete portfolio of foodservice offerings now puts us in a unique position to address these needs across foodservice operations. Diversey, in combination with the Cryovac branded food packaging solutions and Sealed Air’s cutting-edge technologies such as Vision Enabled Training and TurboTag Temperature Monitoring, has elevated Sealed Air as a total solutions provider for the foodservice industry.”

By providing a portfolio of solutions that address the needs of the foodservice industry from “farm to fork”, Sealed Air can protect and enhance food and beverage products from production through consumption. Sealed Air provides the foodservice industry with a number of hygiene and packaging solutions that streamline and organize the foodservice back of house from preparation to cleanup. This includes packaging solutions that enable convenient preparation, facilitate storage, extend quality shelf life and enhance food offerings and hygiene solutions that address concerns around food safety, sustainability and operational efficiency.

Throughout the 2012 NRA show, Sealed Air will feature a number of new Diversey and Cryovac branded foodservice solutions. These will include cleaning and hygiene solutions designed to address worker safety and sustainability such as the Diversey Diverflow with Sure Link dilution control system, the Green Seal certified Diversey Hand Care System and the Taski Swingo 350 B compact auto scrubber. Foodservice packaging and food technology solutions addressing freshness and convenience will be showcased as well including Cryovac Oven Ease ovenable packaging, Freshness Plus pouch packaging for oxygen sensitive produce items and Simple Steps vacuum-packed and pre-plated ready-meal solutions.

“We are incredibly excited to showcase our new complete portfolio of foodservice offerings at this year’s NRA Show,” said Karl Deily, President of Sealed Air’s Food & Beverage business unit. “We believe the foodservice solutions offered by Sealed Air and its Cryovac and Diversey brands offer a number of operational benefits to the foodservice market that enable our customers to provide consumers with consistently superior foodservice experiences.”

To learn more about Sealed Air and the Diversey and Cryovac brands foodservice solutions, please visit booth #1806 or visit www.sealedair.com.

Biomass Packaging Debuts Bio-Based, Leak-Proof Cold Cup

BioMass Packaging, a division of Excellent Packaging, innovator and wholesale distributor of sustainable, biodegradable, and nature-based packaging for foodservice and other applications, has broadened its range of bio-friendly alternatives to foodservice staples with the addition of new paper cold cups manufactured from renewably sourced paper fibers. The new cups look and perform just like regular paper cold cups, but are completely sustainable because they are entirely sourced from renewable resources.

“Until now, there has been no sustainably sourced alternative to the Ingeo-based clear cold cup, which is fine, but some foodservice retailers prefer to offer paper-based cups,” said Allen King, President of California-based Excellent Packaging, the North American distributor of the new paper cold cups. “We’d like to see more foodservice retailers and any business that currently offers paper cups make the switch to these Earth-friendly paper cold cups. It makes good business sense, since its helps their customers avoid using cups that contain petroleum-based plastic.”

Eschewing the polyethylene that is normally used to line paper cups, these new PLA-lined cold cups use a plant-based Ingeo lining to provide leak-proof performance. When used in conjunction with an Ingeo-based lid and straw, any soft drink vendor can now offer its customers a fully compostable serving solution that enables diversion of cold cups from the landfill—where billions of paper and foam cups end up every year.

To jump-start sales of the new cold cup, BioMass Packaging is offering a 10 percent discount on all orders placed before the end of May 2012. Custom printing is also available.

“We hope these cups put the nail in the coffin of polystyrene foam cups,” added King.

BioMass Packaging compostable cold cup performance is identical that of traditional paper cold cups:

• Available in 12-, 16-, 22-, and 32-ounce capacities.
• Made exclusively from renewable resources, using paper fiber from responsibly managed forests
• Lined with plant-based Ingeo that requires less energy to create than the polyethylene used in traditional paper cups, and ensures the cups can handle liquids without deforming
• Available with lids and straws also made from Ingeo 100 percent compostable—biodegrades in commercial compost facilities
• Compatible with municipal curbside yard waste collection programs
• Certified by BPI and meet the ASTM (D-6400) standard for compostability

The new ecotainer cold cups are available for immediate delivery directly from BioMass Packaging, or from the company’s BiomassPackagingStore.com online store. To learn more about the comprehensive range of bio-based, sustainable foodservice packaging products offered by Excellent Packaging, or to enquire about volume pricing, call (800) 317-2737 or email [email protected]. A PDF-format brochure is available online.