In & Around Food World

Well-known to generations of food industry people, Dick Bestany is the co-founder of Best-Met Publishing, publishers of Food World and Food Trade News. He served as the company's President from 1978 until 2007, when he took the position of Chairman Emeritus. His column was published every month from 1978 until 2016.

Kathy and I went on our annual holiday trek to New York City. There is something exciting about the sights and sounds of New York City during the holiday season. As we were walking on East 46th Street (between Madison & Fifth Avenue) we passed a restaurant that caught our eye. The name of the restaurant was Food World.

We got a copy of their menu. Its logo, although not exactly like this newspaper’s former logo, but very similar. The logo had a globe with the word FOOD inside the globe and the word WORLD outside the globe.  At first I thought I was looking at the front page of Food World, and then I thought maybe Best-Met Publishing had gone into the restaurant business.  On our next visit we plan to stop in. Food World, which has seating for more than 200, serves breakfast and lunch and offers event and break time catering. The Food World experience is everywhere!

The National Restaurant Association (NRA) each year gets in the kitchen with chefs to reveal the top menu trends for the coming year. For its annual “What’s Hot Culinary Forecast,” the NRA surveyed nearly 1,300 professional chefs – members of the American Culinary Federation (ACF)– to find which foods, cuisines, beverages and culinary themes will be hot trends on restaurant menus in 2015.

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The top 10 food trends for 2015 are: 1) Locally sourced meats and seafood; 2) Locally grown produce; 3) Environmental sustainability; 4) Healthful kids’ meals; 5) Natural ingredients/minimally processed food; 6) New cuts of meat; 7) Hyper-local sourcing; 8)Sustainable seafood; 9) Food waste reduction/management; 10) Farm-and/or estate-branded items.

“As consumers today increasingly incorporate restaurants into their daily lives, they want to be able to follow their personal preferences and philosophies no matter where or how they choose to dine,” said Hudson Riehle, SVP of research for the NRA.

On the drink menu, the What’s Hot in 2015 survey predicts the top five alcohol and cocktail trends will be: Micro-distilled/artisan spirits; 2) Locally produced beer/wine/spirits; 3) “New Make” whiskey; 4) Food-beer pairings; 5) House-brewed beer.

Here is an interesting tidbit – Every IGA location in the U.S., is now a member of the National Grocers Association (NGA). There are 1,150 IGA stores across the United States. “IGA and NGA have had a long-established relationship that over the years has allowed us to work together for the benefit of IGA’s independent retailers and NGA,” said IGA CEO Mark Batenic and NGA President and CEO Peter Larkin in a joint statement. “Our new relationship means that we will be providing IGA retailers with all the benefits NGA has to offer, including tangible resources related to advocacy, education and innovation.

IGA, short for Independent Grocers Alliance, was founded in 1926, bringing together independent grocers across the U.S. To ensure that the trusted, family-owned local grocery store remained strong in the face of growing chain competition.

In 1982, NGA was founded on the philosophy of ensuring independent, community-focused retailers and wholesalers have the opportunity to succeed and better serve the consumer through effective policies, advocacy, programs and services.

Mars Chocolate North America has promoted Timothy LeBel to vice president of sales. In his new role leading the Mars Chocolate sales organization, LeBel will oversee the strategy and execution of the group’s retail management, customer account teams, field sales, customer development and customer experiences. He serves as a member of the New Jersey-based company’s senior management team and will play an active role in industry events.

A 24 year veteran of Mars, LeBel offers sales experience both in the Chocolate and Petcare divisions. LeBel earned his bachelor’s degree in marketing and finance from the University of New Hampshire and an MBA in organizational leadership from Gonzaga University.

Congratulations to Linda Gilroy, JOH account executive, who recently received an award as Mid-Atlantic Produce Broker of the Year for her work with Ventura Foods. Ms. Gilroy was honored with this outstanding award for her devotion, leadership and personal commitment to JOH and Ventura Foods brands.

Maryland’s McCormick & Co. is introducing a lineup of 25 new products ideal for winter meals. McCormick says its new winter products cater to today’s more adventurous consumer palate, reflecting a desire for everything from bold chile heat to ethnic flavors. Great way to beat the winter blahs!

In case you missed it, Forbes.com recently had a story about the best retail jobs available, concluding that “a handful of retail chains have risen above the rest.” The findings from from Glassdoor’s annual survey of the best places to work. Of the retailers that made the list of 50 places to work, H-E-B got the best ranking: “H-E-B workers rated their pay and benefits 26.5 percent above the average with the company’s 401(k) plan employee discount winning plaudits.” Costco was further down the list, with workers giving “Costco’s salary and benefits particularly high ratings; with an average of 5.3 on Glassdoor’s 1 to 5 ranking system. By way of comparison, associates at competitor Wal-Mart—which did not make the list -gave their employer a 2.8 in this category. The story goes on: “The fourth and final retailer to make Glassdoor’s top 50 is Wegmans, the upscale grocery chain based in Rochester, NY and with stores across the Northeast.”

Congratulations to Dana Metzger Cohen (Jeff and Audrie Metzger’s daughter) for receiving a first place award for her work from the National Public Relations Society of America for fund raising and development.

Dana, who is an account executive for Baltimore based Clapp Communications, received the award for work she had done for Volunteers America Chesapeake. Volunteers America Chesapeake works to uplift the most vulnerable people among us. A faith-based health and human services nonprofit serving Maryland, Virginia and the District of Columbia, Volunteers of America Chesapeake runs 31 programs and offers services in core areas, including homelessness, intellectual disabilities, veterans, mental illness and corrections. Clapp Communications works with Volunteers of America Chesapeake on strategic communication initiatives to increase awareness, development, partnerships and media presence.

We received a very nice Christmas/New Year’s note from retired Baltimore/Washington food broker Charlie Nolte (Leaman Company, KLF) and his wife Susan.  He informed us that he and Susan are enjoying good health and that he attended his 60th McDonogh High School reunion this past April and got to see many friends from nearby and from other states.

 As a reminder, I welcome all news and items of interest from Food World readers, those currently working in the industry as well as retired food industry folks. Information can be sent to me at [email protected].

Happy New Year to all who work in the wonderful world of the Food Industry in the Mid-Atlantic and the USA. May all your wishes for 2015 come true!