Here we are in the middle of our fourth heat wave of this summer, the DNC has just arrived in Philly – along with super-delegates and protesters – and Ahold and Delhaize have completed their merger. Despite Mayor Kenny’s plea for Philadelphians to stay and enjoy the DNC party, many locals are skipping town and heading, you guessed it, “down the shore.” I’m in!
Rastelli Market Fresh, the retail arm of the Rastelli Foods Group, recently celebrated its second birthday. The market is thriving, despite the naysayers who never thought this store would survive in the over-stored area of Marlton, NJ. They celebrated with a day-long event at the store. In addition to celebrating the continued success of the retail operation, the 40-year-old family owned and operated business has taken the Rastelli Market Fresh brand and brought it to life online using beautiful, new imagery and making it customer friendly as customers are always the main focus for the Rastelli family. Lauren Rastelli DeMarco and Ray Rastelli III have been working on the new website to bring it up to date, keeping up with the digital age of millennials, and continuing the Rastelli legacy for generations to come. The site offers 300 different products focusing on their meats and seafood. Customers can ask questions about products, learn preparation techniques, and get new recipes.  In addition, the website will offer a variety of seafood and meat heat-and-serve meals. The site is interactive, customizing the user’s experience based on their preferences and offering a “favorites” option to save previous orders on their account to make for easy shopping and reordering. There is also a variety of gift crates for gifting needs throughout the year. Check it out at www.rastellifoodsgroup.com.
The rebirth of the shuttered area A&P, Pathmark and Super Fresh stores is taking place slowly but surely. Last month two independents opened stores under the IGA banner, in the Germantown section of Philadelphia and in New Castle, DE. Also, Acme transformed the old A&P in Wall Township, NJ into a beautiful store. McCaffrey’s opened the long awaited Blue Bell store last week (like wandering through a garden of food and looking forward to what’s around the corner) and as we go to press, Acme is celebrating the opening of the former Super Fresh in the northern part of Ocean City, NJ. There are more on the way for, so keep it here for the latest news!
The 2016 Summer Fancy Food Show held in New York’s Javits Center was reportedly the largest ever. It still amazes me how it can hold any more people than it did the year before, but hey, this is New York City, and anything is possible! We attended on Sunday and Monday and both days were incredibly busy. One might think it would be tough to find anything new, but like a truffle-seeking animal, success! The first find was from a four-month-old company. Milkadamia, a boxed milk made from Macadamia nuts. It’s refreshing and not too sweet, but it is a little pricey as the nuts come from Australia. Our other discovery was a liquid herb spray from the Tuscany region in Italy under the Turci label. I thought this GMO-free product line was particularly interesting because the products perform like fresh herbs and are available all year long.
The New Jersey Food Council (NJFC) held its annual golf outing on July 18 at Suburban Golf Club in Union, NJ, more than 160 food industry executives representing retail, manufacturers, brokers, wholesalers and convenience stores from across New Jersey participated even though it was one of the hottest days of the summer. “The golf outing continues to be our most popular event and one our members look forward to all year long,” said NJFC President Linda Doherty. “The attendees enjoyed a fantastic day of golf, as well as invaluable networking opportunities with food trade and retail executives.” The food at Suburban happens to be awesome too. Prizes were awarded to the following: first place team – Stan Barrsso, Ed Connelly, Rich French and Rich Guarneri with Acosta; closest to the pin – Bill Weimer with Maximum Marketing and Colleen Meares with Stop & Shop; closest to the line – Ron Kempe with Whole Foods and Suzanne DelVecchio with QuickChek; and longest drive – Vince Williams with Bimbo Bakeries and Mary Elizabeth Warner with QuickChek.  Look for photos in the August issue of Food Trade News.
The circle of life continues as we send condolences to the family and friends of Gerald (Jerry) Santucci, who passed away on July 13 after a long battle with cancer. He was 78 years young. A Philadelphia native, Gerry co-founded specialty food brokerage Santucci Associates in 1965 and became a legend in the business. Jerry was a two-time president of the National Association of Specialty Food and Confection Brokers and was inducted into the Specialty Food Association’s Hall of Fame just last year. Jerry is survived by his wife of 57 years Mary, two daughters, five grandchildren, many family members and good friends. The family requests donations go to: Autism Speaks at www.autismspeaks.com or Mary Mother of the Redeemer Church at www.kirkandnicesuburban.com. Rest in peace, my friend.
Birthday shout-outs for the patriotic month of July go out to: Jim McCaffrey III, McCaffrey’s Markets; Joe Fantozzi, Allegiance Retail Services; Kelly Tarzwell, Smucker’s; Maurice Christino, Cento Foods; Wayne Couts, Burris Retail Logistics; Tim Summy, retired from Bimbo Bakeries; and to my son, Gino Marfuggi, Dietz & Watson. Buon compleanno a tutti!
Quote of the month: “A little sand between your toes takes away woes.” Unknown
