It’s June, so you know what that means…the 2022 Market Study has arrived! We are still feeling the effects of the pandemic and cases of COVID-19 are still in our midst, but in general, people are moving on and attempting to live their best lives. Certainly, I don’t have to tell you how much the food industry is suffering (other than the retailers who are enjoying the profits) with out of stocks, price increases, supply chain woes and ingredient shortages, you all tell us the trials and tribulations of doing business in an (almost) post pandemic world every day. The Food Trade News Market Study, which covers 70 counties in PA, NJ, DE, NY and CT in all channels of retail distribution, gives you the statistics you need along with the in-depth analysis we know you depend on as you plan your company’s path for the coming year. With the world still in a state of flux, this data means more than ever before. Putting this monumental issue together requires coordination, cooperation, and gratitude. Together with our team comprised of Jeff Metzger, Terri Maloney, Kevin Gallagher, Karen Fernandez and Beth Pripstein from Best-Met; Matt Danielson and Jenny Jones from e-Ink; and the patient folks at Evergreen Printing we have compiled what we think is the most comprehensive collection of data of the territory we cover. Finally, a heartfelt thank you to you, our loyal advertisers, print and digital readers for your support throughout the year and in particular this Market Study issue. We couldn’t do what we do without you! Don’t have your own copy of the Food Trade News and Food World Market Studies? This year’s issues, as well as those from years past, are available on our website www.foodtradenews.com throughout the year. Plus, you can keep up to date with every bit of industry news by signing up for breaking news…you’ll never be uninformed!
Two of my favorite trade groups resumed their in-person shows recently, the first since 2019. Unfortunately, they were back-to-back and many cases of COVID-19 went from one show to the other. The International Dairy Deli Bakery Association (IDDBA) 2022 show was held from June 5-7 in Atlanta at the World Congress Center followed by the Specialty Food Association (SFA) Summer Fancy Food Show June 12-14 in New York City at the Javits Center. Some changes in booth layouts were made to accommodate the need to stay farther apart than the usual “pack ‘em in” philosophy from years ago. Masks and hand sanitizer were available at both shows and people were unashamed to use them. Even in a slightly modified form, it was good to get out to network, sell and be seen at these shows.
The industry was excited to get back together at the IDDBA show as the official numbers indicate. There were 7,542 registered attendees visiting 1,557 booths attending three days of seminars. The speakers were relevant, even Nicole Kidman, who was down to earth and funny. To make the show a little more fun, Tim McGraw performed for the first-come first-served crowd for an hour at the venue on Monday night. IDDBA president Mike Eardley gave his annual speech reinforcing that people remain the most important part of our business and that without them, our industry would be no more. To that point, he named people as the first of the three areas of investment retailers should be making: people, technology and the future of the deli and bakery. There were new products and product categories we don’t usually see at this show (produce and frozen) as well as some good old standards. But for me, one product stood out because I had never seen anything like it before: lamb charcuterie. Aussie Select, the brand name from World Select Cuts, LLC, manufactures hand-crafted, premium charcuterie meats featuring pasture-raised Australian lamb. Available for both the retail and foodservice markets, it is the only ready-to-eat lamb on the market. There are three product offerings: agave rosemary lamb ham, lamb pastrami and tikka masala lamb ham. Three distinct flavors that come in 4 ounce pouches in the deli. Surprisingly delicious and not gamey at all. At the end of the show, 97,251 pounds of food was donated to Atlanta area food banks by the IDDBA exhibitors which equates to 81,043 meals. It was a good show with most retailers from our coverage area in attendance. Mark your calendars for IDDBA 2023 in Anaheim, CA, June 4-6 at the Anaheim Convention Center! See you there!
The Summer Fancy Food Show, which always draws a huge international crowd, was a little less crowded this year, or maybe it was the wider aisles that gave visitors more breathing room. Either way, the show did not disappoint. This show is the holy grail for those with dreams of owning their own specialty business. The show now hosts incubators, first time exhibitors, and women-owned businesses to help them realize those dreams. No longer the land of chocolate dipped potato chips and mustards, the SFA’s annual State of the Specialty Food Industry Report reveals that the specialty food market reached total sales of $175 billion in 2021, up 7.4 percent versus 5.8 percent the year before, when foodservice’s steep decline offset outsized gains in brick-and-mortar retail and ecommerce. “The specialty food market has prospered amid two difficult years, with our latest research showing specialty continues to grow at a faster rate than all food,” said Denise Purcell, SFA’s vice president, content and education. “Growth will continue, but at a slower pace than the industry experienced during the 2020 pandemic-influenced whirlwind of grocery shopping and at-home meal preparation–and will depend on supply chain bandwidth and shifts in challenges like inflation, shipping issues, cost increases, and materials shortages.” At the end of the show, over 112,000 pounds of food was donated to City Harvest in Manhattan. “Combating hunger through food recovery is a longstanding endeavor for our organization,” said Jennifer Carney, director of tradeshow operations for the SFA. The recovered food made its way to food pantries and soup kitchens in the New York City. I always say that food industry people are the most generous. The 2023 Summer Fancy Food Show will be held June 25-27 at the Javits Convention Center in New York City, with the Winter Fancy Food Show remaining in Las Vegas, January 15-17, 2023.
My quote of the month in May’s Soup To Nutz featured words of wisdom from Stephen Hawking who reminded us that our past tells us who we are. I was fortunate enough to visit Italy a few weeks ago, specifically Torino in the northwestern part of Italy, and my beloved Sicily, not knowing how transformational this trip would be. It was the first time I have traveled alone internationally in over 30 years, and I was a little more than anxious, especially with COVID tests and mask rulings firmly in place. As it turns out, I had nothing to worry about as people mask up based on their comfort level, just as they do in the States.
The first leg of my trip was to see my cousins who are from Palermo but live up north in Torino because their careers brought them there. Torino, the capital of the Piedmont region and once the political capital of Italy, is a charming and sophisticated city of almost two million. It is home to FIAT, Juventus F.C., for you soccer lovers, the Shroud of Turin and the famous Italian foods, grissini (breadsticks) and the chocolate gianduja. I had never been to Torino, so this trip was a little bit touristy, but mostly a family visit. The food all over Italy is amazing and Torino is no different. We went to a one-star Michelin restaurant on the rooftop of a Savoia Family castle on the outskirts of Torino called Alfredo Russo, named for the chef, who came to the table to give us menu explanations and recommendations. I wish I could show you this amazing meal in photos, as I took many, but we aren’t photojournalists. Torino is famous for a dish called Vitello Tonnato, and I ate it every day, but it was best prepared by Alfredo Russo. Each of the six courses was just a bite, but we were stuffed by the end of the meal, which was among the top five meals I have ever eaten.
After an emotional goodbye, I flew to Palermo to visit with other family members in Castelvetrano and to attend a family wedding. My last trip was in 2011, and as before some things never change, and that’s ok; but many things, especially socially, have changed. Young people are still leaving to go up north for work. The employment opportunities are just not as plentiful as they are in the larger cities. Millennials are cohabitating before marriage, and the older generations are separating (but not divorcing) from their spouses, both of which were unheard of years ago. Tourism has increased and one can rent an Airbnb home anywhere in Sicily for not a lot of money. After a delicious pranzo, my cousin Fanny (accent on the last syllable) and I caught up on the past years’ events and the upcoming wedding of her son Antonio in Milazzo, a town near Messina. She had lots of preparation to do, so her husband Angelo and I set off on some little trips to visit the places we went to as teenagers. On one of our jaunts, we passed the factory of Geolive, the processing plant for the Olive Nocellara di Belice, D.O.P. type of olives, more commonly known as Castelvetrano olives. Castelvetrano olives are famous for their irresistible buttery-sweet flavor, and crisp, meaty texture. They are grown in Castelvetrano and there is only one harvest per year. I hadn’t seen the factory in this location on any of my previous trips. The next day, without my knowledge, Angelo and our friend Leo took me to the factory where we had an impromptu meeting and factory tour with the owner Francesco Lombardo and his family. For those of you who know me, I love a plant tour and this one was awesome. I saw how olives are pitted, washed, and sorted for jarring. At the time of our visit, they were jarring olives under the Partanna (known for olive oil) label for Walmart. They also jar for many retailers and distributors. I had a follow up visit with Francesco at the Summer Fancy Food Show; now we are friends.
The most emotional time for me on this trip was when my cousins Fanny, Angelo and I went to the small town of Campobello di Mazara, population just under 12,000, where our great grandfathers, brothers Antonio and Pietro Maggio, lived. We found the actual house they lived in over 120 years ago. We stood in the place where our fathers stood back in 1967 when my father took his first trip to Sicily and went with Fanny’s father to see where we came from. Indeed, we were a bit overwhelmed by this discovery. We know why they left, although Fanny’s grandparents returned in the mid 1920s, and we know who we come from.
It was after telling the story of this discovery that friends and family were telling me to retire there. Maybe a month or two…you never know.
We left Castelvetrano for the wedding in Milazzo singing the songs of the late Italian popstar, Lucio Battisti along the way. The weather for the wedding was beautiful and the setting was almost indescribable. The tiny church was in the side of the mountain overlooking the sea with Mt. Etna in the background. The Mass took place outside of the church with chairs set up on the steps, parasols, fans and water were available to beat the heat. Then, in typical Sicilian fashion, a granita cart was set up for guests to recharge after melting in the hot sun. What is a granita? It’s specific to Sicily; a delicious anytime snack, a cross between sorbet, water ice and ice cream, and when eaten in the morning, it is stuffed inside a brioche bun. Heaven on earth. The reception was in a 200 year-old villa overlooking the sea. This area of Sicily is very mountainous, so the views are extraordinary. The reception was much like ours here, except that there were five courses in different locations on the estate with a cannoli cart and gelato station serving guests until 2:00 a.m. Italians party until the wee hours of the morning. Unfortunately, I had to leave the next morning to begin my journey back to the USA; tired, relaxed and happy.
My advice for those of you who would like to find your past and walk where your ancestors walked is to go to that place, breathe it in and allow it to soak into your soul. You might be surprised at what you find. I leave you with a short poem translated from Sicilian dialect given to me by my lifelong friend Giovanni Palma.
“My land is Sicily, bitter earth that is sweet yet troubled. Colorful land of love with the fragrance of orange blossom. Tormented and much-loved homeland of many illustrious natives. Land of delicious food and culture. Land that makes you dream and relax. My land is so beautiful…she is called Sicily.”
I will always bleed red, white and blue, and as always, I am humbled and grateful that my grandparents immigrated to the United States for a better life; but on this, my 15th trip, I have found that my soul belongs to Sicily.
A tip of the hat to two local food industry notables: Dave Lessard, vice president of fresh omnichannel merchandising at The Giant Company, and Thom Nardi, Paradigm Partners who were each recognized as a Champion of Change by the IDDBA during their recent show in Atlanta. They were among the group of 24 industry leaders honored for their achievements and for helping advance supermarket fresh food departments. Each honoree demonstrated a commitment to excellence and has produced superior results in bakery, deli, foodservice/prepared foods, and dairy. Well done, gentlemen! A very loud shout out goes to Jennifer Heinzen Krueger , who has been named vice president, team experience at The Giant Company effective May 30. She also serves as the programming officer for NextUp’s (formerly the Network of Executive Women) Pennsylvania Chapter which is where I had the chance get to know and work with her. For more on Jen’s exemplary career, see People on page 95. Well deserved, Jen!
The circle of life continues as Kevin Rider, Arla Foods, and his wife Maggie welcomed their son Peter John into the world on June 3. Also eagerly awaiting Peter’s arrival was big sister, Lulu, the Golden Retriever. Congratulations!
We were saddened to hear of the recent passing of Ed McLaughlin, a lifelong retail food industry member who passed away just before presstime after a long and tough battle with cancer. His full obituary is on page 2. Ed will be remembered for being a pleasure to work with and a really good guy who always did the right thing, both at Genuardi’s and C&S Robesonia. Rest in peace, my friend.
Taking another trip around the sun this beautiful month of June are: Phil Scaduto, Food Circus Supermarkets; Bill Derbyshire, Liberty Coca Cola; Mark Tarzwell, Mrs. T’s; Jim Burke Sr. and Jim Burke Jr., Seafood America; Doug Clemens, retired from Clemens Food Group; Tom Morrison (who is celebrating a very special milestone), Integrity Food Brokers; Nancy Rodgers-Fluharty, Pace Target Brokers; Terri Maloney, VP/editorial director of both Food World and Food Trade News; and last but not least, our fearless leader, Jeff Metzger. Buon compleanno a tutti!
Quote of the month: “It takes courage to say yes to rest and play in a culture where exhaustion is seen as a status symbol.” Brene Brown
Maria can be reached at 443.631.0172 or [email protected]
