Newsletter
October - December, 2013
snow-heavy-trees.jpgreflective-fall-trees-bnr.jpg  
  
In This Issue
  
Meet Diane Dawson - IFT Online Exclusive
  
  
Silicon Valley Takes Aim at the Kitchen
 
Top Trends and Drivers for 2013 - Part II
 
Dawson Sales Company at 2013 CSIFT Suppliers' Night
 
Silicon Valley Takes Aim at the Kitchen
k 
Megan Miller is the co-founder of Chirp Farms, a start-up firm in San Francisco that is dedicated to making food like the company's flagship Chirp bars, which are $2.50 morsels made of crickets. This tasty treat is due to arrive in stores next year. Ms. Miller knows that cockroaches and crickets are packed with protein. While making food from insects is in itself innovative, the approach that Ms. Miller is taking, treating Chirp Farms like a technology start-up rather than a food outfit, is what really makes the company interesting.
"My background is digital product development," Ms. Miller said in an interview.  "I'm using the same kinds of thinking that I used in technology start-ups while I build this food business, too."
A growing number of start-ups like Chirp Farms have received money from big venture capital firms but do not have clear plans yet as to how they are going to compete with the entrenched giants of the food industry.  Entrepreneurs like Ms. Miller see a big, slow-moving market that needs to be invaded by someone with new ideas and a new way of building a business. 
IBM and Food  
  
Per Josh Tetrick, founder and chief executive of Hampton Creek Foods, "The food system is bizarre and ineffectual and completely lacking in innovation."  Hampton Creek Foods makes imitation egg products using plants.  There are a number of obstacles to overcome when creating a food company including government regulations and competition from entrenched conglomerates with vast distribution systems.  The start-ups are trying to overcome the obstacles by behaving like the most successful technology outfits that have gone from ideas to multibillion-dollar businesses.   They rely heavily on programs and software development that help to move and build products very quickly.  They are organizing the development of food products in much the same way that tech start-ups organize code.  "You have to think in terms of scaling, like software, and that's what Silicon Valley brings to the food start-ups, where we know how to create something small, then iterate rapidly, and finally scale it," Ms. Miller said.
The interior of the San Francisco offices of Hampton Creek looks like a cross between a movie-scene meth lab, a nightclub and a standard-issue start-up.  Plants to be used in product development sit on the windowsill.  Thirty young and hip programmers, marketers and scientists zip around listening to loud music blaring from speakers.  Employees talk about food as if they were programming an app to be sold in the iTunes store.
"While a chicken egg will never change, our idea is that we can have a product where we push updates into the system, just like Apple updates its operating system," Mr. Tetrick said.  "So our mayo is version 1.0, and the next version will be 2.0, which will be less expensive and last twice as long."  Hampton Creek  has set up a partnership with Whole Foods that will bring Just Mayo, the company's plant-based mayonnaise, to retail shelves across the country.
Thomas Manuel, the chief executive of Nu-Tek Food Science has worked in the food and agriculture industries for 43 years.  He wonders if some of these food start-ups will eventually be snapped up by the giants or just copied out of existence,  but there might be room for both entrenched corporations and the start-ups in the future of the food industry.  A report issued by the United Nations warns that the world's population is expected to reach nine billion people by 2050 and there are not enough resources on the planet to feed all of these people.  The report suggested insects as s solution.  That's where start-ups such as Chirp Farms come in to introduce alternative foods.
"As the population grows, there is not going to be enough protein for people.  There is no way that we can produce meat on that scale," Ms. Miller said.  "What we are trying to do is popularize a protein that hasn't made it into Western culture yet, and that's going to be very disruptive."
Insect entrees anyone?
  
from THE NEW YORK TIMES - October 21, 2013
  
Health, Indulgence & Global Inspiration in Culinary Trends

 

Nut milks, egg yolks and seaweed top the list of cutting-edge dining trends poised for mainstream menus in 2014, according to Sterling-rice Group, a Boulder-based consulting firm.

Emerging ingredients and flavors are driven by health, indulgence and global inspiration, said Kazia Jankowski, associate culinary director for Sterling-Rice.

"Last year as we looked at the trends, we saw a lot more veggies making their way into the center of the plate and an increased focus on health and wellness, both from a chef perspective as well as a consumer perspective along with cuisines that supported that, like Asian food and whatnot," Ms. Jankowski said.  "We saw new flavors and new ingredients popping, a lot more emphasis on Middle Eastern flavors and a lot more emphasis on healthy beverages, like tea.  Some new expressions of healthiness but not at the sacrifice of the American comfort foods that allow us to indulge ourselves.   We look at input from our culinary team and chefs and look at trends to find those things that are both on the culinary leading edge and aligned with consumer behavior which will push them to become more mainstream."

The group collected expertise from food industry experts, publications and trade shows to identify emerging trends in the industry.

from FoodBusinessNews.net - 11/6/2013
MEET DIANE DAWSON - IFT ONLINE EXCLUSIVE - OCTOBER 2013
Face-to-Face: Meet Diane Dawson October 2013

Ever wonder if anyone else is facing the same professional challenges as you? Or just looking to connect with some new people in your field? In IFT's Face-to-Face series, we will be introducing you to a different IFT member every month with a fun, insightful Q&A session.

This month meet...

Diane Dawson 2013  

Diane Dawson, President & Owner of Dawson Sales Co.

  1. How did you get your start in the food industry?
    Dawson Sales was founded by my father, Jim Dawson, in 1954. My parents asked me to come back to Chicago to fill in for my father when he was on a medical leave in 1982. I was working at IBM in New Jersey at the time. I loved IBM, but my family tie was stronger and I never looked back.
     
  2. What do you love about your job?
    I love taking care of customers and their needs. I love my customers. They keep me passionate about what I do.
     
  3. What is the biggest challenge that you face in your job?
    I am blessed with suppliers who are leaders in their industries, some being the innovators of a technology. For example, Henningsen Foods pioneered spray drying eggs. Another is Sun-Maid, global leaders and innovators in raisins. Both organizations are over 100 years old for a reason. My challenge is to communicate to my customers why the ingredients Dawson Sales offers are the best and deliver benefits well beyond the price. I don't think a buyer ever just buys based on price. Price is a very crucial parameter, but a buying decision is based on things like product quality, food safety, and service. It is never just about price. My challenge is to convince customers that there is a premium for quality and over the long run they save by buying the best.
     
  4. What have you learned or been exposed to in the past 12 months that has helped you in your job?
    I recently had to deal with a real estate broker in the sale of a family property and I was so disappointed with their level of service. As a customer I was very frustrated and disappointed. That bad experience reminded me how important it is for a middleman to establish and maintain the highest level of ethical standards and professional communication when facilitating business between buyer and seller. I want to make sure that none of Dawson Sales customers ever feel the way I felt during this real estate transaction.
     
  5. How do you see the food industry evolving over the coming year?
    Health and wellness issues will continue to impact the food industry. Future generations will be better educated and will make more healthy food choices and will pay the premium for healthy, safe food. Consumer packaged goods companies will adjust and will fill those consumer needs. There's always a bright future for the food industry because it is made of people who really care.
     
  6. Fun Fact: What's your favorite food?
    My favorite food? That's a tough one! I love to eat! I guess it would have to be Mom's meatloaf.

As featured on IFT website - October 2013 - Face-to-Face Online Exclusive.

Check Out IFT Online 

 

If you are an IFT member and wish to be profiled, please contact Kelly Hensel at khensel@ift.org or 312-604-0211.

Institute of Food Technologists
525 W. Van Buren, Ste 1000 Chicago, IL 60607
Phone: +1.312.782.8424 | Fax: +1.312.782.8348 | Email: info@ift.org

© Institute of Food Technologists Terms of Service | Privacy Policy | Sponsorship & Advertising

  

TOP FOOD TRENDS AND DRIVERS FOR 2013
PART 2
 
The food industry has always been dynamic and fluid but recent years have seen some dramatic changes in the areas of weather influences, the economy and consumer demographics and preferences.
Early in 2012, many industry sources were talking about how the weather and the economy would impact food production and prices.  Little did they know just how big that impact would be!  2012 brought the worst drought that the country has seen in 50 years and created havoc on over 60% of all of the farmland in the United States.
   
 The USDA has predicted that food prices will continue to rise for many years to come.  Even modest food price increases will affect many.  Almost one-third of Millennial (50+ million people born between 1978 and 1994) have difficulty affording their weekly groceries.  Food prices will also have a huge impact on America's "middle class" (households with incomes from $38,000 to $110,000 per year) which has seen their net worth plummet almost 40% from 2007 to 2010.  As of August 2012, over 45 million Americans were enrolled in the USDA's SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) and received monthly benefits.
All is not doom and gloom, however.  There are definite, sustained trends that continue to drive the food industry to higher levels of efficiency and profitability.  Here is the second installment which discusses more of the positive trends in the food industry.  (See our summer 2013 newsletter in our newsletter archive at www.dawsonsales.com for the first installment.)
  
#4 THE NEW PROTEINS.   The desire for and interest in protein is hot and it is about body composition, sports, satiety and maintaining muscle mass as we age.  Complete proteins are those that provide all of the essential amino acids and these include meat, poultry, fish, eggs and cheese.  Incomplete proteins are those that are low in one or more of the essential amino acids.  These include rice, beans and legumes.  Complementary proteins are two or more incomplete protein sources that together provide all of the essential amino acids.  For example, tofu and brown rice or rice and beans. As prices for protein commodities continue to increase, look for consumers in the U.S. to move away from meat-based proteins.  This trend is being fueled by Millenials of all ethnic backgrounds who have aligned themselves within the "less meat to meatless spectrum" and changed their diets to include low cost/ high protein options such as nut butters and chickpeas.  We can expect to see protein influences from around the world becoming mainstream including Greek yogurt, Asian and Indian cuisines, and tofu based burgers.
  
#5 BREAKFAST BECOMES THE MOST IMPORTANT MEAL.  
The benefits of breakfast are becoming hard to dispute as study after study shows that breakfast is the most important meal of the day.  With food costs rising, many consumers have taken typical protein rich breakfast foods into other day parts as a way to save money and maintain their healthy eating. 
Keeping blood sugar stable is key to optimal wellness.  Starting the day with a solid breakfast aids greatly in blood sugar stabilization.  Nutritious breakfast choices include yogurt, nut and seed butters, eggs, whole grain breads, oatmeal and fresh fruits.
  
#6 FROZEN FOODS EVOLVE INTO FOODS THAT ARE FROZEN.
Consumers want foods that are tasty, easy to prepare and healthy - all at the right price.  Data from The Hartman Group reports that 44% of all adult eating happens alone.  This underscores the need for single serve packs and convenience.  While sales in frozen foods have been down more than in any other supermarket departments, that is about to change.
In the past, many consumers have viewed frozen foods as "processed" versus "prepared".  Look for this fallacy to disappear as frozen food processors tout their "real food" ingredients and do a better job of explaining the freezing process.  More flavorful ethnic foods will attract Millenials to the frozen foods aisles, and the evolving concept of "a la carte" will appeal to them, also.  Expect to see smaller size packages of real foods that are frozen that will be easy to
mix and match to create meals.
Another demograohic group that will change the path of frozen foods are Hispanics.  Research studies have shown that 42% of Hispanics prepare "hybrid meals" using some fresh foods and some foods from the frozen aisle to bridge the divide between traditional tastes and convenience.  This group will account for just over 30% of the total U.S. population by 2050.
  
#7 MEN IN THE SUPERMARKET AND IN THE KITCHEN.
In 2013 we see the male's influence on our foods becoming even stronger as more dads join the ranks of shopper and cook, and as more men remain single longer.
According to a 2012 survey from Cone Communications, 52% of fathers now identify themselves as the primary grocery store shopper.  ESPN reports that 31% of grocery shoppers are now men.  Some of the drivers behind this trend include more husbands working at home, men looking for work and taking over household duties in the meantime, discovering enjoyment in food preparation and becoming more involved in food preparation for health reasons/ lifestyle changes.
Newly released data from the U.S. Census Bureau shows that the number of one-person households in the country comprises 27% of all U.S. households and that 43% of these are male. 
Many supermarkets are targeting male shoppers with experimental "man aisles" which feature male oriented foods and other products.  There is a sustained trend toward attracting and empowering the male shopper through in-store shopping and nutrition tours and programs like Men's Health magazine's cooking school.
  
from "Facts, Figures & The Future", December 2012 - Phil Lempert
  
For more information, check out the following links:
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
DAWSON SALES COMPANY SHOWS WITH TOP SUPPLIERS AT 2013 CSIFT SUPPLIERS' NIGHT SHOW
 
  Dawson Sales Company had a strong presence at the 2013 CSIFT Suppliers' Night show with eight of our top suppliers showing in the Dawson Sales aisle.  Cherry Central, Creative Food Ingredients, Franklin Baker Inc., French's Flavor Ingredients, Green Valley Pecan, Henningsen Foods, Industrial Commodities Inc. and Newtown Foods participated in the show and were able to meet with many of the key customers in our market area.  There was a steady flow of attendees throughout the day and interest in new flavor trends, healthy ingredients, innovative applications and market information was high.  If you missed this years' show, be sure to mark your calendars for the 2014 CSIFT Suppliers' Night show which is scheduled for November 12, 2014.
    
  
  
   
  
Dawson Sales Company
2015 Spring Road - Suite 275
Oak Brook, IL  60523
p: (630) 203-8174      f: (630) 203-8171
  
Articles compiled and edited by Lynne Noren
  
Dawson Sales Company | 630-203-8174 | lynnenoren@dawsonsales.com | http://www.dawsonsales.com
2015 Spring Road
Suite 275
Oak Brook, IL 60523
Stay Connected

Facebook    Twitter    LinkedIn    Pinterest

Copyright © 20XX. All Rights Reserved.