Kelley’s Gourmet Mustard Named Grand Champion
Kevin Kelley’s late father, Howard, must be proud. Howard had started a successful catering business in the 1960s and Kevin learned that his customers loved his mustard. Kevin heard about the Mustard Competition in 2012 and entered his Kelley’s Gourmet stone ground blend in 2012 and every year since. He has won several medals over the years in the Deli Category and this year was crowned Grand Champion. It is pure magic on a corned beef or pastrami sandwich.
More than 250 mustards from around the world entered this year’s competition, held under thell direction of Barry Levenson, curator and founder of the nonprofit National Mustard Museum in Middleton, Wis. Judges tasted mustards from as far away as Finland, Switzerland, Hungary, Poland, France, Japan, and Sweden.
The National Mustard Museum, home of the world’s largest collection of mustards and mustard memorabilia, has coordinated this annual blind tasting since 1995. This year, more than 40 judges from around the country sampled mustards in 19 categories: sweet-hot, mild, honey, classic Dijon, whole grain, whole seed, classic hot, pepper medium, pepper hot, horseradish-wasabi, herb-veggie, garlic, fruit, mostardas, spirit, American yellow, deli, exotic, and mustard-based BBQ sauces.
For the second year in a row, Plochman’s, the venerable mustard company in Manteno, Ill., captured four Gold Medals, while Beaverton Foods, from Beaverton, Ore., won eight medals, including three Golds.
Perhaps this year’s biggest surprise was the Australian company MasterFoods, winning the Gold in the Classic American Yellow category.
The National Mustard Museum will display the winning mustards in a Salute to the Winners on Memorial Day weekend (May 27-29). The museum will host its 33rd annual International Mustard Day on Saturday, Aug. 5.
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Groix & Nature Sardines in Lobster Oil Wins sofi Gold Product Award
Groix & Nature Sardines in Lobster Oil has been named the 2023 sofi Gold Product Award Winner in the Seafood category. The Specialty Food Association’s sofi Awards, which have been bestowed annually since 1972, are a top honor in the $175 billion specialty food industry.
The 2023 sofi Awards recognized a Gold Winner and a New Product Winner in each of 53 specialty food and beverage product categories. Nearly 2,000 products from domestic and international makers entered the 2023 competition.
“We are honored that our Groix & Nature Sardines in Lobster Oil has won a sofi Gold Product Award,” says Gisele Oriot, founder of The French Farm. “Our supplier, Groix & Nature, creates the best possible product for our customers, and this Award is one of the ultimate stamps of approval.”
Groix & Nature Sardines in Lobster Oil can be found at www.wholesale.thefrenchfarm.com.
Groix & Nature Sardines inLobster Oil will now compete against other category winners for the 2023 sofi Gold Product of the Year Award, which will be selected and announced at the Summer Fancy Food Show, June 25-27 in New York City. The Summer Fancy Food Show is the largest B2B-only specialty food industry event in North America.
“The sofi™ Awards recognize the best, most innovative products in the Specialty Food Industry and the creative, passionate people who make them,” said SFA President Bill Lynch. “Winning a sofi Award can open doors to new markets and expanded business opportunities for the winners, which is central to the SFA’s work on behalf of its member makers and manufacturers.”
The sofi Awards competition is open to product-qualified SFA members in good standing. Gold and New Award Winners in each category are featured in the sofi Spotlight Pavilion at the Summer and Winter Fancy Food Shows. Winning a sofi Award creates added exposure for products with food buyers from top names in supermarkets, specialty retailers, food service, distributors, and the media.
SFA partners with Rutgers Food Innovation Center in Bridgeton, NJ for sofi Awards judging and logistics management. Entries were judged strictly on a blind basis—without packaging, pricing, or any brand identification. Products were judged on taste—including flavor, appearance, texture, and aroma—ingredient quality, and innovation.
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Sunday Night Foods Celebrates 2nd sofi in 2 Years
Sunday Night Foods has won the New Product Award for the second year in a row in the Dessert Toppings category as part of the Specialty Food Association’s 2023 sofi Awards, a top honor in the $175 billion specialty food industry. Sunday Night will be showcasing its award-winning sauce June 25-27 at the Summer Fancy Food Show in Booth #1354 at the Javits Center in New York.
Sunday Night’s Dark Chocolate + Peppermint Premium Dessert Sauce was one of the winners selected by a panel of specialty food experts from nearly 2,000 entries across 53 categories. Products were judged on taste – including flavor, appearance, texture and aroma – ingredient quality and innovation. All tastings were anonymous and held at the Rutgers Food Innovation Center.
Sunday Night also won a New Product sofi™ Award in 2022, with its Dark + Decadent Chocolate Premium Dessert Sauce, just seven months after launching the company.
“Winning a sofi Award is a testament to our craft in perfecting a silky, glossy chocolate ganache from the finest pure ingredients,” said Eileen Gannon, founder and CEO of Sunday Night Foods. “We are honored and grateful to win one of the highest awards in specialty food for the second time.”
“The sofi Awards recognize the best, most innovative products in the Specialty Food Industry and the creative, passionate people who make them,” said SFA President Bill Lynch. “Winning a sofi Award can open doors to new markets and expand business opportunities for the winners, which is central to the SFA’s work on behalf of its member makers and manufacturers.”
Sunday Night’s luxurious, velvety sauces are made without corn syrup, preservatives, palm oil or emulsifiers. The premium ingredients allow the pure flavors to shine through: Rich, robust chocolate with fragrant, fresh-brownie cocoa notes and an essence of ripened fruit and warm spices, with hints of buttery caramel, pure vanilla and sea salt.
“Consumers want better food, but they are busy,” said Gannon. “We created our sauces so people never have to compromise on taste and quality, even when they don’t have time.”
More than just for ice cream, Sunday Night sauces can be quickly transformed into homemade cakes, pies, puddings, frostings and drinks by adding just a few ingredients. More than 50 recipes and sweet inspirations can be found at SundayNightFoods.com.
“Our brand isn’t just about the food – it’s about helping people connect around a table or a couch or a campfire, whether it’s in person or on a video call thousands of miles apart,” said Gannon. “We created the Sunday Night brand so people can easily enjoy that same feeling of comfort, care and kindness any time they wish.”
Sunday Night donates 1 percent of sales to the National Alliance on Mental Illness.
Sunday Night’s Premium Dessert Sauces are available at select supermarkets, specialty stores and online at SundayNightFoods.com. To find stores, visit: https://sundaynightfoods.com/pages/store-locator
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