FoodieCon returns to the Food Network South Beach Wine & Food Festival presented by Capital One on Feb. 23-24. Now in its third iteration, FoodieCon recognizes the power and true influence that social media’s content creators hold in today’s world. It provides a platform for fans to interact directly with creators, while they provide tangible insights, learn from each other and gain more visibility.
FoodieCon brings together the most viral culinary content creators – from Joshua Weissman (@joshuaweissman, 1.8MM IG followers, 7MM TikTok followers) to Molly Baz (@mollybaz, 752K IG followers) to Toni Chapman (@themoodyfoody, 1MM IG followers, 1.5MM TikTok Followers) – and celebrities like Neil Patrick Harris (@nph, 9MM IG followers).
Tickets for FoodieCon events are sold separately and are now available, with 100 percent of net proceeds benefiting the Chaplin School of Hospitality & Tourism Management at Florida International University.
FoodieCon kicks off Friday, Feb. 23 with a Happy Hour hosted by Neil Patrick Harris, followed by an intimate FoodieCon Dinner, hosted by Robert Irvine (586K IG followers), Jake Cohen (@jakecohen 1M IG followers, 1.5M TikTok followers) and Olivia Tiedemann (@oliviatied 2.4M IG followers), who are collaborating on an exclusive, hyper-visual menu.
The all-day main event on Saturday, Feb. 24, hosted by W South Beach, will feature interactive panels, immersive activations, meet-and-greets, book signings, tastings and more, bringing the digital world of social media to life.
FoodieCon launched at SOBEWFF in 2023 to a sold-out crowd and expanded this past fall at the Food Network New York City Wine & Food Festival presented by Capital One (NYCWFF). In the last year, FoodieCon has received overwhelming positive feedback, attracting content creators from around the world.
Talent for FoodieCon at SOBEWFF 2024 features internationally recognized creators from around the world (from Miami to New Zealand, and beyond).
Founded by Lee Brian Schrager, SOBEWFF and NYCWFF have brought together top international culinary talent – from Alain Ducasse and Massimo Bottura to Michelle Bernstein and Evan Funke – for 23 years, generating more than $50 million in net proceeds for its charitable causes. Over the years, Schrager watched the role and influence of content creators exponentially grow within the culinary world and recognized an untapped opportunity to bring together this new generation of tastemakers. Bringing the digital environment of social media to life, FoodieCon® provides a platform for the content creator community to think about the role and influence of social media in the larger culinary landscape, and for fans to interact directly with their favorite personalities.
The programming for FoodieCon 2024 will be released in the coming weeks.
FoodieCon tickets are now available at sobewff.org/foodiecon. Follow @foodiecon on Instagram and TikTok (@foodieconfest).
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United Natural Foods, Inc. has released its updated selling show schedule for 2024. As part of UNFI’s mission to help customers and suppliers win in the marketplace, each UNFI selling show will now showcase the full spectrum of products and services that better aligns with customer buying behavior, instead of focusing shows exclusively on natural and organic or conventional products. These new shows will support both the natural and conventional supplier as well as all grocery retail customer channels and positioning.
Sandy Douglas, UNFI’s chief executive officer said: “With the start of every selling show season, we look forward to connecting with our partners around the country to share insights, discuss industry trends, and explore new ways to create value and help drive their growth. We appreciate the hard work of our suppliers and customers and look forward to continuing to support them with supply chain efficiency and the industry’s leading selection of products, insights and go-to-market services, all of which will be on display at our upcoming shows.”
New 2024 UNFI Selling Show Schedule:
The company will hold the following four shows in 2024:
For more information on UNFI selling shows, customers or suppliers can visit: https://www.unfi.com/shows-events or email events@unfi.com.
Inaugural Circle of Excellence Awards
UNFI also announced plans for its inaugural Circle of Excellence awards, which will recognize the outstanding performance and growth of UNFI customers and suppliers. UNFI’s Circle of Excellence awards honor the innovation, diversity of market positioning, size, and geography of customers and suppliers across the country. The Company will select customer winners in local independent, regional chain, and national account categories and suppliers in both emerging and established categories.
Customer awards will be presented at UNFI’s February shows in San Diego and Orlando. Supplier awards will be presented at the Company’s June show in Connecticut. All customer and supplier winners will be recognized across UNFI’s selling shows, featured on UNFI’s website, and mentioned in the Company’s post-show press releases.
UNFI is North America’s premier grocery wholesaler delivering the widest variety of fresh, branded, and owned brand products to more than 30,000 locations throughout North America, including natural product superstores, independent retailers, conventional supermarket chains, eCommerce providers and foodservice customers. UNFI also provides a broad range of value-added services and segmented marketing expertise, including proprietary technology, data, market insights and shelf management to help customers and suppliers build their businesses and brands.
As the largest full-service grocery partner in North America, UNFI is committed to building a food system that is better for all and is uniquely positioned to deliver great food, more choices, and fresh thinking to customers. To learn more about how UNFI is delivering value for its stakeholders, visit www.unfi.com.
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Taco Bell fans have long taken to social media to recreate their favorite menu items at home, but their creations never taste quite the same without the brand’s ingredients. Taco Bell at Home has introduced the first Crunchwrap Supreme and Chipotle Chicken Quesadilla “Cravings Kits,” featuring proprietary Taco Bell restaurant ingredients, seasonings and sauces essential to making these fan-favorites at home. The Craving Kits are the latest offerings from Kraft Heinz’s Taco Bell at Home line designed to make it easier than ever for fans to recreate and personalize their takes on beloved menu items.
“A partnership founded on a mutual obsession with their consumers, Kraft Heinz and Taco Bell created the Taco Bell at Home line to bring signature and crave worthy Taco Bell offerings and flavors straight to the grocery aisle and allow fans to make Taco Bell their way,” said Danielle Coopersmith, associate director of marketing for Taco Bell at Home. “Grounded in this core mission, our innovation strategy focuses on creating new products inspired by beloved Taco Bell classics that encourage fans to customize their at-home creations and take them to new heights.”
Perhaps the most iconic menu item in Taco Bell’s history, the Crunchwrap Supreme has taken the internet by storm with product videos – especially fans creating their own versions – garnering more than 50 million views on TikTok as of December. The quesadilla was one of Taco Bell’s best-selling menu items in 2023, and the chipotle sauce adds a kick to the comforting and consistent classic. Now, whether cooking solo for the first time, entertaining a crowd, or just in need of crunchy, cheesy goodness after a long day, fans can treat themselves to Taco Bell-approved versions of both.
“Our release of the Cravings Kits – the first of several Taco Bell at Home innovations planned for this year – is a great example of how Kraft Heinz is delivering against its goal to lead the future of food,” said Alan Kleinerman, vice president of disruptive innovation at The Kraft Heinz Company. “As we kick off 2024, we’re focused on finding the white spaces at retail where we can make an impact for fans and develop products we know they will be excited to try. Our partnership with Taco Bell is a great example of this.”
Now rolling out exclusively in Walmart stores and online nationwide, each Cravings Kit includes four servings of essential ingredients – just add a protein, any personalized additions to customize the creation, and enjoy from the comfort of your home. The Cravings Kits join a growing portfolio of products that make it possible to experience Taco Bell anywhere, anytime.
Taco Bell is a registered trademark owned and licensed by Taco Bell IP Holder, LLC.
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