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Snack Foods

Pioneer Woman Ree Drummond Launches Her First Snack Line

The best parts of fall are football games, family gatherings, and who could forget about the snacks?! Recipe guru and flavor connoisseur Ree Drummond, aka The Pioneer Woman, is putting her signature touch on her first line of snack mixes that are perfect for this season and beyond.

“It’s no secret that I love to experiment and try new things in the kitchen, which is why I’m so excited to bring together some of my favorite flavors in my new snack mixes,” Drummond said. “Each variety of these over-the-top mixes packs an amazing array of flavors and deliciousness in every handful, like dark chocolate mini cups, nuts, caramel corn, and other scrumptious elements.

“Whether you need an easy snack for a tailgate or a yummy new option for movie night, your life is about to be changed by these mixes.” she said. “My favorite has to be the Spicy Cowgirl mix – nuts coated in cocoa powder, cinnamon and cayenne pepper make for a subtly sweet experience with a little kick!”

Pioneer Woman snack mixes are available in three varieties:

  • Pecan Sticky Buns Snack Mix
    • Honey roasted pecans, white confectionary mini cups, and cinnamon sugar caramel coated puffs make for a delicious trio and irresistible snack option. (MSRP: $4.98)
    • Knock You Naked Snack Mix
      • Containing gourmet caramel corn, salted pecans, mini brownie cookies, rich dark chocolate mini cups, milk chocolate caramel filled mini cups and coconut cashews, this mix is a perfect balance of sweet with a hint of salty. (MSRP: $4.98)
    • Spicy Cowgirl Snack Mix
      • A mix of almonds, cashews and pecans coated in a blend of cocoa powder, cinnamon, and cayenne pepper. To satisfy sweet and spicy cravings, this mix also includes dark chocolate mini cups with a mocha flavored filling and white confectionary mini cups. (MSRP: $4.98)

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Opopop, 10 Barrel Brewing Collaborate on Summer Snack Bundle

Denver-based Opopop, creator of Flavor Wrapped Popcorn Kernels, and Bend, Ore.-based 10 Barrel Brewing have produced Poppin’ on Cloud Wine, an exclusive brand collaboration that offers customers a delicious and thirst-quenching limited edition summer snack bundle.

The Pop & Bubbles Bundle will be sold exclusively at 10Barrel.com and can only ship to Oregon, Washington, California and Idaho (21+ signature required). The summer snack bundle includes one 320g bag of Opopop’s limited edition Pickle Monster, an eco-friendly Opopop silicone popcorn popper, and two cans of 10 Barrel’s new Sparkling Rosé. MSRP $35.

“The moment we paired 10 Barrel’s newly released Sparkling Rose with Opopop’s Pickle Monster, we knew we had created something special for our customers. These two flavors go so well together. Like any good Summer hit, they just taste like Summer 2022,” said Sarah McDowell, Opopop president.

Opopop’s Pickle Monster delivers a bold taste and is the perfect blend of tartness, salt and dill. This pairs perfectly with 10 Barrel’s Sparkling Rosé (13.5% ABV) which includes a blend of cabernet sauvignon, syrah and merlot grapes with a nice dry finish.

“Our new sparkling wines helped us kick off everyone’s favorite season, and then we took it one step further by adding a light and zesty popcorn to pair,” said Emily Koziel, merchandising & sourcing manager at 10 Barrel Brewing. “We couldn’t be more excited than to team up with Opopop, to help us elevate our summer slogan, Seriously Casual.”

For more information, follow @opopopco @10barrelbrewing on all social platforms.

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Cibo Vita CEO Named Entrepreneur of the Year in New Jersey

Emre Imamoglu CEO of Cibo Vita, right, accepts the award for New Jersey Entrepreneur of the Year

Emre Imamoglu, CEO of healthy snack food maker Cibo Vita, was named Entrepreneur of the Year, 2022 New Jersey Regional Award Winner, by Ernst & Young at an awards luncheon last month.

Entrepreneur of the Year is one of the preeminent competitive business awards for entrepreneurs and leaders of high-growth companies. Judging was based on commitment to excellence, category diversification and innovation. Factored in the judging were applicants’ responses to questions such as:

  • Identifying opportunity to innovate and create a better world
  • Demonstrating courage perseverance and resilience to overcoming obstacles
  • Inspiring purpose, vision and taking risks
  • Identifying strategies for a sustainable future

Forty-two companies from New Jersey vied for this coveted award. As New Jersey Award Winner, Imamoglu is entered into the Nationals. National finalists and winners will be announced in November in Palm Springs, Calif., at EY’s Strategic Growth Forum.

Founded in 2009, Cibo Vita began by producing private label healthy snack products that consisted of dried fruit and nut combinations for supermarkets nationwide. Nature’s Garden, the company’s flagship brand, launched in 2011. BeHonest low-carb, low-sugar chocolates, launched in 2021.

The company mission is to continuously create innovative products that promote functionuality, digestive wellness and heart health, as well as offer products that are energy boosting and address a ketogenic diet.

Cibo Vita features more than 2,000 SKUs with various combinations of nuts, seeds, dried fruit, trail mixes and coated pretzels and chocolates. Cibo Vita products are sold in supermarkets, big box, drug chains, health food and convenience stores as well as warehouse clubs nationwide.

The company holds certifications for Keto, RSPO, UTZ, Kosher, Organic, Paleo and Gluten-Free. Its manufacturing, distribution, product development, warehouse facilities and corporate offices are based in Totowa, N.J. Since 2018, Cibo Vita has enjoyed a compound annual growth rate of 25.4 percent.

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