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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Alden’s Giving Away 10,000 Scoops of Organic Ice Cream
To celebrate National Ice Cream Month in July, Alden’s Organic is giving away 10,000 scoops throughout the month. Consumers will have ample opportunity to win via seven giveaways hosted on the Alden’s OrganiWc Instagram and Facebook accounts. To complete each prize pack, the family-owned brand Edward & Sons, will also be providing organic cones to winners.
The largest giveaway will be hosted on National Ice Cream Day (July 17) when 20 winners will be selected to each receive 100 scoops in the form of free coupons, which can be redeemed for any Alden’s Organic product. Alden’s Organic has something for everyone. Product options range from 48-ounce sqrounds, to 14-ounce pints, sammies in various shapes, and stick bars in a variety of classic flavors with a unique-to-Alden’s twist or swirl. Alden’s Organic frozen desserts include favorites such as Chocolate Chocolate Chip, New School Orange Cream, Dairy Free Double Strawberry and a new Gluten Free Dairy Free Vanilla Bean Sammie.
“National Ice Cream Month is in the heart of summer ice cream season and is the perfect time to celebrate this beloved sweet treat that brings people together. Our brand has always been about sparking joy and we want to share with as many people as we can through these giveaways,” said SVP of Sales and Marketing Joelle Simmons.
On Alden’s Organic’s social channels, the brand is leaning into summer’s most nostalgic moments with a vintage collection of imagery throughout the month to inspire everyone to share their fondest ice cream memories.
To promote the campaign, Alden’s Organic is partnering with popular influencers to create shareable creations using the hashtag #AldensFam to view the creations as they are shared.
For consumers looking to stock up for summer ice cream season, Alden’s Organic is also offering a $1.00 off coupon.
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Smashburger Adds Eclipse Plant-Based Milkshakes to Menu
Eclipse Foods has partnered with Smashburger to create the industry’s first nationally available plant-based milkshakes for the fast-casual chain. The milkshakes are now available for purchase in all Smashburger locations nationwide (for $6.19, price may vary based on location) in Vanilla, Chocolate, Strawberry, Peanut Butter, Tangerine Dream and Oreo. Customers can also order the plant-based milkshakes for take-out or delivery on Smashburger.com or on Smashburger’s mobile app, and for delivery on DoorDash, Postmates, Uber Eats and GrubHub.
“This partnership marks an incredible milestone in advancing the plant-based movement and signals Smashburger’s confidence in Eclipse as the plant-based dairy brand that mainstream consumers will crave,” said Aylon Steinhart, co-founder and CEO of Eclipse. “Our shakes perfectly mimic the delicious taste and texture of traditional dairy milkshakes, and require no flavor sacrifice from consumers. And now that the shakes are available nationwide, even more people will have access to exceptionally delicious plant-based options that are better for the planet, animals and people.”
To create its first dairy-free menu item, Smashburger’s corporate chef, Ty Goerke, worked closely with Eclipse’s co-founder and James Beard nominated chef, Thomas Bowman. After months of testing, both teams were confident they had created a world-class offering all customers would love, no matter their diet.
“As part of Smashburger’s aggressive approach to menu innovation and catering to our guest’s evolving tastes, we have continued to diversify our product portfolio with the launch of new plant-based milkshake offerings,” states Carl Bachmann, president of Smashburger. “As part of our commitment and passion to deliver high caliber products with quality ingredients, we knew Eclipse was the best partner for us to develop the brand’s first dairy-free menu offerings. This felt like a natural next step in Smashburger’s journey to offer more diverse and plant-based options for our guests, while still delivering the premium, top-quality menu items that Smash fans know and love.”
Eclipse was co-founded in 2019 by Steinhart and Bowman with the mission to create a more sustainable, healthy, and ethical food system. Since then, Eclipse has scaled faster and more efficiently than competitors in the space in order to make this mission of fighting climate change, animal suffering, and the human health crisis a reality.
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