International Fresh Produce Association (IFPA) celebrated four standout winners at the Foodservice Conference Expo on July 28. The winners announced on the expo floor, reflected on their wins. “The energy on the floor this year was unmatched,” said the director of trade shows, Kyle McMillan. “Much of that was influenced by the passion, creativity and excitement brought by our many exhibitors.” The annual contest highlights Best of Show winners as well as Best Product Promo winner. Foodservice Award-winning chefs also chose the winner of the new Chef’s Choice Award.
This year, the exhibitors were encouraged to get creative and showcase innovative ways to incorporate produce into their menus. The Chef’s Choice award was judged by the winning chefs of the Excellence in Foodservice Award.Best of Show – First Place Rijk Zwaan“We had a wonderful experience at the Foodservice Conference this year. Encouraging exhibitors to have tastings in their booth lifted the bar, and everyone came out to play. We wanted to create a colorful space to show the many possibilities of cauliflower. We received great feedback on our white Romanesco and green and purple varieties.” Alyssa Wilson, specialist marketing communication
The Rijk Zwaan team
**Best of Show – Second Place **
Sun Orchard“The opportunity to exhibit in the Foodservice Conference, meet with customers, connect with old friends or make new ones in Monterey is always amazing. To me, it’s a vital part of who we are as ‘foodservice people,’ we want to create an experience, a memory, an opportunity for people to connect with each other and build relationships. We have a great team that wanted to create a fun environment where they could connect with customers.” - Jeff DeBoer, chief commercial officer.
Team Sun Orchard
Best Product Promo
Califresh – Fresh Green Chickpea hummus“This show was, as always, a success in that we love to see the positive reactions to the flavor profile and unique texture using Fresh Green Chickpeas gives to our hummus. What we didn’t expect was to hear our name announced as the 2023 award winner! This was a great way to wrap up this year’s conference, and it gave us great joy to be recognized!” - TJ Risco, VP of sales and marketing.
The Califresh team
Chef’s Choice
Ocean Mist Farms – Baby artichoke risotto“The IFPA Foodservice Conference is the industry’s conference that focuses on and connects the foodservice channel with the fresh produce business. When it comes to fresh artichokes, we know that many consumers will taste artichokes for the first time in restaurants, so we see our foodservice customers as a vital partner in expanding awareness of – and appreciation for – fresh artichokes.” - Joe Angelo, director of sales.
The next IFPA Foodservice Conference will be held July 25-26, 2024 in Monterey, California. The booth applications are open.
For more information:Ashley SempowskiInternational Fresh Produce Association [email protected] https://www.freshproduce.com