Chef Rick Bayless loves the Chicago show! With early roots working with organic farmers, Bayless developed a love and respect for simple, pure flavors. “Most organic farmers think of themselves as soil farms,” quips Bayless. Through the farmer perspective Bayless became interested in creating a healthy environment leading to a healthy sustainable kitchen.
His Chicago restaurants, the famed Topolobampo and Frontera Grill reflect his passion and respect for ingredients grown in healthy soil and have earned him kudos as an award-winning chef, restaurateur, cookbook author and television personality. As a matter of fact, Bayless is set to appear on this season’s Top Chef Masters, BRAVO TV’s popular cooking competition show.
Using pure flavor and fresh ingredients was the foundation of his culinary demonstration. Inspired by a dish of freshly made ricotta drizzled with honey on cookies, Chef Bayless concocted his version of organic ricotta. The standing-room only crowd took copious notes as the fresh ricotta began to take shape. Simple, fresh food – that’s what it’s all about.
Thursday, June 18, 2009
Chef LaLa spices up the show floor
Shopping the trade show floor like a farmer’s market, Chef LaLa strolled up and down the aisles choosing fresh, organic produce, exotic organic oils and spices, innovative sauces, and other ingredients for her noontime culinary demonstration.
Tantalizing aromas began to waft throughout the venue as Chef LaLa’s demonstration drew in a standing room only crowd hungry for her creative cuisine.
The feisty chef delivered wisecracks among cooking tips, (don’t cut your herbs wet, they turn into mush), nutritional information (she’s a certified nutritionist), and trivia (did you know the hottest trend in Latin food is chips?), as she cooked and directed her legion of Joliet Junior College cooking school assistants.
The demonstration entitled “Latino and Asian Fusion with Organic Ingredients” was a free form, spontaneous mix of dishes that ended up on sample plates for the audience to devour.
And devour we did! Curried shrimp, marinated cucumber salad, coconut Thai chicken with jasmine rice and a corn and eggplant relish – yum!
Learn more about Chef LaLa and tune into The Today Show on July 1st for her segment on Fancy Cooking.
Up next: Chef Rick Bayless!
Tantalizing aromas began to waft throughout the venue as Chef LaLa’s demonstration drew in a standing room only crowd hungry for her creative cuisine.
The feisty chef delivered wisecracks among cooking tips, (don’t cut your herbs wet, they turn into mush), nutritional information (she’s a certified nutritionist), and trivia (did you know the hottest trend in Latin food is chips?), as she cooked and directed her legion of Joliet Junior College cooking school assistants.
The demonstration entitled “Latino and Asian Fusion with Organic Ingredients” was a free form, spontaneous mix of dishes that ended up on sample plates for the audience to devour.
And devour we did! Curried shrimp, marinated cucumber salad, coconut Thai chicken with jasmine rice and a corn and eggplant relish – yum!
Learn more about Chef LaLa and tune into The Today Show on July 1st for her segment on Fancy Cooking.
Up next: Chef Rick Bayless!
Day 2 -- Big News! An Historic agreement reached between the U.S. and Canada.
An Historic agreement reached between the U.S. and Canada.A standing-room only 9:30 a.m. keynote session with USDA Deputy Secretary Kathleen Merrigan on Wednesday, June 17, started off with an announcement that an equivalency agreement had been reached between the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency.
This historic equivalency agreement will allow the continued smooth flow of certified organic products between the two countries and support the continued growth of this rapidly expanding market in North America.
The official signing took place later in the afternoon during the State of the Organic Industry in North America session. The agreement, signed by the two government agencies, takes effect on June 30.
As a result, certified organic products, as of July 1, can continue to move freely across the U.S. and Canadian border provided they use the new Canada/Organic Biologique label or the USDA Organic seal.
What this means for consumers is access to a more affordable range of organic products, increased product diversity and a reliable supply chain.
Check out the Organic Trade Association (OTA) web site at http://www.ota.com/ for more information.
Cheers and celebrations continued throughout the day and into the night at the OTA’s Annual Awards Dinner and Dance Party.
Beyond Chicago, politicians applauded the agreement with Iowa Senator Tom Harkin, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry, stating:
“I congratulate the Secretary and Deputy Secretary on this historic trade agreement with Canada. This welcome news represents a bright spot in our economic landscape that could not come at a better time for farmers in the midst of a deep recession. Canadian consumers are demanding organic products to the tune of $2.6 billion, and this agreement will make it easier for U.S. organic farmers to market their products.
I am pleased that in the new Administration, USDA is leading the way to promote the opportunity for the full breadth and variety of U.S. agriculture. Organic agriculture has been one of the fastest growing segments of American agriculture over the past decade, and this new agreement, in conjunction with the tremendous investment that Congress made in the Food, Conservation and Energy Act of 2008, the Farm Bill, into initiatives to help organic farmers, will help to continue that growth.”
Wow, and this is just the start of Day 2!
Image courtesy of the Organic Trade Association
Barbara Robinson, (center) Deputy Administrator for the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and Jaspinder Komal, (left) Director of the Agrifood Division of the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, hold up the signed agreements. With them is Kelly Strzelecki, (left) agricultural economist with USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service.
Wrapping Up Day 1
A boisterous crowd gathered at McCormick’s Lakeside Center Terrace for a Happy Hour Welcome reception at the end of a busy day one. Organic wine, beer and vodka drinks were served (and much appreciated) along with yummy hummus and chips.
Outside a cold rain fell and sweeping wind blew, obscuring Lake Michigan, but inside the warmth of old and new friends networking and connecting lit up the event. As the music played, conversations on the day’s All Things Organic™ conference sessions, Health & Wellness education sessions, and the excitement of tomorrow’s trade show were heard. Exhibitors have been hard at work all day on the trade show floor with their props and wares and many will continue into the night getting ready for the buyers, media and attendees anxious to visit their booths. It has been a great day 1 here and we’re looking forward to more, stay tuned . . .
Outside a cold rain fell and sweeping wind blew, obscuring Lake Michigan, but inside the warmth of old and new friends networking and connecting lit up the event. As the music played, conversations on the day’s All Things Organic™ conference sessions, Health & Wellness education sessions, and the excitement of tomorrow’s trade show were heard. Exhibitors have been hard at work all day on the trade show floor with their props and wares and many will continue into the night getting ready for the buyers, media and attendees anxious to visit their booths. It has been a great day 1 here and we’re looking forward to more, stay tuned . . .
Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Organic Fiber Walking Tour
Chicago’s world famous Magnificent Mile shopping district is a treasure of organic style. Participants in the All Things Organic™ Fiber Walking Tour found an abundance of organic apparel and home products. Tour participants visited Banana Republic, Gap, H&M, the Levi’s Store®, and Skinstinct, to learn about the stores’ offerings and their commitment to organic fibers such as cotton, wool, and linen as well as sustainable fibers such as bamboo, hemp and linen.Most exciting was the retailers’ attention to attractive style and fit, with several companies offering fashion-forward items with fun colors and lace-up or peek-a-boo backs, and more. Fortunately for consumers, these stores offer organic products for babies, kids, men, and women, making it more possible than ever before to wear affordable organic fashion.
And wear it they do – several stores noted they routinely sell out of their organic apparel within weeks, with some consumers coming in expressly to purchase organic items. Others just like the style and get the added bonus of it being organic
The tour was a learning experience for reporters, retailers, organic certifiers, U.S. Department of Agriculture regulators, and Global Organic Textile Standard experts on the tour, with in-depth discussions of proper labeling, processing standards, water use and emissions, carbon footprints, and other topics.
Did you know that . . . U.S. sales of food and non-food organic products reached $24.6 billion by the end of 2008, growing an impressive 17.1 percent over 2007 sales, according to the Organic Trade Association’s 2009 Organic Industry Survey. Organic fiber/linens/clothing in 2008 totaled $472 million, up 65 percent from 2007. This figure mirrors the growth in the international organic fiber market.
According to the Organic Exchange Organic Cotton Market Report 2007-2008, global retail sales of organic cotton apparel and home textile products reached an estimated $3.2 billion in 2008, representing a 63 percent increase from the $1.9 billion market in 2007.
Photo: H&M Store in Chicago, Courtesy of Sandra Marquardt, On the Mark Public Relations
Keynote speaker: Rick Seirenni, The Gort Cloud
Clouds obscured the Chicago skyline and sheets of rain had descended upon McCormick Place’s Lakeside Center, but inside another cloud was gathering momentum. . The Gort Cloud.
Thirty-year veteran in brand consulting and marketing, and manager of The Brand Architect Group, Richard Seireeni presented the vast and largely invisible network of the green community that has the power to make or break green brands.
Seirenni interviewed 30 eco-capitalists to find a common denominator, the invisible ties that bind them together, which he named The Gort Cloud. Without a marketing and advertising budget, these brands built their success with passion and by tapping into the network of the green community — including media, blogs, search engines, business and consumer organizations, upstream suppliers, retailers, distributors, and of course, social networking.
These are the nodes, clusters and gatekeepers of a conversation that amounts to a viral marketing strategy that organic and green companies can use. The good news: it’s largely free. The not-so-good news: it’s labor intensive.
The admission price into this social media network is based on truth and transparent business practices. This is great news for organic and green companies that walk their talk. Research has shown that green companies that are focused on sustainability outperformed those that were not. Seirenni also called attention to the growth of green business internationally especially, in Denmark and China.
Interestingly, in terms of consumer preference, green is generally not a deal breaker. Green products must compete on price, availability, desire and performance for consumers to buy in. So keep the organic and green businesses coming, open up to the Gort Cloud, and get ready to take off.
Thirty-year veteran in brand consulting and marketing, and manager of The Brand Architect Group, Richard Seireeni presented the vast and largely invisible network of the green community that has the power to make or break green brands.
Seirenni interviewed 30 eco-capitalists to find a common denominator, the invisible ties that bind them together, which he named The Gort Cloud. Without a marketing and advertising budget, these brands built their success with passion and by tapping into the network of the green community — including media, blogs, search engines, business and consumer organizations, upstream suppliers, retailers, distributors, and of course, social networking.
These are the nodes, clusters and gatekeepers of a conversation that amounts to a viral marketing strategy that organic and green companies can use. The good news: it’s largely free. The not-so-good news: it’s labor intensive.
The admission price into this social media network is based on truth and transparent business practices. This is great news for organic and green companies that walk their talk. Research has shown that green companies that are focused on sustainability outperformed those that were not. Seirenni also called attention to the growth of green business internationally especially, in Denmark and China.
Interestingly, in terms of consumer preference, green is generally not a deal breaker. Green products must compete on price, availability, desire and performance for consumers to buy in. So keep the organic and green businesses coming, open up to the Gort Cloud, and get ready to take off.
Conference Day 1
Here we are at the beautiful Lakeside Center at McCormick Place! Folks are gathering, exhibitors are setting up their booths and buzz is being generated by timely conference topics. The All Things Organic™ conference’s 10:30 a.m. session, "Current Research on the Environmental Benefits of Organic Agriculture," ignited quite a few conversations on the potential far-reaching aspects of organic as a way to reduce the Earth’s carbon footprint.
Presenter Chuck Benbrook of the Organic Center led off the session with an historical timeline of the progression of organic research. From the 1980s focus on soil erosion to today’s concern over on global climate change, organic agriculture has emerged as an effective system with a sustainable relationship to the environment. Benbrook states that organic agriculture has been shown to improve organic matter and the quality of soil and is the most cost effective solution to reduce net greenhouse gases.
Carbon sequestering in the soil translates to reducing harmful carbon and the latest research findings assert that organic agriculture is a natural at doing so.
Kathleen Delate of the Departments of Agronomy and Horticulture at Iowa State University spoke next and presented the scientific results from a long-term study that showed how organic crop rotation versus conventional agriculture’s use of pesticides produced a soil quality higher in carbon, nitrogen and a host of micronutrients while sustaining similar yields.
Carbon is crucial for mitigating global climate change. After 9 years of organic management, the data indicate that organic soils have the ability to hold higher levels of carbon than soils used in conventional agriculture, with the added benefit of a price premium for farmers that averages 2-3 times higher than conventional crops.
Details of the study can be found at http://extension.agron.iastate.edu/organicag/ under the title Comparison of Organic and Conventional Crops at the Neely-Kinyon Long-term Agroecological Research (LTAR) Site, 2008.
Timothy LaSalle Ph.D. CEO of the Rodale Institute followed with a passionate presentation on why organic farming is a solution to global warming. The Rodale Institute’s Farming Systems Trial (FST) is the longest-running side-by-side comparison of organic and conventional farming systems in the U.S. It has documented the benefits of an integrated systems approach to farming using regenerative organic practices to reduce atmospheric carbon dioxide by pulling it from the air and storing it in the soil as carbon.
LaSalle cautions that while organic agriculture intrinsically holds the key, the challenges it faces in the political arena are its most daunting. Although the acreage that uses organic practices has increased exponentially, it is still 5 percent of the total farm acreage in the U.S. At that level, he says, organic agriculture cannot be a major player.
Still, the hope for a paradigm shift awaits and, by consumers demanding more organic products and the infusion of research money thanks for the 2008 Farm Bill, there is momentum. The panel stressed that it’s up to the taxpayers, that’s you out there, to make sure the money allocated for this research is spent appropriately, so keep up with the news and stay tuned from more here at the Chicago Show.
Presenter Chuck Benbrook of the Organic Center led off the session with an historical timeline of the progression of organic research. From the 1980s focus on soil erosion to today’s concern over on global climate change, organic agriculture has emerged as an effective system with a sustainable relationship to the environment. Benbrook states that organic agriculture has been shown to improve organic matter and the quality of soil and is the most cost effective solution to reduce net greenhouse gases.
Carbon sequestering in the soil translates to reducing harmful carbon and the latest research findings assert that organic agriculture is a natural at doing so.
Kathleen Delate of the Departments of Agronomy and Horticulture at Iowa State University spoke next and presented the scientific results from a long-term study that showed how organic crop rotation versus conventional agriculture’s use of pesticides produced a soil quality higher in carbon, nitrogen and a host of micronutrients while sustaining similar yields.
Carbon is crucial for mitigating global climate change. After 9 years of organic management, the data indicate that organic soils have the ability to hold higher levels of carbon than soils used in conventional agriculture, with the added benefit of a price premium for farmers that averages 2-3 times higher than conventional crops.
Details of the study can be found at http://extension.agron.iastate.edu/organicag/ under the title Comparison of Organic and Conventional Crops at the Neely-Kinyon Long-term Agroecological Research (LTAR) Site, 2008.
Timothy LaSalle Ph.D. CEO of the Rodale Institute followed with a passionate presentation on why organic farming is a solution to global warming. The Rodale Institute’s Farming Systems Trial (FST) is the longest-running side-by-side comparison of organic and conventional farming systems in the U.S. It has documented the benefits of an integrated systems approach to farming using regenerative organic practices to reduce atmospheric carbon dioxide by pulling it from the air and storing it in the soil as carbon.
LaSalle cautions that while organic agriculture intrinsically holds the key, the challenges it faces in the political arena are its most daunting. Although the acreage that uses organic practices has increased exponentially, it is still 5 percent of the total farm acreage in the U.S. At that level, he says, organic agriculture cannot be a major player.
Still, the hope for a paradigm shift awaits and, by consumers demanding more organic products and the infusion of research money thanks for the 2008 Farm Bill, there is momentum. The panel stressed that it’s up to the taxpayers, that’s you out there, to make sure the money allocated for this research is spent appropriately, so keep up with the news and stay tuned from more here at the Chicago Show.
Thursday, June 11, 2009
Peruvian Companies Sizzle at Expo Comida Latina
Quinoa, kiwicha, pastas, chili sauce, tamales, and even quail eggs in different sauces are among the offerings of six Peruvian food and beverage companies attending Expo Comida Latina and All Asia Food Expo. These companies are set to close business deals worth $3 million USD at this one-of-a-kind trade show.The participating companies are: Gloria, Alisur, AGN Inversiones, Gourmet Export, Chef Natural and Turmanye Foods. The companies seek to put their products in supermarkets, specialized stores, and restaurants across the US.
For those who aren’t familiar, Expo Comida Latina and All Asia Food are the leading multi-cultural food events in the U.S. food and beverage market, with a long-standing event in Los Angeles, and now, in Chicago.
Image courtesy of Andina News Agency.
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
It's Almost Show Time
We are less than 1 week away from the Chicago show! It’s still not too late to register and we’ve made it easy. Visitor and media registration for the co-located 2009 shows is still available at www.RegisterNowChicago.com.
Working media representatives can register to attend the trade show and conference at no charge. Be sure and check out the conference schedule to get a head start on all the events happening. We’ll be updating the blog throughout the show and will feature daily highlights and post-show wrap ups.
Working media representatives can register to attend the trade show and conference at no charge. Be sure and check out the conference schedule to get a head start on all the events happening. We’ll be updating the blog throughout the show and will feature daily highlights and post-show wrap ups.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
