Plan Now for a Historic March Frozen Food Month Promotion

NFRA’s collaboration with Twentieth Century Fox and the release of Ice Age 2 The Meltdown is sure to create more excitement than ever in the aisles during March. NFRA has created an Idea Book and Catalog to help you leverage the Ice Age 2 property. Point of sale materials are also now available to help you promote March National Frozen Food Month. Your Idea Book and POS catalog will be arriving in the mail shortly or click here to view the Idea Book online.

Register Now for the 2006 Retail Executive Conference

The Retail Executive Conference provides a unique opportunity for learning and networking in a relaxed, informal atmosphere. This 14th Annual Conference, April 24-26, 2006, in Tempe, AZ, will include a presentation by Bashas’, a review of the frozen and refrigerated categories by IRI, and a look at hot new products by GNPD. Attendance is limited, so register early. Click here for more information and a registration form.

Bring Us To Your Table! Freezer Favorites Campaign Reaches Millions through Consumer Press

In 2005, five press releases – including two in Spanish - and four radio spots telling the benefits of frozen foods were released to the consumer press through the efforts of the Bring Us To Your Table! campaign. These media releases supported NFRA’s major promotions for March Frozen Food Month, Summer Favorites Ice Cream & Novelties promotion and October Fuel for School. Newspaper placements totaled 1,384 reaching 75.5 million consumers. Radio spots aired 1,350 times reaching an audience of 78.8 million. The Bring Us To Your Table! campaign is completely funded through industry contributions and your support is needed. To learn more about the campaign, see other campaign accomplishments or to sponsor the program, click here.

NFRA Welcomes Our Newest Members

Please welcome the companies listed below who have met the qualifications of membership and have joined the National Frozen & Refrigerated Foods Association.

Manufacturer Refrigerated

Monterey Gourmet Foods
www.montereygourmetfoods.com

Sales Agent

Accelerated Sales and Marketing Inc.
www.acceleratedsalesandmarketing.com

Etherton Sales & Merchandising
616-784-7888

December 23, 2005 is the last date to register for Eastern Frosted Foods Assn Winter Marketing Seminar. The event will be held January 27-29, 2006 at Villa Roma in Callicoon, NY. For more information: 973-835-1710

Bill Hasenstein has been promoted to assistant warehouse manager at Lakeside Foods Manitowoc Distribution Center. Hasenstein will be responsible for second shift operations including production, warehousing and inventory management.

Hollis Pace has been appointed to the newly created position of transportation coordinator for Hanson Logistics. Pace will oversee the company’s Carrier Management Program, strengthening carrier relationships and the role they plat in Hanson’s transportation service offering.

Lamb Weston® recently announced the addition of Lamb Weston® Vegetarian Hand Fulls®. Two varieties include: the Italian Vegetable Medley, a flavorful blend of garden vegetables and a minestrone style sauce; and Southwest Fiesta Veggie, with just 6 grams of fat and packed with brown rice, black beans, sweet corn, chilies and pepper jack cheese in a mild salsa. Wrapped in bakery-style dough, made with a blend of whole wheat and enriched flours, the Italian Vegetable Medley is topped with an Italian herb mix consisting of basil, oregano, parmesan cheese and garlic. The Southwest Fiesta Veggie has a paprika-cornmeal topping. For more information: www.lambweston.com

Confederation Freezers recently announced the expansion of its Brantford Distribution Center. The 50,000 sq. ft. (2,000,000 cu. ft) expansion, when added to the existing facility, will result in a total of 275,000 sq. ft of Dry, Refrigerated and Frozen storage to service their existing and future customer needs. Confederation Freezers is a family owned company of 30 years with head offices in Brampton, Ontario. Operating 600,000 sq. ft out of 3 distribution centers located in the Greater Toronto Area. For more information: www.confederationfreezers.com

R. A. Jones has recently launched a redesigned interactive website at the same domain name, www.rajones.com. The new site retains all the original functionality such as online parts ordering, but with new streamlined navigation. New content includes an interactive packaging machinery search engine that allows searching by package type, industry or application. For more information: www.rajones.com

Meyenberg Goat Milk Products recently announced they have entered the gourmet cheese market with the introduction of Four Goat Milk Jack Cheese varieties, an Aged Goat Milk Cheddar, and a Special Reserve Cheddar. The Aged Goat Milk Cheddar is reminiscent of Asiago cheese. The Special Reserve Cheddar has a delectable sharp flavor as a result of its minimum one-year age. The Goat Milk Jack Cheeses come in four varieties – Plain, Smoked, Jalapeno, and Garlic & Chive with an unusually light, creamy texture. For more information: www.meyenberg.com

Meyenberg Goat Milk Products were recently awarded First Place in The American Cheese Society’s 2005 Annual Cheese Competition for its European Style Goat Milk Butter. Meyenberg’s new goat milk butter is extraordinarily light with a rich, creamy flavor. Other distinctive characteristics include its pure white color due to the absence of carotene. It is suited as a smooth spread with a wide range of applications including use in sauces, baking and sautéing. For more information: www.meyenberg.com

Mrs. Smith’s recently introduced a completely re-designed product packaging with a bold, blue, banner logo, appetizing photography, and easy-to-shop, color-coded category names. Mrs. Smith’s family of products now includes eight easy-to-spot categories including: Traditional Recipes, Special Recipes, Soda Shoppe Favorites, Classic Cream Favorites, Classic Cobblers, Classic Crisps, Homestyle Cakes, and Bakery Specialties. Each variety includes various flavors such as: Sweet Potato, Deep Dish Apple, French Silk Chocolate Pie, Blueberry Crisp and some new additions including Cinnabon Coffee Cake and five-flavors of Pour A Quiche. For more information: www.schwansbakery.com

Keep the industry updated about news and staff promotions at your company. NFRA will publish your company highlights monthly in the NFRA Update. Send your company news to us at info@nfraweb.org; via fax to 717- 657-9862; or via mail to NFRA, 4755 Linglestown Rd., Suite 300, Harrisburg, PA 17112.