Supplier Side
Products with a conscience
For Malmesbury, South Africa-based Goedgedacht Trading (Pty) Ltd., the premium-quality fruit-infused vinegars, extra-virgin olive oil and table olives it creates are more than food products; they also represent a means to improve the lives of thousands of rural children in the Western Cape. The company uses the proceeds from the products it sells to fund the Goedgedacht Trust’s Path out of Poverty (POP) program, which operates multiple POP youth centers that provide early childhood development, afterschool care and surrogate parenting for children from farm-worker families that have been trapped in cycles of deep poverty for generations.
The families have been negatively impacted by South Africa’s “dop” system, explains Rob Templeton, director of Goedgedacht Trading. Under the dop system — outlawed in the 1960s but reported to have continued for decades after the ban — many West Cape farm owners paid their desperately poor workers part of their wage in wine, creating communities reliant on alcohol, he says. Mothers and fathers became incapable of proper parenting, and the incidence of fetal alcohol syndrome is among the highest in the world.
The program is based on four pillars: education, health, personal development and care for the planet. The Goedgedacht Trust operates from a farm called Goedgedacht. The farm’s olive groves, planted by individuals who have donated 13,000 olive trees, are a vital part of the long-term sustainability of the POP program. The company has no shareholders and exists solely to fund the trust’s philanthropy efforts, Templeton says.
Goedgedacht Trading’s premium products, produced under the strictest quality standards, are currently available in 300 South African stores. But the company now is offering the products to small- and mid-size North American retailers for private labeling — and is able to work with them to communicate the products’ mission. For more information, contact Templeton at [email protected].
For more information about the producer, visit www.goedgedacht.org.
—K. Canning
KSCKreate rebrands as OneKreate
Hollywood, Fla.-based KSCKreate said it recently rebranded under the name OneKreate. With the name change, the company now functions as not only a visual innovator that provides solutions ranging from branding and copywriting to photography, videography and editing, but also a software provider.
“OneKreate originally developed this software to meet in-house needs,” said Diana Udel, executive producer for OneKreate. “But as our clients used it, we realized that this tool was filling a real demand in the marketplace for a program that facilitates collaboration and increases the speed to market of the creative process and deliverables.”
In simplified terms, the software allows OneKreate clients to access the database of merchandise at their studios, select items from that database to be used for content creation and then view the images OneKreate’s photographers generated during a photo shoot, video shoot or other creative process, explained Jason Arena, managing director for OneKreate. From there, the client not only may choose which photos should move on to digital editing, but also may attach all of his or her editing comments to each image through the software. Therefore, the edits happen all at once, preventing unnecessary drafts and charges.
The final step allows the client to approve the media files and send them to a digital asset management system, Arena added, where the files are searchable via metadata and fully accessible by the client for any future media uses.
“Retailers use and share their product images repeatedly in print circulars, on websites, for social media, etc.,” he said. “Not only do we produce excellent media, but we give our clients the tool to organize and search it so that they aren’t recreating content that already exists. That efficiency results in a real return on investment, both in terms of money and time. This business philosophy is reflected in our new tagline at OneKreate, ‘Create once, share everywhere.’”
— M. Sorensen
WS Packaging expands digital printing capabilities
WS Packaging Group Inc., Green Bay, Wis., announced that it recently expanded its digital printing capabilities across its nationwide network of 21 printing facilities with the installation of two new HP Indigo WS6600 presses. The new presses were installed at the Algoma, Wis., and Fullerton, Calif., facilities.
“Digital printing technology enables brands to be more proactive with and responsive to what’s happening in their respective markets,” said John Giesfeldt, senior manager, marketing, WS Packaging. “And the variable imaging technology capabilities allow brands to make cost-effective graphics changes from one SKU to another with streamlined production matched to volume requirements, with virtually no setup waste.”
The digital printers’ advantages for retailers and their store brand programs are tremendous, Giesfeldt said. They include visual impact from vibrant colors, precise registration, smooth gradations and extreme detail. Additionally, the printers provide better overall cost-effectiveness because there are no charges for printing plates. Digital printers also provide enhanced flexibility via variable imaging, which allows the cost-effective running of any number of SKUs, and each product within a single run can have a different image, artwork, personalization or serialization. And low-volume production runs, which are cost-prohibitive with other print technologies due to setup and tooling charges, are cost-effective.
In addition to installing the new digital press in Fullerton, the company said it realigned its West Coast operations by adding digital capacity at its facility in San Luis Obispo, Calif. The realignment consolidates production from the WS Packaging facility in Portland, Ore., to both Fullerton and San Luis Obispo.
— M. Sorensen
Pacific Coast Producers to purchase Liberty Gold’s private label import business
Liberty Gold Fruit Company Inc., South San Francisco, Calif., and Pacific Coast Producers, Lodi, Calif., announced the pending sale of Liberty Gold’s private label import product business to Pacific Coast Producers.
Liberty Gold has been in operation since the 1930s and has expanded into a worldwide import and export firm. The company currently exports and markets products under the LIGO brand, and imports various packaged fruit such as fruit and gels, tropical fruits, water chestnuts, and other products for sale in the United States and Canada, the companies said.
Pacific Coast Producers is a grower-owned cooperative that markets packaged fruit and tomato products. The company markets retail and foodservice private label products nationwide. The addition of this import line will ensure a broad product line, the companies noted, to include tropical fruits, mangoes, glass fruit, fruit squeezers, oysters, mushrooms and pineapple, in addition to other items.
Liberty Gold and Pacific Coast Producers said they are working together to ensure a smooth transition for the trade, and expect to provide uninterrupted service and sales as the transition is made. Liberty Gold will continue its export and other marketing activities under its LIGO Brand.
Perfect Bite offers new twist on frozen veggies
The Perfect Bite Co. of Glendale, Calif., recently introduced a line of frozen vegetable/grain blends in microwaveable steam bags. The new line provides retailers with a creative mix of vegetables, grains and unique sauces, as consumers increasingly seek varieties beyond the usual broccoli/carrot/pea mixes that dominate frozen food aisles.
“People are rediscovering a part of their plate that has long been ignored,” said Teri Valentine, CEO of The Perfect Bite Co. “Our customers want tasty combinations like quinoa, brown rice, kale, edamame and carrots mixed with spices and olive oil that make a meal interesting and delicious.”
For private labeling, the Perfect Bite Co. offers retailers blends such as Thai Coconut Green Beans, Forbidden Black Rice with Broccoli and Edamame and a Soy Ginger sauce, Moroccan Cous Cous and Pomegranate Sticky Carrots. Many of the blends offered by The Perfect Bite Co. are available in both organic and non-GMO varieties.
“It’s an exciting opportunity to offer options in vegetables that expand beyond the usual commodities,” Valentine said. “Chefs are offering vegetables in a very new way, and it’s opening up a conversation about how we can enjoy those tasty veggies at home. We are here to develop those ideas, and the good news is that it’s a concept that is selling!”
— M. Sorensen