Cream Stew/Vegetable Curry Using Petaluma Rocky Jr. and Rosie-the-Organic-Chicken Bouillon

Nikkei Ryutsu Newpaper of May 28, 2002 - Packaged delicious foods of White Cream Stew and Vegetable Curry, the new retort products from Restaurant Gotoken from Hakodate, Hokkaido, now rolled out in Japan available at major department stores and supermarkets. These are the part of "GOTOKEN NATURAL AND HEALTHY SERIES" that places its extreme emphasis on the value of "good ingredients as most healthy, natural and tasty". Based on the Rosie the Organic Chicken bouillon soup, both products are nicely cooked/made out of the natural and organic ingredients including a chicken meat of Rocky Junior from Petaluma Poultry Processors. The Cream Stew can also be used with pasta or gratin as its sauce. 

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With its long history over 120 years, the Hakodate-Gotoken in Hokkaido is one of the most reputed French cuisine restaurants in Japan. Gotoken has been working with us to develop a new product by using California grown tasty chickens to serve healthy conscious consumers in Japan. And in addition to the presently available "Chicken Curry" rolled out in 2001, we are happy to report that latest new products using the Petaluma's chicken "Rocky Junior"/"Rosie-the-Organic-Chicken" are now sold at major super markets and department stores across Japan. With Allen Shainsky's charming smiles and Rocky Junior, the natural chicken, on the front cover, these new retort products, "White Cream Stew" and "Vegetable Curry" will add to the list of Gotoken's "Healthy & Natural Series". Gotoken has long been our business partner in Japan and they do share MLT's business philosophy on food industry, i.e. using 'Natural and Organic" ingredients is a correct path and direction of our future food business.

For more information about the Hakodate-Gotoken, please refer to its web site that is available in "Japanese language" only.

http://www.hakodate.or.jp/gotoken/default.htm

2. GOTOKEN Opened its Sales Office in Tokyo

Our valuable customer and business partner, Gotoken from Hakodate, has recently opened its new office in downtown Tokyo in the same building with Kakiuchi and MLT-Japan. The opening of its new office is timely tuned with the two new product debuts as explained above that are just introduced. Gotoken-Tokyo is expected to accelerate its marketing and sales efforts to a variety of customers across Japan such as department stores and supermarkets.  This office is responsible to be a Gotoken's prime entry for its nationwide sales campaign of all of their products as available.

GOTOKEN TOKYO OFFICE

Manager Mr. Katsuhiro Suzuki

2-8-12 Nihonbashi-Honcho, Chuo-Ku, Tokyo   Zip 103-0023

TEL(03) 5652-2211
FAX(03) 5652-2300

Web site(in Japanese only) http://www.hakodate.or.jp/gotoken/

Frito-Lay Tests Natural and Organic Products

In the latest move by a mass market company, the world's largest producer of salty snacks is test-marketing a new line of products. Frito-Lay Inc., a division of PepsiCo, is selling "all natural" and "made with organic" SKUS in select stores and cities in Connecticut, Iowa and Massachusetts. The Purchase, N.Y.-based company issued no statements about possible nationwide distribution. "There will likely be many pilot products marketed as organic or made with organic ingredients, and they will be coming from every corner of the food industry," said Bob Scowcroft of the Organic Farming Research Foundation. "Anybody buying organic ingredient are having a positive impact on the environment .

At press time, there was no organic certification information available for the new snacks. In its overall operation. Frito-Lay uses more than 5 billion pounds of potatoes and 1 billion pounds of corn annually. According to the company's consumer affairs department, the new products will be made only with non-hydrogenated oils and some with organic oil. "This is the culmination of a multi-year organic buying program," Scowcroft said. "It shouldn't surprise anyone that [Frito-Lay is] doing this." Prior to its current natural and organic test market, the company had phased out the use of hydrogenated oils in 16 of its established brands. Last year, it added a huge voice to the anti-GMO movement when it notified its suppliers to discontinue use of genetically altered corn and added the requirement to its contracts. 

Frito-Lay dominates the North American snack-foods market, claiming 59 percent of volume. Its brands are distributed to 472,000 retail outlets weekly: in 2001, the company achieved worldwide sales of more than $14 billion. Last year, according to Nutrition Business Journal, retail sales of natural and organic snack foods reached $510 million. PepsiCo is the fourth largest food and beverage company in the world and parent company of Gatorade. Tropicana and Quaker. Nine of the 12 largest global food and beverage companies now manage brands or investments within the natural products industry.

Scott Silverman, organic program manager for New Hope Natural Media, can be reached at ssilverman@newhope.com.

Sources: Natural Products Exclusive on Wednesday May 1, 2002

The US Organic Market

• Estimates of consumer sales of organic food in 2000: up to $7.8 billion
• Percent of $500 billion total retail food sales that is organic: about 1%
• Growth in organic food sales each year since 1990: 20%
    – predicted growth through 2005: 18% - 22%;
    – predicted growth from 2005-2010: 12% - 18%
• Acres of US organic farmland in 2000: 2 million; Acres of US organic farmland in 1997: 1.34 million
• Largest organic category: fresh produce, with $2.2 billion in sales in 2000
• Percent of all fresh produce sales that were organic in 2000: 2.7%
• Percent of organic foods sales through the 7,000 - 8,000 natural groceries and health food stores: 55%;
    – through conventional grocers: 39%;
    – sold direct (i.e. farmers markets, community supported agriculture): 6%

Organic Farming Worldwide

• Acres of organic farmland worldwide: 42 million
• Estimates of global organic sales for 2001: up to $26 billion
• Prediction of global organic sales in 2008: $80 billion
• Government goals for organic land as a percentage of all arable land:
    – Belgium, 10% by 2010;
    – Germany, 20% by 2010;
    – Netherlands, 10% by 2010;
    – Norway, 9% by 2009;
    – United States, no goals;
    – Wales, 10% by 2005

US Research

• Percent of USDA research, both numerically and fiscally, that is organic-focused: less than one-tenth of one percent
• Number of certified organic research acres among the 886,000 research acres within the land grant system: 151 (.02%)

Who is the Organic Farmer?

• Percent of respondents to the OFRF Third Biennial Organic Farmers’ Survey who said they would like to increase sales at the local level: 77%
• Percent who said they plan to increase their volume of organic product marketed over the next two years: 74%
• Percent who plan to increase their number of acres in organic production: 56%
• Percent of organic farmer respondents with college degrees: 56%
• Percent who have pursued graduate degrees: 18%
• Percent of organic farmers surveyed who are female: 21%
• Percent of respondents who indicated that their farms are single-family operations or family partnerships: 87%
• Percent of respondents who indicated that their operations are all organic: 75%
• Percent with mixed organic and conventional operations: 24%

The Many Faces of the Organic Shopper

• Number of organic products sold by the Wal-Mart chain in German stores: 350 (including fruits and vegetables, milk products, cereal products, canned food and ready-to-serve meals)
• Percent of consumers with incomes under $12,500 who told the Economic Research Service that organic foods are “extremely important”: 30%
• Percent of consumers with incomes over $50,000 who told ERS that organic foods are “extremely important”: 14%
• Percent of Spanish-speaking consumers in South Florida who say they look for a good selection of organic and natural foods when choosing a supermarket: 67%
• Percent of English-speaking consumers in South Florida who say they look for the same: 31%
• Organic foods purchasers motivated by health and nutrition factors: 66%
• Organic foods purchasers motivated by environmental factors: 26%
• Percent of the public identified as
    – “core” organic consumers: 6%
    – “mid-level” organic consumers: 35%
    – “periphery”: 59%

Environmental Concerns of Chemical-Based Agriculture

• Miles of American rivers and streams contaminated by agricultural chemicals, erosion, and animal waste runoff: 173,000
• Percent of waterway pollution caused by agriculture: 70%
• Number of pesticides permitted to remain in milk (as of 1995): 100
• Pounds of DDT used globally since its introduction: 5 billion
• Estimates of annual pesticide use, globally: 4.5 billion to 5 billion pounds
• Percentage of soybeans grown in the US that were genetically modified; about 55% (1999 estimates)
    – corn, about 35%
    – cotton, about 50%

Sources: Nutrition Business Journal, Organic Foods Report 2001; Organic Farming Research Foundation, State of the States, Searching for the “O-Word”, Third Biennial National Organic Farmers’ Survey; US Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service; Foundation Ecology and Agriculture, Organic Agriculture Worldwide; Organic Monitor; Organic Newsline; Food Chemical News; The Hartman Group, Fall 2000 Organic Lifestyles Shopper Study; Natural Foods Merchandiser; Environmental Protection Agency; Wargo, John, Our Children’s Toxic Legacy (Yale University Press, 1998).; Consumer Union,Consumer Reports.

Product Trend: Branded Beef

Recent trends in consumer purchase behavior are driving growth in what was once strictly a commodity category. Small ranchers and regional cooperatives of cattlemen are marketing branded meat products, and the success of early entrants and continued demand will likely spark more activity in the sector. The majority of beef moved through conventional channels is still sold in bulk, with no brand name. But most of that meat comes from cattle raised by conventional means, and recent media attention, such as the book Fast Food Nation and Michael Pollan's New York Times Magazine article, "A Steer's Life," has consumers wary. Many branded products boast beef cattle that have been raised without growth hormones, antibiotics or feed not appropriate to their species. 

Typically sold through catalogs, branded beef products, which carry assurances against typical feedlot practices, are moving into retail stores. Examples of popular beef brands include Maverick Ranch and Coleman Beef of Colorado, Niman Ranch of California. Ridgefielid Farms from the East Coast and Snake River Ranch, which is raising Wagyu beef cattle, a cross between American Angus and the cattle breed used to make Japanese Kobe beef. Sales of fresh mea and seafood In natural products stores in 2000 totaled $397 million, only 2.6 percent of total sales. Certified organic products were only ii percent of that sector, or $44 million.

 Consumer attitudes regarding food safety are motivating sales in this category. There is also increasing demand for food items with a degree of transparency, meaning those that allow consumers to feel connected to the product's source. 
The domestic market is experiencing demand-pull, and government backing is 
available to suppliers looking to export the products as well. The U.S. Meat Export 
Federation of Denver is accepting applications from companies interested in receiving matching funds to promote branded meat products in international markets. Applicants must have 500 or fewer employees or represent a produce cooperative or association. 

Sources: Natural Products Exclusive on Wednesday May 1, 2002

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