Kosherfest Chooses Best New KOsher Products of 2008

Contact: Vicki Garfinkel, Andover Communications
201-947-4133; vickig@eclipse.net

Zelda’s Sweet Shoppe Southern Pecan Pie wins ‘Best in Show ‘at
Kosherfest 08 New Products Competition,
Held OCT 28th at Career Academy in NYC

New York, NY -- It took six judges, 15 culinary students and a restaurant sized kitchen at a NYC culinary school to determine the best new kosher products of 2008, sponsored by the largest international kosher food trade show, Kosherfest (http://www.kosherfest.com/).

A delectable pecan pie took the Best in Show at the 20th Annual Kosherfest New Products Competition, held at the Career Academy of New York (http://www.careeracademyny.edu/) on October 28th. Winners in 16 separate categories of new kosher products were crowned by a panel of kosher food professionals, who sampled hundreds of new kosher food entries.

Zelda’s Sweet Shoppe (Skokie, IL) Southern Pecan Pie was the Best In Show winner. Zelda’s Sweet Shoppe won three other awards, as did Get Healthy America of Plainview, NY, which produces a line of prepared frozen foods.

The judges included: Yakov Yarmove, Ethnic Marketing & Specialty Foods Manager, SUPERVALU (Eden Prairie, MN); Joe Plueger, Director of Grocery DPI-Midwest (Arlington Heights, IL); Marty Stein, Account Manager, Tree of Life (Albany, NY); Jacob Rusanov, Lifestyle Category Manager, Wakefern Food Corporation/Shoprite (Elizabeth, NJ); Ethel Hofman, culinary consultant/ syndicated columnist (Merion Sta., PA); and Levana Kirschenbaum, noted kosher cookbook author/kosher caterer & Restaurateur (NYC, NY).

The two-day Kosherfest trade show will follow at the Meadowlands Exposition Center, NOV 11-12, 2008 with more than 300 exhibitors, where the new product competition winners will receive their engraved awards.

“We were delighted to host the Kosherfest New Products Competition at Career Academy,” said Chef Christopher Burgos, Chair of Culinary Arts. “The students helped prepare and serve all the new kosher product entries, and they learned about kosher food—what it is, how to prepare and serve it, and how it differs from other food preparation. It was a win-win situation for us all.”

The new kosher food product entries were judged on the basis of such criteria as their newness, quality, taste, salability and retail price point. The winners are:

· Best In Show – Zelda’s Sweet Shoppe Southern Pecan Pie (Skokie, IL)
· Best Baked Goods, Breads, Grains & Cereals - Katz Gluten Free Challah Rolls (Monroe, NY)
· Best Beverage – Kedem Food Products Int. All Natural Premium Grape Juice (Bayonne, NJ)
· Best Cheese or Dairy – Get Healthy America Eggplant Rollatini (Plainview, NY)
· Best Desserts, Candies, Cookies or Crackers – Zelda’s Sweet Shoppe Southern Pecan Pie (Skokie, IL)
· Best Food Service Product – Davida Aprons & Logo Programs “I’m Not Crying I’m Davening”
Baby Bib (Vernon, CA)
· Best Packaging/Design – Zelda’s Sweet Shoppe Bark, Brittles & Toffee series (Skokie, IL)
· Best Kosher Organic – Bella’s Baby Foods LLC Organic Kosher Frozen Baby Food (Massapequa Park, NY)
· Best Snack Food – Zelda’s Sweet Shoppe- Caramel Corn series (Skokie, IL)
· Best Fine Food from Israel – Fruit of the Land Products, Beit Yitzhak Pomegranate spread (Thornhill, ON)
· Best Giftware/Novelty – The Kosher Cook – Celebrations Bakeware, assorted styles (Woodmere, NY)
· Best Jams, Preserves or Spreads – Quality Frozen Foods, Inc., Noam Gourmet Vegetarian Caviar (Brooklyn, NY)
· Best Meat, Poultry or Seafood – Get Healthy America, Turkey Chili with Beans (Plainview, NY)
· Best Wine, Beer or Spirits – AS Group-Imperian, Plum Brandy (Serbia)
· Best Savory Condiment, Spices, Sauces, Oil, Vinegar or Dressing – Shneiders Gran Gusto Pesto Sauce (Brooklyn, NY)
· Best Passover Product – Cinderella Sweets/Shabtai Gourmet, Brownie Bites (Woodmere, NY)
· Best Health & Wellness – Get Healthy America Gluten Free Penne Pasta w/ Meat Sauce (Plainview, NY)

According to Bill Springer of Diversified Business Communications, Producer of Kosherfest, “ This year was very competitive, with a large number of exceptional products competing especially in the snack, cracker, cookie and desserts categories. The judges were very impressed with the entries, particularly from Zelda’s Sweet Shoppe and Get Healthy America. ”

Prior to the Kosherfest New Products competition judging at Career Academy in Manhattan, culinary students were treated to a one-hour kosher cooking course taught by noted kosher cookbook author Levana Kirschenbaum. Students attending the course hailed from the tri-state area including Manhattan, Bronx, NY, Brooklyn, NY, Cedarhurst, LI, Yonkers, NY, Staten Island, NY, Queens, NY, Jersey City, NJ and Central, NJ.


Kosherfest 2008 hopes to attract more than 6,000 professional attendees and more than 300 exhibitors from all over the world. For information visit http://www.kosherfest.com/ or contact Vianna DiGristina at vdigristina@divcom.com.

Kosherfest is co-produced by Diversified Business Communications of Portland, ME (www.divbusiness.com) and Menachem Lubinsky, president and CEO of LUBICOM (http://www.lubicom.com/).

Diversified Business Communications (DBC) specializes in producing international trade events in the food and beverage industry, and brings more than 40 years experience to buyers and sellers together. DBC’s food industry expositions include four internationally recognized seafood shows, the New England Foodservice & Lodging Expo in Boston, All Things Organic in Chicago, three Fine Food and Hospitality shows in Australia, Expo Comida Latina, All Asia Food and Kosherfest.

Menachem Lubinsky is the chairman & CEO of LUBICOM Marketing Consulting, a strategic marketing firm that also markets kosher foods. He is the founder of Kosherfest, the world's largest international kosher food trade show and a prominent figure in the Orthodox Jewish Community.

Note to Media: JPEG Photographs of winning products are available. Media are also invited to cover Kosherfest, NOV 11-12 at the Meadowlands Exposition Center, Secaucus, NJ .
Kosher food experts, chefs, cookbooks, demos, and new products available on site and prior to the show by arrangement with Andover Communications, 201-947-4133.
Media Kosherfest Registration: http://www.kosherfest.com/.




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