Kelly Manufacturing



Ohio Ag News Headlines
Ohio Signature Food Contest Winners Announced
Ohio Ag Connection - 08/07/2020

The co-winners of the 11th Annual Ohio Signature Food Contest have been announced.

The event was hosted virtually by BCAN/Buckeye Broadband Reporter Tim McMahon and sponsored by the Center for Innovative Food Technology (CIFT) and Ohio Farm Bureau Federation (OFBF). The contest showcases new, innovative products from across the state.

Nicole Reno of Toledo won for her R.O. Bar (the initials stand for raw and organic), which has only five ingredients.

That "personal touch, the thoughtfulness is really what's important in the product," she told the Toledo Blade after being named a co-winner.

Bijou Nuakey, a native of Togo and now from Canal Winchester, was also named a winner for her Exotic Kebab Rub, a recipe that's been handed down from her grandmother to her mother and now to her. It contains West African spices, as well as ground corn and roasted nuts.

The annual contest gives budding entrepreneurs an opportunity to make their food-based business dreams come true.

Both women will receive one year of consulting services to take their products to market and develop their business plans.

Reno has been making her healthful snacks in a tiny kitchen, and is looking forward to having a larger space to work in at the Northwest Ohio Cooperative Kitchen (NOCK) in Bowling Green (a part of the prize package).

She currently sells the bars via the R.O. Snacks page on Facebook, and would like to branch out to gyms, farmers' markets, and other venues.

A food science student at Ohio State University who also has a degree in food service management, Nuakey has not produced her spice blend professionally before this because her home kitchen is not an approved facility.

Once selected from among all the entrants, five finalists each made a one-minute presentation to judges and fielded questions. Scores were then tallied, and the winners were declared. The judging team was Jeni Britton Bauer, founder and chief brand officer of Jeni's Splendid Ice Cream; Susan Foltz, certified business advisor and state director of the Ohio Manufacturing Extension Partnership; Jamie Hannen, project manager - retail and development at the T. Marzetti Company; Tim Hicks, business development field director with OFBF; Jim Hoffman, market president for KeyBank in northwest Ohio; and Leigh Barnhart Ochs, director of the Cooking School at Jungle Jim's International Market.

CIFT has organized and managed a membership-based consortium of food industry companies, suppliers, and academic institutions. The goal of the consortium is to enhance the economic viability of Ohio's food and agricultural sector through technology, research projects and job creation. Since its inception, more than 90 companies and institutions have been members of the CIFT consortium.

The foundation of the membership program has been advancing technology, demonstration of prototypes, and evaluation of innovative technologies leading to commercialization activities and economic growth for processors.


Other Ohio Headlines
Easy Way Cattle Care
Grand View Safety Grooving
Copyright © 2024 - Farms.com. All Rights Reserved.