NEW YORK -- Center Store products were well represented during the 14th Annual American Gold Medal Food and Beverage Awards held here at Carnegie Hall earlier this month.
Presided over by the National Board of Chefs and the Awards of the Americas -- with judging from the American Tasting Institute, the American Culinary Institute and the American Quality Institute -- the ceremony honored product excellence in food, beverage, tabletop and housewares, and more than 100 "medals" were distributed.
Winners included Aunt Jemima, for its pancake mixes and syrups; Baxter's, for canned soup; Chicken of the Sea, for canned tuna; Freschetta, for frozen pizza; Haagen Dazs, for premium ice cream; Hunt-Wesson, for ketchup; Kahiki, for frozen entrees; Michael Angelos, for frozen Italian entrees; Naya, for water; Old Fashioned Syrup, for its chocolate syrup; and Red Gold, for canned tomato products, to name a few.
In the natural category a few of the winners included Hansen Beverage Co., for natural soda; Heart & Harvest, for nutrition bars; Julie's Organic, for ice cream; and Quaker Oats Mother's brand of dry cereal.
Jesse Sartain, national director of the Awards of the Americas, who served as host for the event, pointed out that some of the winning companies were up against more established brands, such as Kraft, making their victories all the sweeter.
