Member News & Headlines Blog

"Illinois Institute of Technology (Illinois Tech) researchers have reallocated university lab resources with the aim of being able to produce 13,000 tubes of VTM (viral transport medium) per week, the critical substance in the COVID-19 testing tubes that preserves sample swabs until testing, for the Illinois Department of Public Health.

Governor J. B. Pritzker announced the partnership with Illinois Tech, as well as other universities, at his Thursday press briefing. Over the last month, Pritzker said it had been difficult for state labs to obtain the VTM tubes and swabs, threatening the testing supply chain.

“Our university partners of Illinois Tech, Southern Illinois University in Carbondale and the University of Illinois at Chicago and University of Illinois-Urbana-Champaign, as well as outside vendors, have committed collectively to providing us with enough VTM and swabs that we can not only stock our state labs, but support additional labs throughout the state. This means even more specimens being taken for testing,” Pritzker said Thursday.

“Illinois Tech is honored to partner with the state of Illinois to help with this critical mission of COVID-19 testing,” said Illinois Tech President Alan W. Cramb. “We have special expertise and unique facilities that allow us to answer our state’s call by quickly coming together to mobilize our labs for the greater good.” Read more here.

The Research Chefs Association (RCA) is pleased to offer a special discount for its upcoming “RCA Powered Up” virtual education series, running from May 20 to June 17. All Chicagoland Food & Beverage Network members can receive $100 discount off the non-member registration fee by using code CFBN100. 

Just visit the RCA Powered Up page and click on the “Register Now” icon and follow the instructions for your discount.

RCA Powered Up is a four week program featuring webinars covering a diverse collection of subjects – including a few relevant to the impact of COVID-19 on the industry. Sessions include presentations from Amy Alarcon and Nick Pajor from Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen, Mike Kostyo from Datassential, TJ Chatterjee from Griffith Foods, Chef Francisco Migoya from Modernist Cuisine, and so much more.

Be sure to visit the RCA Powered Up page and use discount code CFBN100 for $100 off the non-RCA member registration.

The 2020 KeHE Holiday Show has been transformed into a digital marketplace, now called Holidays of Hope. Each year, KeHE’s physical trade shows bring together thousands of industry professionals to connect and sample natural & organic, fresh and specialty products. This year’s first-ever virtual Holidays of Hope show will enable retailers and suppliers to continue to negotiate and discuss promotional deals, as they would in a physical trade show. The platform also gives participating retailers the opportunity to discover product attributes, place orders, explore exclusive products, and access curated trend education webinars.

Holidays of Hope was designed to ensure the safety of KeHE’s community while supporting supplier and retailer partners with a digital (fourth quarter) marketplace. To help alleviate the impact of COVID-19, KeHE has waived the participation fees and is encouraging suppliers and retailers to donate to KeHE Cares®. All donations will be used to provide financial support and assistance to communities ravaged by the impact of COVID-19. The show has raised over $100,000 in donations and will continue to accept contributions until June 15. To learn more about KeHE’s invite-only show or how you can make a donation, visit here. 

In case you missed it!

On April 27th, 2020, the CFBN in partnership with Bader Rutter’s Intel Distillery hosted our weekly open discussion "Bader Rutter Monday's @ 11" on the top news stories and breaking headlines impacting food production.

We got to hear insights from Bader Rutter staff that have tracked the top stories from the most influential voices in the business. From farm fields to consumer plates, the Chicago-based team has diligently categorized and catalogued everything important in food, beverage and agriculture to outline a clear picture of what's happening and who's driving the conversations on our industry.

This week's Monday at 11 looked at the industry's three R's of COVID-19: Relief, Reopening, and Reconsideration. These R's will become more prevalent in the upcoming weeks as restaurants open in Georgia on Monday. Our panel discussed milk and dairy sales increasing as a trend. When asked what is the driver for these increased sales, CFBN's own Alan Reed highlighted, "When you're home and cooking more at home, fluid milk, flour, and eggs becomes a hot product."

Access the full episode here!

The Chicagoland Food and Beverage Network would love to thank the Bader Rutter team for sharing their insights:

• Nick Praznowski, Team Leader - Editorial/Content, Bader Rutter
• Dennis Ryan, Executive Creative Director, Bader Rutter
• Kyle Church, Content Specialist, Bader Rutter
• Betsy Rado, Senior Associate, Bader Rutter

Thank you to everyone who virtually attended. Stay updated on our upcoming virtual events here.

Members can access the presentations shared in your Member Perks. 

The “Bader Rutter Monday’s @ 11” is a new, FREE, weekly virtual event series brought to you by CFBN. 

Check out this article from Food Business News!

"For the first time in the past two decades fluid milk posted an increase in retail dollar sales for the past 52-week period. It happened the week ended April 5, and has continued. The total refrigerated milk department (dairy and non-dairy, including kefir and value-added flavored milks) showed a 3.6% increase in dollar sales vs. the same 52-week period one year ago, according to Information Resources, Inc. (IRI), Chicago."

Read more here. 

In case you missed it!

On April 20th, 2020, the CFBN in partnership with Bader Rutter’s Intel Distillery hosted our weekly open discussion "Bader Rutter Monday's @ 11" on the top news stories and breaking headlines impacting food production.

We got to hear insights from Bader Rutter staff that have tracked the top stories from the most influential voices in the business. From farm fields to consumer plates, the Chicago-based team has diligently categorized and catalogued everything important in food, beverage and agriculture to outline a clear picture of what's happening and who's driving the conversations on our industry.

Dennis highlighted how the most pertinent topics impacting the food industry this week are impacts on the supply chain. “We are all people who need people…” Global panic buying has led to supply chain disruptions. Dennis also highlighted some relief programs that are currently being implemented. Dennis shed light on a battle between restaurants and insurers, restaurants are hoping to collect on damages from COVID-19. 

Betsy discussed how it has been a pivotal week for the meat industry. There have been increasing numbers of meat plant workers getting diagnosed with COVID-19. Companies have had to announce shutdowns of plants to preserve employee safety. The meat industry is consolidated, so when the meat plants get shut down it truly impacts our food industry dramatically. For example, farmers and ranchers are in a dire situation because have no place to send their animals. Our industry is preparing for low shortages of meat in grocery stores.

Kyle discussed supply chain impacts. One of the issues is that a lot of food products have specific destinations that they are going to. It costs money for example, to send your milk somewhere. If you do not have your usual buyer, it can be difficult to know where to send your product to. It typically comes down to what producers can afford to ship and what logistically makes sense. In terms of overall food access, Kyle highlighted that there is food available, but it may be different from the typical foods we have been eating. As of now, transportation is remaining constant, truckers are being offered flexible policies during this time to make it easier to perform their jobs.  

The Chicagoland Food and Beverage Network would love to thank the Bader Rutter team for sharing their insights:

• Nick Praznowski, Team Leader - Editorial/Content, Bader Rutter
• Dennis Ryan, Executive Creative Director, Bader Rutter
• Kyle Church, Content Specialist, Bader Rutter
• Betsy Rado, Senior Associate, Bader Rutter

Thank you to everyone who virtually attended. Stay updated on our upcoming virtual events here.

Members can access the presentations shared in your Member Perks. 

The “Bader Rutter Monday’s @ 11” is a new, FREE, weekly virtual event series brought to you by CFBN. 

In case you missed it!

On April 14th, 2020, the CFBN hosted "The F&B-45". This free episode series was hosted by Joel Warady! This conversational series provided a platform for Joel and his guests to share thoughts on pertinent topics and issues impacting Food and Beverage companies across Chicagoland, and beyond, right now.

We got to hear insights from a cross-section of perspectives from industry leaders helping to find solutions and innovations to help us all push forward and find post-COVID solutions to getting our industry back up and running.

Joel really wanted to get insights about proper messaging & product introduction timing during these challenging times!

Michelle Lorge of Simple Mills shared insights about how the tone of marketing should be solutions oriented for your consumers. She stressed that companies should be intentional about their tone of their brand during this time – leaning towards being more helpful, informative, inspiring and even entertaining. She emphasized staying up to date with everything that is transpiring in the world and making sure your marketing efforts are sensitive to those changes.

Jim Low of Rip Van highlighted the importance of going back to the fundamentals of marketing. Marketing is not just about advertising your product, but also making sure you have your product right operationally. For example, ensuring pricing is right – especially as we are seeing huge changes in how consumers are buying products right now. In a world that is changing rapidly, it is important to provide stability to your consumers.

The Chicagoland Food and Beverage Network would love to thank our panelists for sharing their insights:

• Joel Warady, Series Host; CFBN Chairman
• Michelle Lorge, VP of Marketing, Simple Mills
• Jim Low, President, Rip Van

Thank you to everyone who virtually attended. Stay updated on our upcoming virtual events here.

Members can access the presentations shared in your Member Perks. 

The F&B-45 is a new, FREE, bi-weekly webinar series brought to you by CFBN. 

In case you missed it!

On April 9th, 2020, the CFBN in partnership with Edlong hosted “How to Innovate Now” led by category experts including Edlong CEO and President Laurette Rondenet, and NewEdge Innovation Strategy CEO Pam Henderson, this 60-minute online event touched on the future of innovation!

We got to hear insights about how the current climate could accelerate innovation, how organizations can drive innovation during this time, and new ways to think about opportunity in the future. 

Laurette, CEO and President of Edlong, highlighted that companies are still innovating, despite the circumstances. She discussed how companies need to pivot to constantly adapt to the changes of the climate. She discussed the importance of having a growth-mind set in order to remove any barriers that may come in the way.

Pam Henderson CEO and President of NewEdge Innovation Strategies, highlighted innovation principles that are relevant for today. She discussed the concept of opportunity in this climate. Afterwards Pam discussed the concept of conditions and how we can use conditions to the advantage of the people we serve or we can change the conditions.

The Chicagoland Food and Beverage Network would love to thank the panelists for sharing their insights:

• Laurette Rondenet, CEO & President - Edlong
• Pam Henderson CEO, CEO & President, NewEdge Innovation Strategies
  

Thank you to everyone who virtually attended. Stay updated on our upcoming virtual events here.

Members can access the presentations shared in your Member Perks. 

This is a FREE webinar brought to you in partnership with CFBN member company, The Edlong Corporation.

In case you missed it!

On April 13th, 2020, the CFBN in partnership with Bader Rutter’s Intel Distillery hosted our weekly open discussion "Bader Rutter Monday's @ 11" on the top news stories and breaking headlines impacting food production.

We got to hear insights from Bader Rutter staff that have tracked the top stories from the most influential voices in the business. From farm fields to consumer plates, the Chicago-based team has diligently categorized and catalogued everything important in food, beverage and agriculture to outline a clear picture of what's happening and who's driving the conversations on our industry.

Dennis highlighted how the most pertinent topics impacting the food industry this week and aid/relief was huge in the headlines. COVID-19 has made aid/relief a huge topic in the food industry especially as it relates to who gets it and how they get it.

Nick discussed worker issues – especially as it relates to farm, food processing, and grocery store workers – he discussed different approaches that are happening in the workplace to keep employees safe. He also discussed what has been working as it relates to these tactics and what has not been working.

Kyle went into detail about the topic of allocation of aid by discussing government actions taking place. He discussed the different packages available and who in the industry would be eligible or not.

Courtney discussed the high reports of food waste as a result of the disruption in the food supply chain. She shed light on how it is has been difficult for the food industry to get food to where it needs to be.

The Chicagoland Food and Beverage Network would love to thank the Bader Rutter team for sharing their insights:

• Nick Praznowski, Team Leader - Editorial/Content, Bader Rutter
• Dennis Ryan, Executive Creative Director, Bader Rutter
• Kyle Church, Content Specialist, Bader Rutter
• Courtney Sprewer, Content Specialist, Bader Rutter

Thank you to everyone who virtually attended. Stay updated on our upcoming virtual events here.

Members can access the presentations shared in your Member Perks. 

The “Bader Rutter Monday’s @ 11” is a new, FREE, weekly virtual event series brought to you by CFBN. 

In case you missed it!

On April 6th, 2020, the CFBN in partnership with Bader Rutter’s Intel Distillery launched our brand new weekly open discussion "Bader Rutter Monday's @ 11" on the top news stories and breaking headlines impacting food production.

We got to hear insights from Bader Rutter staff that have tracked the top stories from the most influential voices in the business. From farm fields to consumer plates, the Chicago-based team has diligently categorized and catalogued everything important in food, beverage and agriculture to outline a clear picture of what's happening and who's driving the conversations on our industry.

Dennis introduced Bader Rutter and its mission to highlight topics pertaining to different aspects of the food industry.

Nick gave an overview of how the conversation of COVID-19 began to dominate food industry conversations at the beginning of the year. Nick shed light on how panic-shopping began to take precedent in conversation of food production trends. Nick also discussed channels to consumers. He explained that it is seriously impacting the food system. Farmers are not able to sell enough milk because schools for example are no longer purchasing. Nick summarized by saying that there is too much food in the wrong places.

Kyle covered the government response to COVID-19. He discussed the relief efforts that the US government is currently enacting and how it is impacting the food industry.

Courtney covered industry orgs, advocacy groups, and culinary efforts that are being started to address immediate issues in the food industry as a result of COVID-19.

The Chicagoland Food and Beverage Network would love to thank the Bader Rutter team for sharing their insights:

• Nick Praznowski, Team Leader - Editorial/Content, Bader Rutter
• Dennis Ryan, Executive Creative Director, Bader Rutter
• Kyle Church, Content Specialist, Bader Rutter
• Courtney Sprewer, Content Specialist, Bader Rutter

Thank you to everyone who virtually attended. Stay updated on our upcoming virtual events here.

Members can access the presentations shared in your Member Perks. 

The “Bader Rutter Monday’s @ 11” is a new, FREE, weekly virtual event series brought to you by CFBN.