"expo" news and stories

Alton Brown served as keynote speaker for the recent Institute of Food Technologists (IFT) Annual Meeting in Orlando. Brown talked about the need for the food science community to communicate more openly with consumers, according to FoodNavigator-USA. At the same time, he stressed the consumer's responsibility to eat in moderation, saying "There are no bad foods, only bad eaters." The IFT site also has some notes on Brown's speech, as well as a variety of other press releases on other topics from this year's meeting. Other topics included the health benefits of beer; eating behind the wheel; and removing acrylamide from foods like potato chips and coffee. Audio recordings are also available, for a fee.

The 2006 All Candy Expo is on right now in Chicago. It started yesterday and goes though tomorrow and it is the biggest confectionary show in the country. There are tons of vendors, both well-established companies and upstarts with innovative new products, that are sampling their product lines at the show, as well as lots of people interested in buying the candy for retail at stores and other venues. The show is closed to anyone who isn't in the candy trade or the press, but luckily, there is already some information spilling out about what we can expect to see in stores in the coming year.

The Chicago Sun Times gives us a heads-up to watch out for candies that are fortified, which look to be one of the hot new trends in the market this year. There will be gum with Vitamin C and chocolates with calcium and omega-3s.

On another healthy note, the Chicago Tribune mentions that portion and calorie controlled candies are a huge hit, too, despite the fact that a huge number of snacks (like Hershey's Kisses) have been available in small sizes for years. Perhaps people just need to be told about portion control.

Candyblog blogger, Cybele, is at the show and is blogging from the floor. You can read all about her experiences here and there is no doubt that she will have lots of great reviews coming up in the next week or so.

Among the products launching are dark chocolate M&Ms (non limited edition), Snickers with Almonds Dark, Starburst Berries and Cream flavors and Tung-Toos.

The International Law Enforcement Educators and Trainers Association (ILEETA) will host a donut eating competition for past and present law enforcement officers as part of a training conference and expo to be held next week in Arlington Heights, Illinois. The event is dubbed the 2006 World Cop Donut Eating Championship. While contestants are allowed whatever non-alcoholic beverages they want, the contest rules state that they may not dunk their donuts in said beverages. Bummer. Officers will have three minutes to down as many donuts as they can. Each eater will be monitored by an "official Donut Deputy." The winner will receive a trophy and, according to the ILEETA site, a "quality handgun." The Sydney Morning Herald has a story about an Australian law enforcement officer who will be attending. Contest entry fees will go to an ILEETA scholarship fund and the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund.

Why would Fiat cover one of their Cinquecentos in white chocolate? Beats me. What I do know is that it will be on display in Seto, Japan at the Seto-Gura Museum in mid-March. The chocolate-covered Italian ride was a hit at the Aichi Expo last year as well, according to a recent story in the Mianichi Daily News. Apparently the car lives at a museum in Aichi Prefecture for the rest of the year. If anyone knows the story behind this choco-mobile, please share with the group.