The Board of Directors of the Fresno Food Expo announced the winners of the 2017 New Product Awards, presented by Baker Peterson Franklin CPA LLP, and the Fred Ruiz Entrepreneurial Award. Tioga-Sequoia Brewing Company’s Half Dome California Wheat was presented with the Buyers Choice Award, followed by ENZO Olive Oil’s ENZO Fresno Chili Crush in second place and Busseto Foods’ California PartyPack-Wine Trail Edition in third place. The People’s Choice was awarded to The Brioche lady for their Purple Yam Brioche and the Fred Ruiz Entrepreneurial Award was presented to ENZO Olive Oil.

This year’s New Products Awards included 28 innovative products, varietals and packaging concepts that were entered from 26 different Central California businesses. Now in its fifth year, the New Product Awards has become a strategic opportunity for participating businesses to launch new products in front of buyers, secure product placement in stores, restaurants and foodservice distribution channels, in addition to testing immediate consumer marketplace feedback. To date more than 160 new products have been entered into the Fresno Food Expo New Product Awards. The Expo aims to provide an exciting new product platform for participating exhibitors, that highlights the region’s large breadth of value-added, specialty and fresh food products, as well as packaging concepts from throughout Central California’s 8-county San Joaquin Valley.

“The New Product Award entries and winners for 2017 are a shining example of the innovation and entrepreneurial spirit of the more than 400 different commodities and 2,500 growers and manufacturers that feed one third of our nation every day,” said David Nalchajian, General Manager of the Fresno Food Expo. “From healthy snack foods, innovative packaging to trending spirits, nuts, teas, cold brew coffee milk, infused olive oils and so much more – Central California’s thriving food industry is one to be nationally recognized and celebrated.”

Source: Fresno Food Expo