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Expansion announced for Blue Bunny Ice Cream parlor in Le Mars

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Wednesday’s kickoff to the Ice Cream Days celebration in Le Mars included an announcement by officials with Wells Enterprises about expansion plans for the town’s Blue Bunny Ice Cream parlor.

Wells Vice President of Retail Sales Adam Baumgartner says the parlor already attracts over 230,000 visitors a year. He expects the multi-million dollar renovation project will draw even more tourists to the town nicknamed “The Ice Cream Capital of the World.”

In addition to redesigning the parlor, Baumgartner says Wells has purchased a building next door to make room for an interactive “farm to spoon” display.

“We’ll be able to highlight how we get our milk, where it comes from, the processes it goes through to get into our facilities, how it gets processed in there, and how it gets turned into ice cream,” Baumgartner said. The added space will also feature rooftop seating.

Outdoor rooftop seating — so, a first-of-its-kind in downtown Le Mars. We are super excited about that,” Baumgartner said. The exact cost of the renovation project was not revealed at Wednesday’s announcement. The parlor will be closed in October and much of November, as well as between March 1st and mid-June of 2019. The project should be ready for next year’s Ice Cream Days, when the town of Le Mars will also celebrate its sesquicentennial.

(By Dennis Morrice, KLEM, Le Mars)

 

CDC expands recall of cut fruit packaged in Indiana, sold in Iowa

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Federal officials are warning consumers and retailers in Iowa about packaged fruit that’s linked to a salmonella outbreak.

There’s a recall for sliced watermelon, honeydew melon, cantaloupe, and other cut fruit that was packaged by Caito Foods of Indianapolis, Indiana. The fruit was sold in a plastic container shaped like a clamshell. Costco, Trader Joe’s, Walmart, Walgreens and Whole Foods are among the retailers that sold the products.

Iowa was just added to the initial recall which covered four other states.

The Centers for Disease Control has not updated its mapping of cases connected to the outbreak. The agency reports that by late May, 60 people in Missouri, Illinois, Indiana and Michigan were sickened by salmonella linked to these fruit products. Half of those struck by the illness were hospitalized. No deaths have been reported.

(Photo from CDC website)

It’s a national day dedicated to cheese

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Today is National Cheese Day and it appears more Iowans are making and eating the dairy product than ever before.

Stephanie Clark, a food science and human nutrition professor at Iowa State University, says Iowans are becoming more exploratory in their cheese consumption.

“They are going out and trying new, more expensive cheeses that are out there in the market, which is exciting to see,” Clark says. “I think that’s part of the reason why some of our specialty cheese shops are doing well and even the specialty cheese areas in some of our grocery stores.” A recent survey found the three most popular cheeses in the U.S. are cheddar, mozzarella, and American.

Iowa dairy operations make roughly 20.5 million pounds of cheese a year, placing Iowa 8th in the country among the top cheese-producing states. Clark says there are around 220,000 milk cows in Iowa, with the average operation having a herd of 50 cows.

“So, we do have some large production facilities, but we have a lot more smaller ones,” Clark says. There’s an opportunity for some dairy farms to boost revenue. Clark notes Iowa produces more milk than we process in the state.

“In my mind, this is an opportunity,” Clark says. “Because a lot of milk is being sent out of state, it’s an opportunity for our farmers to actually consider doing some value-added agriculture on farm.” She suggests farmers could turn milk into cheese and make more money than they would be simply shipping milk out-of-state.

 

 

Summer food sites provide more than nutrition to kids and families

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As schools let out for the summer, tens of thousands of children could lose the free meals they eat each weekday, though sites across Iowa are gearing up to offer free lunches.

Schools, libraries, community centers and other groups can apply through the Iowa Department of Education to sponsor the week-day meals. Ann Feilmann from the Bureau of Nutrition and Health Services, says some places get creative to feed as many kids as possible.

In Davis County last year, she says a bus driver brought meals to rural children in a converted truck. “The kids were so excited to see him come,” Feilmann says, “and they also connected with a book program where they were able to get books to give out.” Feilmann says Sioux City is adding a bus this year. Last June, Feilmann says more than 25,000 children ate daily at community meal sites, adding, it’s not just for kids who are eligible for free-lunch during the school year.

“There are also households where both parents are working and there’s not someone that has high cooking skills, plus it’s also a place to go and socialize with friends,” she says. All kids are welcome. Communities throughout the state provide meals to children thanks to the federal Summer Food Service Program.

(By Amy Mayer, Iowa Public Radio)

 

Transportation costs a big issue for Food Bank of the Heartland

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Most Iowans don’t realize how many of their friends and neighbors rely daily on the Food Bank for the Heartland to put meals on the table.

Brian Barks will take over as CEO of the Omaha-based agency on July 1st and says they face many challenges making sure that no one goes to bed hungry. Barks says one of the biggest challenges is trucking the food across a wide area.

“Our guys are driving all the way out to the Panhandle of Nebraska and we serve a good chunk of western Iowa,” Barks says. “Our guys are doing about 30,000 miles a month. We’re sometimes paying more for freight than we are for the food that we buy.” Barks says they’re two drivers short right now and are in touch with truck driving schools to find more.

“The explosion in the cost of transportation in the trucking industry can have serious implications in regards to what we do,” he says. Barks says they’re looking forward with a long-range hunger forecast.

“We’ve done a ten-year strategic plan that estimates how much food we need and it is 39-and-a-half million meals,” he says. “We’re doing 25-and-a-half million, so we’ve got about 14-million meals in order to get to a point where we have enough food for people to access.”

The Food Bank for the Heartland distributes food to 535 non-profit groups, including schools, homeless shelters and food pantries in 92 counties across Nebraska and Iowa.

(Thanks to Karla James, Omaha)

 

Café Beaudelaire in Ames wins ‘Best Burger’ competition

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The classic burger at Café Beaudelaire in Ames.

A small, Brazilian-inspired restaurant in Ames has claimed the title of “Iowa’s Best Burger” for 2018.

Lexi Romitti, a server at Café Beaudelaire, believes they’re prepared for the wave of new customers who will be wanting to sample the menu over the coming weeks.

“I think we’re as prepared as we can be,” Romitti said. “We are so excited for people to come in and try our burger and what we have to offer at Café B.” The annual contest is run by the Iowa Cattlemen’s Association and the Iowa Beef Industry Council.

Café Beaudelaire owner Claudio Gianello.

The winner is announced each year on the first of May, which is “Beef Month.” Café B, which has been in business for 28 years, is owned by Brazilian-born Claudio Gianello and his wife, Kellie, from Carroll. Romitti, who’s worked at the restaurant for three years, is a senior at Iowa State University majoring in public relations. She led Café B’s campaign in the best burger contest.

“I think we have such a unique burger because it has a Brazilian twist to the classic burger,” Romitti said. Café B is located in the Campustown area of Ames. The indoor capacity is around 50 and there’s a small outdoor patio. It’s open until 1:30 A.M. daily, so – according to Romitti, it’s equally popular with Ames residents who visit over the lunch hour and with college students.

“It’s a unique environment because, during the day, it’s a really nice Brazilian café and then at night, it turns into a full bar,” Romitti said. “We have a great transition.” Café Beaudelaire is located at 2504 Lincoln Way in Ames.

 

 

https://www.iabeef.org

 

Cooking Channel hostess gives tips for saving money on food

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Laurie March

The hostess of the Cooking Channel program “Good to Know” is urging Iowans to change up their grocery shopping habits.

Laurie March, who also appears on the HGTV show “House Counselor,” notes Iowa farmers may be helping to feed the world, but a lot of that food winds up in the garbage.

“Believe it or not, one-third of all the food that’s produced on earth gets wasted,” March says. “Much of it is ending up in a landfill.” A study finds the average American wastes $27 worth of food every week, or about $1,400 worth per year. March says the food waste problem causes double-trouble in the state’s landfills.

“Aside from taking up a ton of space, all that food is breaking down and it’s releasing methane gas, which is a greenhouse gas and it’s contributing to our climate change,” she says. We should stop buying food in bulk, March says, and make out a weekly meal plan, only buying what we’ll use that week.

“Obviously, we can all make some changes in our shopping habits,” March says. “We can look to use food better, is there some preserving you could do at the end there or is there a big soup you could make where you could throw lots of things in before they go bad.” In addition to freezing leftovers, she suggests sharing with friends and neighbors.

“Use everything and maybe keep a journal,” March says. “Look at the end of the week and say, ‘Hey, wow, I wasted all of this so when I go to the grocery store next time, I’ll buy half as much,’ so you don’t throw away that 27 bucks a week.” She also suggests using your garbage disposal more instead of tossing food in the trash. So it won’t end up in a landfill, that food goes through the water treatment system which she says is more environmentally-friendly.

(Thanks to Karla James)

 

Get your nomination ready for the best tenderloin in the state

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Last year’s winner of the best tenderloin.

The Iowa Pork Producers begin their 16th annual search for Iowa’s Best Tenderloin Wednesday.

Pork Producers spokesman, Ron Birkenholz says the tenderloin is an item many restaurants across the state have on the menu. “We’re hoping for another good turnout — we had over 3,000 nominations last year with 271 different establishments named in the contest,” Birkenholz says. “We know there’s a lot of good tenderloins out there and we hope people will nominate them,” Birkenholz says.

Nominations for the best tenderloin can be submitted at www.iowapork.org. Birkenholz said the deadline for all entries is June 5th. He says the contest generates good publicity for the eateries.

“It’s good for the business, all of the past winners have told us that their business has increased exponentially after wining the contest. Even the runners up — we name a top five — and even those restaurants see a major increase in their business,” according to Birkenholz. The winning tenderloin is announced during “Pork Month” in October. It’s something he says the creators of the tenderloins anxiously await.

“It puts them on the tenderloin map if you will,” Birkenholz says, “we have people all over the midwest that follow this contest and love tenderloins and want to go to the winner’s restaurant and try it. So, it’s a great deal for the entire industry.” Last year’s winning restaurant was the “Grid Iron Grill” in Webster City.

(By Pat Powers, KQWC, Webster City)

 

New pantry at Food Bank of Iowa serves up food and training

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The Food Bank of Iowa added something new to its headquarters location as the facility recently underwent a total remodel.

The building in Des Moines has a food pantry at the location for the first time. Spokesman Danny Akright says the pantry will help those in need in the area — but also has another purpose. “We also implemented this because we are going to use it to train our own staff, to train our partners who are looking to start up their own pantry — and to try new things before we export those to our partners,” Akright says, “so it really is kind of a pantry laboratory.”

The Food Bank facility holds all the canned, boxed and frozen food that goes out across 55 counties. Akright says the food pantry at the warehouse will be run just like all the others. “So it doesn’t have special access to our inventory. We’re ordering for it just like our partners order for their own pantries,”according to Akright. “And then when our clients — we call them guests — come to receive the food, they have the same choices that they would have at any other pantry from non-perishable goods, fresh produce, bread, meat, dairy, that kind of thing.”

Akright says the pantry at the facility will give them a chance to learn more straight from the people they serve. “We’ll have a weekly opportunity where we can talk with people who are receiving our food. Maybe even some of our partners in addition to the pantry here. So, hearing from them directly is just a great benefit of having this pantry here,” Akright says.

Food Bank of Iowa photo of Karen’s Cupboard pantry.

Akright says. He says they won’t need to add any staff to run the pantry. “We formed a pantry committee from the staff members who worked the closest with our partners so they know the best about what a pantry looks like, how it needs to operate, that sort of thing. They worked on the implementation of the project,” Akright says. He says now that it is running they rely mostly on volunteers to run it.

The pantry is called “Karen’s Cupboard” in honor of Karen Ford who founded the of Food Bank of Iowa in 1982. Ford worked at the organization until she died in 2008. Akright says with spring now here, they are looking ahead to a busy time.

“We’re really starting to prepare for the summer months when kids are outside of school and they don’t have access to lunch and sometimes breakfast at school — so they need that extra food that is there,” Akright says. ” So, we’re sort of building up our stock and kind of preparing for the summer months as they come up.”

You can find out more about the services of the Food Bank of Iowa and how to donate at their website at: www.foodbankiowa.org.

 

Third annual Vegan Fest is this weekend in West Des Moines

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Participants in VeganFest 2017.

An event taking place this weekend in central Iowa will cater to the growing number of Iowans who are eating a plant-based diet.

Vegan Fest in West Des Moines will feature 40 exhibitors, including many that will be serving food that excludes meat, eggs, and dairy products. Amy Luebbert, president of the group Veglife Des Moines, says this is the third year for Vegan Fest and it’s grown dramatically since 2016.

“We really want to show businesses there are people who are choosing to be vegan or to incorporate more vegan meals into their life – so, we want to show businesses that this is a growing trend,” Luebbert said.

The nonprofit group Veglife Des Moines was formed after last year’s Vegan Fest drew a much larger crowd than organizers anticipated. A recent “vegan restaurant tour” in the Des Moines area included 20 restaurants that were asked to dedicate their menu to vegan options for one day.

“And all of them expressed that they were overwhelmed by how many people came in and supported the vegan options. We’ve heard from a few that they’re going to continue to have those on their menu and explore more options,” Luebbert said.

A report from research firm GlobalData found only one-percent of U.S. consumers claimed to be vegan in 2014. In 2017, that number rose to six-percent. Several documentaries released in recent years, such as “Plant Pure Nation” and “Forks Over Knives,” have encouraged people to alter their eating habits.

“One released about a year ago called ‘What the Health?’ – that film opened a lot of people’s eyes,” Luebbert said. “I also think meeting other people who are doing this…I wasn’t vegan when I was growing up, but 16 years ago I met someone who was vegan and that changed me forever.”

Luebbert notes, in addition to following a plant-based diet, individuals who identify themselves as vegan also abstain from wearing animal based clothing – such as leather – or using products tested on animals. Vegan Fest is taking place from 11am to 5pm Saturday at the Valley Community Center, 4444 Fuller Road, in West Des Moines.