Beef and Bacon Take the Cake, or in this case, the National Pie Championship
With a harmonious pairing of beef and bacon, David Eaheart, Seaboard Foods senior director of communications and brand marketing earned a first place in the professional division of the prestigious National Pie Championships® coming out victorious in the Florida Beef Council Savory Beef Pot Pie category. His winning pie was crafted with Daily’s Premium Meats bacon, adding a flavor profile to the beef category that helped Eaheart’s creation stand out from the rest of the field.
“I love to use bacon in everything I make, even in dessert pies,” said Eaheart. “This year, I wanted to stay true to the beef pot pie category but elevate it. The saltiness of the Daily’s bacon and sweetness of the potatoes complemented the beef flavor beautifully. It was a unique beef pot pie, but it was traditional enough that judges knew it was still a pot pie.”
Since 1995, the American Pie Council® (APC) has hosted the annual National Pie Championships® where amateur, professional and commercial pie bakers from the United States and Canada compete in diverse categories for the best pies. This year’s competition in Orlando introduced four new flavor categories, including beef pot pie, pecan pie, mango pie and pear pie. Featuring hundreds of sweet and savory pies, the competition evaluates pies based on first impressions, flavor, mouthfeel, appeal and creativity.
“We were so impressed by the culinary innovation brought to the table at this year’s National Pie Championships,” said DeAnne Maples, Executive Director of the Florida Beef Council. “Many savory beef pies rely on the same flavor profiles, so it’s tough to show us something we’ve never seen before, but Eaheart did just that. His take on the beef pot pie was both technically impressive and delicious, well deserving of a win.”
Smithfield Foods to Purchase Dry Sausage Facility from Cargill
Looking to expand capacity in a fast-growing category, Smithfield Foods has entered into a definitive agreement to purchase a premier dry sausage production facility in Nashville, Tennessee, from Cargill. The transaction will fuel Smithfield’s strategy of continued growth in the value-added packaged meats segment, enhancing its ability to serve growing demand for high-quality pepperoni, deli, charcuterie and other dry sausage products.
“This transaction is a testament to our continued focus on growing our packaged meats business by staying ahead of and delivering on our customers’ preferences,” says Steve France, president of packaged meats for Smithfield Foods. “Dry sausage is one of our fastest-growing categories, and acquiring this facility from Cargill will better position us to improve sales, drive volume and increase our capacity to bring high-quality dry sausage products to the foodservice, industrial and retail sectors. We look forward to serving this facility’s existing customers and welcoming a new group of team members to Smithfield Foods.”
Production from the Nashville facility will support Smithfield’s existing portfolio of dry sausage brands, including Margherita, Carando and Armour, adding dry sausage production capacity of 50 million pounds per year. The U.S. retail/deli dry sausage segment is projected to grow from $4.7 billion in 2023 to $6.9 by 2030. In the foodservice segment, 65% of pizzeria operators expect gross annual sales to be up over the next 12 months, with 44% expecting sales to be up 5% or more.
Smithfield will make formal offers of employment to the approximately 160 active Cargill Nashville employees for the same positions they currently hold, with no changes to their current base pay, and provide a benefits package that includes comprehensive medical coverage, a free-tuition program and other benefits.
Elanco Named Exclusive U.S. Distributor for celluTEIN® Bioactive Protein Feed Supplement
An agreement was reached between Elanco Animal Health Incorporated and PURETEIN® Bioscience LLC to allow exclusive distribution of celluTEIN® bioactive livestock protein feed supplement for swine in the United States. The agreement offers Elanco opportunity to enhance its swine nutritional health portfolio, alongside products Baseline™, Proteck™, FeedAID™, Lipinate®, Evosure®, Swine AwakeTM and Hemicell® HT.
In many species, including pigs, the mTOR (mechanistic target of rapamycin) pathway is a biological signaling pathway that controls cell metabolism, growth and survival. celluTEIN contains proprietary bioactive protein compounds that stimulate the mTOR pathway, which has been shown to support increased immune response and muscle development in the post-weaning pig.1 A more adaptive immune system allows the pig’s body to better resist disease pressure and instead direct its cellular energy to productive growth.
“Incorporating celluTEIN into Elanco’s portfolio is an opportunity to provide swine producers an antibiotic alternative, feed ingredient solution designed to support immunity benefits, which may lead to better feed efficiency and growth rates in nursery and grow-finish pigs,” says Jenna Seltzer, Elanco Swine Nutritional Health Consultant.
Founded in 2007, PURETEIN works to introduce science-based, high-quality feed ingredients with the purpose of helping livestock producers safely address food security and sustainability issues. It works with public institutions and companies to conduct trials ensuring animal safety and efficacy from its products and promotes innovative science and protocols that reflect company goals of trustworthiness, transparency, commitment and efficacy.
“We are excited about the opportunity to provide PURETEIN’s technology to our swine customers. This agreement strengthens Elanco’s position as a diverse solutions provider for the U.S. swine industry,” adds Blake Everhart, Executive Director of the Elanco Swine Business Unit.
