AAK FSUS Showcases Plant-based Products at the National Association of College and University Food Services 2023 Spring Conference - Amherst Showcase

AAK Foodservice recently participated in the National Association of College and University Food Services (NACUFS) 2023 Spring Conference - Amherst Showcase, in Massachusetts. More than 300 people attended from major colleges & universities primarily from the east coast. Attendees included Executive and Sous Chefs, Dieticians, Catering Managers, Directors of Student Life, Campus Services, Dining Halls, and Procurement.

AAK Foodservice attendees included Jared Rosario, NYC and NJ Region Manager, Rich Rowland, MA and Up-State NY Region Manager, Cherilynn Whitehouse, Director of Marketing & Business Development, and Robin Feldman, Director of Field Sales.

Our booth showcased plant-based GreenOasis plant butter, mayo & aioli, ForA:Butter and Lion Sauces in different applications. Jared prepared samples with the plant-based products and sauces, including a GreenOasis plant butter board, fried rice veggie bowl topped with GreenOasis Chipotle Mayo, shishito peppers with our new GreenOasis Sweet Chili Lemongrass Aioli and a chickpea tuna-free salad made with GreenOasis Mayo. We also featured our plant-based vegan ForA:Butter which is known for its functionality in laminated doughs and pastries. The products were all well received and generated a great deal of interest with the attendees.

Colleges and Universities in New York and Maine are already using our GreenOasis mayo. Our new GreenOasis portion control mayo generated a great deal of interest. Robin Feldman, Director of Field Sales indicates “those colleges already using our products are enthused about the plant-based vegan products we have available”. A few attendees commented they plan to replace all their regular mayonnaise with plant-based mayo.

According to The Plant Based Food Association, “the plant-based market is currently $8B and the market is resilient”. Chefs and Foodservice Directors in attendance stated that they plan on adding more plant-based items to their menus, their students are requesting more plant-based options.

The NACUFS conference resulted in over 200 contact leads, in more than 50 major colleges and universities. We look forward to having our plant-based GreenOasis & ForA: products on more C & U menus in the fall.