In keeping with its 140 years of ongoing growth and progress, B&W moves into the future with a new name –B&W Gourmet Farms – and a new position as the champion of the category of Distinctive Baby Leaves™ for both retail and foodservice markets.
“As we began to perfect and grow these new Distinctive Baby Leaves™ we knew there was an opportunity to enhance our position as the world leader for watercress by adding new baby leaves, many of them proprietary varieties, to meet consumer and foodservice demands for unique, flavorful and nutritious greens,” reports B&W marketing vp Andy Brown.
The new leaves, grown in eight states in key growing regions across the country, include watercress, wild red watercress, wild roquette baby arugula, gourmet pea tendrils and Bordeaux baby leaf red spinach. More Distinctive Baby Leaves™ are currently in the research stage.
“The response to our products by retailers, consumers and chefs shows that the market is there for a full line of baby leaves grown, packed and shipped to our exacting standards,” Brown continues. “We see that this market has grown significantly. Baby arugula, as an example, has gone from being a little- used green into one of the most popular leaf items available, appearing on more and more menus and in more and more stores. Coupled with consumer and chef demands for variety, versatility and, above all, flavor, the Distinctive Baby Leaves™ from our farms will be a key to B&W’s continued leadership in baby leaf specialties.”
“Our farms in eight states, as well as our state-of-the-art harvesting, packing and shipping practices and our world class food safety programs, show that we can lead this category and continue to expand our sales here in the US and abroad. We currently are expanding our distribution in the US. Our new facility, scheduled for completion this summer, will help us handle this growth,” adds B&W President Alan Temple.
The company’s retail and foodservice branding have changed from B&W Quality Growers to B&W Gourmet Farms, the category leader of Distinctive Baby Leaves™. The new logo is a green and clean script of B&W Gourmet Farms with a new website soon to reflect the positioning and the brand. New retail packaging for the line of Distinctive Baby Leaves™ includes the new brand in a bolder and brighter presentation. The packaging includes prominent brand identification, stronger nutritional and flavor messages and an expanded viewing window, responding to consumer demands to see the product. In addition, B&W’s popular www.watercress.com website has added a lively social media presence with a Facebook Fan page, starring Watercress Woman.
B&W is also expanding into the foodservice market, reaching key chefs and menu developers at two other Culinary Institute of America conferences: World of Healthy Flavors and Flavor, Quality and the American Menu. The company is working to introduce the entire line of Distinctive Baby Leaves™ to key chefs through participation in events such as those with the Culinary Institute of America and others.
“We have the right products at just the right time,” according to Temple, “the right leadership and staffing here at the farms, and experienced experts in nutrition and communications to help us get our new messages out to our audiences of retail and foodservice markets, consumers and healthcare professionals.”
B&W Gourmet Farms is the brand for B&W Quality Growers, Inc., a 140+ year young family-owned farming operation specializing in Distinctive Baby Leaves™ with seasonal farms in eight states and year-round processing facilities in Florida.
Source: B&W Gourmet Farms
