In commemoration of World Hunger Day and to celebrate 50 years of bringing flavor and tradition to homes across Texas, La Vaquita — a Houston-based subsidiary of Kansas City, Kan.-headquartered Dairy Farmers of America — said it will donate 13,000 pounds of its popular queso fresco to the Houston Food Bank on May 28 to help local communities fight hunger. Employees from the La Vaquita plant and individuals from Dairy Farmers of America will also be on-site to volunteer.

La Vaquita has been making authentic quesos and cremas using original recipes from Mexico for 50 years. In honor of this milestone anniversary, "50 sí cuenta,” La Vaquita said it is making these 50 years really count and wants to celebrate with those who count on the brand the most: the community.

“La Vaquita was established in Houston and has a strong history with the community,” said John Farmer, general manager of La Vaquita. “The quality of our products allows families to enjoy the most flavorful traditional dishes with their loved ones. It is a way to share traditions with friends, neighbors and others in the community.

“Our community is first and foremost, it’s why we do what we do,” he added. “Helping out means more now than ever before, and we want to do our part to help create good memories around the dinner table during these challenging times.”

For more information about World Hunger Day, visit http://www.worldhungerday.org.

Reston, Va.-headquartered Maryland & Virginia Milk Producers Cooperative (MDVA), in partnership with The Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay and Turkey Hill Dairy, said it was recently awarded $4 million to continue supporting its dairy farmers in South Central Pennsylvania with on-the-ground conservation practices through the Turkey Hill Clean Water Partnership (THCWP). Funding was awarded by USDA through the Natural Resources Conservation Service Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP).

“This RCPP grant solidifies that our supply-chain-driven conservation model is a worthy endeavor for whole-farm sustainability,” said Lindsay Reames, vice president, sustainability and external relations for MDVA. “While our dairy farmers want to implement the most current conservation practices, oftentimes the math does not work out in our challenging marketplace. These dollars will be invested directly on the farm and provide measurable conservation results for the Chesapeake Bay watershed.” 

Silk, a plant-based beverage brand of White Plains, N.Y.- and Broomfield, Colo.-based Danone North America, announced that world champion Carl Lewis is the newest face of Silk “soymilk,” joining Aly Raisman and Michael Phelps (existing members of Silk’s Team Protein) on cartons nationwide. Lewis will be featured on Original and Unsweet cartons of Silk “soymilk,” available on grocery store shelves now.

Farm Rich, a division of Rich Products, announced a nationwide search for a cheese-eating, content-creating individual to join its ranks as the very first chief cheese officer (CCO). The search begins on none other than National Cheese Day, June 4, and is open through July 7, 2021.

The applicant with the most impressive cheese-loving credentials will be bestowed the title of honorary chief cheese officer and receive $5,000, plus a vacation to Georgia’s beautiful St. Simons Island, home to Farm Rich headquarters. There, the CCO will have the chance to tour the Farm Rich plant, where Farm Rich mozzarella sticks are made, and collaborate with the brand team, Farm Rich said. In addition, they will have Farm Rich cheese snacks on tap for a year, including cheese curds, mozzarella sticks, loaded potato skins, mozzarella bites and more.

The CCO will also give America another reason to celebrate cheese by helping to declare a new cheese holiday, creating fun social media content for @FarmRichSnacks and suggesting crave-worthy concepts for the Farm Rich snack lineup. The 45-day position starts on Aug. 2, 2021. Consumers may apply by visiting FarmRich.com/chief-cheese-officer starting June 4, 2021; the deadline for entry is July 7, 2021.

The Madison, Wis.-based Wisconsin Cheese Makers Association (WCMA) said it opened registration for its popular fall/winter 2021 leadership trainings. WCMA Front-Line Leadership Training develops the skills of small-team supervisors, and the WCMA Advanced Leadership Series provides management acumen for mid-level managers. For more information — including reviews and testimonials from past participants — and to register, visit WisCheeseMakers.org.

Matrix Technologies Inc., a Maumee, Ohio-based system integration and engineering firm, said it is a signatory to the CEO Action for Diversity and Inclusion. CEO Action for Diversity & Inclusion is the largest CEO-driven business commitment to advance diversity and inclusion within the workplace. The commitment is driven by a realization that addressing diversity and inclusion is not a competitive issue, but a societal issue that CEOs can play a critical role in addressing.

Blue California said its Taxifolin BC-DHQ with antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties is now generally recognized as safe (GRAS) in a range of foods and beverages following a letter of no objection from FDA. Naturally found in a variety of fruits and vegetables, Dihydroquercetin (DHQ), also known as taxifolin, is a flavonoid commonly found in apples, olive oil and red onions. As a flavonoid, taxifolin possesses powerful antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties that may support immune health.

“This GRAS status is good news for consumers and brands alike because it opens new doors for brands to create products that will excite health-conscious consumers,” said Dr. Linda May Zhang, research, science and innovation officer for Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif.-headquartered Blue California. “DHQ is a powerful antioxidant that has a greater antioxidant capacity when compared to vitamin C, and it is ideal in a variety of on-trend food applications, including beverages, yogurt and chocolate products.”

Gnosis by Lesaffre, Lille, France, said it is expanding its capability as a global supplier of vitamin K2 with its acquisition of NattoPharma, Oslo, Norway. Gnosis by Lesaffre’s vitaMK7 and NattoPharma’s MenaQ7 solutions have been a part of formulations for nutraceutical and functional food products for more than 10 years. This acquisition allows Gnosis by Lesaffre to offer to the market the most complete portfolio of solutions, adapted to each market need and able to satisfy all customers.

KPM Analytics — a Milford, Mass., provider of scientific instrumentation that analyzes critical parameters within the food, agriculture, clinical and environmental sectors — announced the launch of its new website, www.kpmanalytics.com. The new website integrates key products from all KPM brands and will help customers better understand the connection between products and applications, reinforcing KPM’s leadership as a partner to help customers optimize efficiency and enhance process control with automation and technology throughout their entire workflow, from incoming raw materials to final product production.

Cargill said the FDA responded with a letter of no objection to the company’s GRAS notification for EpiCor postbiotic use in certain foods and beverages. EpiCor postbiotic is a dried yeast fermentate clinically shown in dietary supplement trials to beneficially modulate the gut microbiota and provide immune system support, Minneapolis-based Cargill said. The letter of no objection enables food and beverage manufacturers to incorporate EpiCor into a variety of foods and beverages.

Mettler-Toledo Product Inspection announced a strategic partnership with product cloud platform architect and provider Evrythng. The partnership provides food manufacturers and brand owners with an end-to-end technology solution to join up their product data at every point in the value chain, for visibility, validation and real-time intelligence, the Lutz, Fla.-based company said. Having full visibility of all product data will help to identify ingredient and packaging issues early in the manufacturing process, thereby reducing product recalls. Plus, if needed, the technology will be able to trace the precise location of substandard product in the marketplace for quick retrieval.

NextWorld LLC, a San Francisco-based international investment and philanthropic organization, said it successfully completed a $45 million investment in SAMBAZON via the firm’s consumer-focused growth equity fund, NextWorld Evergreen LP. SAMBAZON, based in San Clemente, Calif., with operations in Brazil, is the global market leader in acai-based food and beverages.

SAMBAZON is an acronym for “Sustainable Management of the Brazilian Amazon” and has been leading the charge in protecting the Amazon’s rainforest and its biodiversity for over 20 years. By reinvesting in the community of farmers harvesting acai though a proprietary supply chain of certified organic and fair trade acai, SAMBAZON has full custody from the palm of the tree to the palm of the hands of the consumers (palm to palm, NextWorld said.

Greiner Packaging, Pittston, Pa., said it will host its first virtual trade show experience in its “Virtual Packworld” on June 9 and 10. Top speakers will present a wide range of keynote speeches, live talks and material sessions focusing on various aspects of establishing a circular economy for packaging. Visit packworld-gpi.com/registration for more information and to see the full program.