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Low income residents of Marion and Polk counties had healthier meals recently, thanks to a unique partnership between the Oregon Department of Corrections, Truitt Brothers, Inc., local growers and Marion-Polk Food Share.

During Hunger Week, Governor Ted Kulongoski recognized the new partnership between the Oregon Department of Corrections and Truitt Brothers as a good example of ways food industry companies can help reduce hunger in Oregon. "This is how we, as Oregonians, can help reduce or even eliminate hunger," says Governor Kulongoski. "It is done by government, nonprofit agencies, local businesses and private citizens coming together, and working to find creative solutions."

The partnership includes the Oregon Department of Corrections providing land near the Santiam Correctional Institution for the growing of green beans. The crop was tended by local farmers who donated their time and materials. The beans were harvested in late summer, and then canned by Truitt Brothers. About one third of the crop, or nearly two hundred thousand cans of beans, went to Marion-Polk Food Share. That provided three cans of beans for every emergency food box in Marion and Polk counties.

Click here for more information and photos of the project:

After a year of renovations, the Truitt Bros. East Bernstadt, Kentucky food processing plant hosted its grand opening on Dec. 4, 2008. Both David Truitt and Peter Truitt spoke at the event, along with Ron Davis, Managing Director/GM Eastern Operations. The new facility is the company's first location outside of the Pacific Northwest-establishing a bicoastal presence that will reduce distribution costs and maximize transportation efficiencies for food companies seeking shelf-stable contract packaging.

"As the market for portion-controlled convenience foods continued to build, we were starting to outgrow our facilities in Salem, Oregon, and decided as a company to expand east," said David Truitt, Vice President/Co-Owner. "East Bernstadt is the perfect location-the epicenter of the eastern half of the States; now every potential shipping destination in the continental U.S. is less than 12 hours away. We are the only supplier in our industry with both East and West Coast manufacturing facilities." The East Bernstadt plant specializes in pre-prepared meals, which are contract packed for some of the largest food packaging companies in the world.

"We represent the third generation of a food processing family. We understand fresh, good food and are committed to the quality of our products, the care of our environment, and the continued success of our customers and employees," commented Peter Truitt, President/Co-Owner. "We are proud to be able to extend this commitment, leadership and pride in our business to eastern Kentucky."

Oregon manufacturers brought the sights, scents, and flavors of the Pacific Northwest to life at the 2nd annual Oregon in Chicago event at this year's National Restaurant Show in Chicago. Hosted by Truitt Bros., Sabroso Company, Oregon Cherries, Brand Oregon, and Willamette Valley Vineyards-Oregon in Chicago was a celebration of the natural earth and the flavor- and character-rich foods and beverages Oregon produces. The event immersed operators in the casual sophistication and festive fare indigenous to the Northwest-offering product solutions and menu ideas that could be easily and effectively implemented. Oregon chef and author Bill King, vice president of culinary development and training for McCormick & Schmick's Seafood Restaurants, signed copies of his book A Chef's Bounty: Celebrating Oregon's Cuisine-a collection of signature recipes from notable Oregon culinarians.

As foodservice and multi-unit restaurant operators continue to innovate with the environment in mind, a collective of Oregon-based food leaders stepped up to offer the Northwest Sustainability Discovery Tour, a three-day symposium designed to share first-hand experience and knowledge for building farm to fork supply chains between growers, processors and buyers.

With Portland as the tour’s hub, participants heard from NW experts and engaged in conversations about the challenges, opportunities, and advantages of verdant and traceable food systems, all while venturing out into farm fields, kitchens and food processing facilities that model sustainable foodservice practices. In addition to witnessing the infrastructure in place in Oregon to support sustainable food initiatives, topics covered included, how to build credibility in and integrity for food served through third-party certifications; a look at food and its impact on the environment through life cycle assessments, such as carbon footprint analyses; how sustainable food systems have become a strategic focus of education at two of the state’s largest universities; and how government policy is poised to change foodservice operations for the betterment of the local economy and the environment.

The first Sustainability Discovery Tour was presented by Truitt Bros., Inc., The Hartman Group, Ecotrust, The Institute for Environmental Research and Education, Food Alliance, Portland State University, Oregon Department of Agriculture, Fast Casual Magazine and Rogue Brewery.

The collegiate dining hall is changing, and changing for good as sustainability and "menu ethics" begin to dominate discussion among college and university foodservice professionals. To address these changes, Truitt Bros., Inc., a Food Alliance certified food processor based in Oregon, brought together a network of green-minded producers, suppliers and services to host Farm-2-Fork, an evening of networking, education, and mouth-watering food on Thursday, July 10, at the acclaimed Agraria Restaurant in Washington, D.C. The event coincided with the 2008 National NACUFS Conference, which brought together thousands of professionals from the collegiate foodservice industry.

Suppliers known for ethical and delicious food were on hand to answer questions and share their extensive, collective experience with college foodservice personnel. Along with Truitt Bros, presenters at Farm-2-Fork included, FreeBird Chicken, Plainville Farms, Hain Celestial Foods, Clif Bar/Clif Bar Family Winery & Farm, Organic Valley Family of Farms, Niman Ranch, Nestle Waters, Shepherd's Grain, Wild Planet seafood, Thousand Hills Cattle Co., Divine Chocolate, Portland Roasting Coffee, Sierra Nevada Brewing Company and Biodegradable Food Service. In addition, leading foodservice contract management company Sodexo participated, along with educational partners Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch, Food Alliance and the Campus Kitchens Project.

"No foodservice professional can afford to ignore this fundamental shift in how students think about food choices and the environment today," said Peter Truitt, president of Truitt Bros., Inc. "Concern about how food is produced and where it comes from is the hottest issue we in the food industry face today, so we're offering a venue and opportunity for the college and university foodservice industry to talk and share experiences about creative, cutting-edge approaches to greening the campus dining experience – starting with the center of the plate."

At Truitt Bros., “green” thinking has always been part of our DNA. So in our quest to make our sustainable canned green beans even greener, we asked an independent research company to find out how our product’s carbon footprint fared against fresh and frozen varieties. The result? Fresh local sustainably grown green beans are best as long as they’re in season. But the rest of the year, our canned beans turn out to be more responsible than even we imagined.

With all else being equal, canned green beans use up to 70% less energy than frozen on their trip from the farm to your tables.

•   IQF freezing consumes at least twice as much energy as the canning process.
•   Frozen beans must remain at 0°F, consuming energy from the time they’re
    shipped to the end of their life in your freezer. Canned beans can be shipped and
    stored at any temperature, requiring no energy for storage.
•   Room-temp canned beans require less energy than frozen to heat to serving
    temperature.

By switching to canned beans instead of frozen, you can, over time:

•   Reduce fossil fuel usage, greenhouse gases, acidification, and ecotoxicity
•   Improve air quality and human health, and
•   Have a significantly lower impact (up to 39% better) on global warming

This award recognizes outstanding manufacturers, that are making world class products, creating job opportunities and strengthening our communities. It is given to the organization who has been active in SEDCOR, has made contributions to the industry and community, and exemplifies the highest business ethical standards. David Truitt, Vice President, Truitt Bros., accepted the award.

Recognized as one of the fastest growing privately held businesses in Oregon, Truitt Bros., Inc., has been a leader in the shelf-stable foods industry since 1973. This position has been established through innovation and by bringing quality, customized, shelf-stable foods to a wide variety of establishments.

In March of 2006, Truitt Bros., Inc. started down the path of continuous improvement when the Oregon Manufacturing Extension Partnership provided grant-funded training in the concepts and principles of Lean Manufacturing. Eighty employees from the Special Products Department participated in the sessions. Bruce McDonald, Special Products Operations Manager, attended intensive Lean ñChampionî training and has headed up the Lean program at Truitt. Bruce meets with individuals and teams to discuss and plan various events to continuously improve processes and reduce waste. Through the efforts of line workers, mechanics, supervisors and managers, three projects are expected to generate combined annual savings of $90,000.

Truitt Bros. is also the first in the nation to earn a Food Processor Certification from Food Alliance, a Portland, Ore.- based national non-profit organization, dedicated to certifying environmentally sound, socially responsible farms, ranchers and processors to support sustainable agriculture. With this certification of sustainable practices, the 33-year old cannery and specialty food processor is re-introducing two of their signature products - Blue Lake Green Beans grown in the fertile Willamette Valley of Oregon, and 100 percent juice-packed Bartlett Pears, grown in The Dalles, Oregon Æ with a new label that shares their story of commitment to quality, farmers and the land.

The American Advertising Federation (AAF) has awarded a prestigious Gold ADDY Award for national creative excellence to NOBLE for a direct mail campaign created for Truitt Bros., Inc., a leading manufacturer in the shelf-stable foods industry. The award was presented at the 2007 National ADDY Awards Show held on June 9 in Louisville, Ky., in conjunction with the annual AAF National Conference.

The winning submission was a unique 3-D mailer introducing prospective customers to Truitt Bros. Pembrook Southern-style Green Beans. The attention-grabbing piece promotes the fresher taste, firmer texture, and brighter color of the product, while incorporating the company's corporate sustainability message.

"We are proud of the partnership we have with NOBLE and the high-caliber work that partnership produces," said Peter Truitt, president of Truitt Bros." NOBLE's commitment to insight-driven ideas mirrors our own dedication to providing innovative, quality product solutions for the foodservice industry."

With more than 60,000 entries annually, the ADDY Awards is the world's largest advertising competition. It is the only creative awards contest to require three levels of judging; local, regional, and national; and is the only such program to be administered by the advertising industry for the industry. The ADDY Awards competition is conducted by the AAF, a not-for-profit industry association.

"In a contest dominated by consumer companies and campaigns, it is quite an honor for a foodservice agency and manufacturer to receive top national recognition," said Tim Bade, executive vice president and creative director at NOBLE. "We'd like to applaud the ingenuity and perseverance it took both from the NOBLE team and Truitt Bros. to see this big idea through. This honor is proof that great things are possible when the idea takes the lead."