From the Cold Corner

Farm to Frozen: Navigating the U.S. Cold Storage Climate” is a series focused on the U.S. cold storage market, the need for infrastructure development and how food and beverage manufacturers/ processors can leverage the best option for their business. As the initial series wraps up, we are chatting with Marty Khait, principle at Yukon Real Estate Partners and author of the Farm to Frozen series.

As we wrap up National Dairy Month, From the Cold Corner is talking building a brand with Elena Umanskaya, vice president of Marketing at Lactalis Heritage Dairy. The family-owned business is among the largest dairy companies in the world and owns an impressive portfolio, including Kraft Natural Cheese and Breakstone’s. 

June is National Dairy Month, and to celebrate, From the Cold Corner is talking regenerative agriculture and how Maple Hill Creamery, a grass-fed organic dairy, is using it as a force for sustainability and social responsibility. Based in upstate New York, Maple Hill Creamery sources its milk from over 130 family small family farms. Its milk, yogurt, butter and kefir is available at locations nati...

Idaho’s first vertically integrated dairy processing plant opened just in time for June Dairy Month, with a focus on contract manufacturing. Suntado processes and packages on site with capacity for up to 1 million pounds of locally-produced milk per day into shelf-stable and extended shelf life (ESL) milk and liquid dairy products. The 190,000-square-foot facility is the first U.S. co-manufacturer...

The Tillamook County Creamery Association (TCCA) is an Oregon-based dairy co-op and manufacturer known for their award-winning cheese, yogurt, butter and most importantly to this story – their deliciously creamy ice cream. Tillamook’s new ice cream manufacturing facility in Decatur, Illinois marks a few firsts for the company: it will be TCCA's first owned and operated manufacturing facility outsi...

For the first time in a year, Gifford’s Ice Cream is making Maine’s most famous ice cream after a fire ripped through production facilities, forcing the company to rely on co-packers. To get back up and running, the family-owned ice cream company carved out a smaller production area—roughly 30% of actual size once the factory is fully restored—and has two lines running to produce quarts and bulk f...

From the Cold Corner sits down with Mary Emma Young, vice president of communication at the American Frozen Food Institute, during 2024 AFFI-CON to discuss the lobbying Congress on behalf of the food industry, food safety and more.

Last summer, UPSIDE Foods, a cultivated meat, poultry and seafood company, received approvals needed by the USDA, following a greenlight from the FDA in Fall 2022. That allowed the company to start commercial production and sale of its cultivated chicken. Since then, a number of companies, like Meatable, Wanda Fish and Believer Meats, have announced plans to scale production.  As so-called cruelty...

On this episode of From the Cold Corner, Don Olsen, vice president of design and operations at ESI Group, discusses what food manufacturers and processors should know about the design-build process for cold and frozen facilities.

Afia started in 2017 at an Austin area Farmer’s Market and moved into retail in 2018 with the H-E-B Quest for Texas’ Best program. In the years since, the company has grown to a national brand with 13,000 distribution points and three lines of frozen Mediterranean/Middle Eastern Food. On this episode, Farrah and Yassin Sibai, of Afia, discuss their newly-opened “purpose built” frozen food producti...

Welcome to From the Cold Corner, a podcast dedicated to the refrigerated and frozen foods’ cold chain. Marty Khait, co-founder and managing principal at Yukon Real EstatePartners, and author of R&FF’s special series, Farm to Frozen, joins R&FF Editor in Chief Kelley Rodriguez to discuss what’s ahead in 2024 for the U.S. cold storage market.

With inflation anticipated to ease in 2024 and changing consumer preferences, new research indicates that specific grocery departments will lead the pack in volume growth. On this episode of From the Cold Corner, Sally Lyons Wyatt, executive vice president and practice leader at Circana, discusses what is ahead in the New Year.

Armored Fresh, a South Korean food tech startup, wants to be the cheese alternative everyone asks for. The company was the first in the world to create vegan cheese from plant-based milk using fermentation technology and patented processes it says creates a product nearly indistinguishable from dairy-based cheese. Andrew Yu, vice president of American operations at Armored Fresh, joins From the Co...

On this episode of From the Cold Corner, we’re celebrating Refrigerated & Frozen Foods’ 2023 Processor of the Year: SunOpta. A global pioneer in the sustainable food and beverage industry, SunOpta has achieved consistent growth and deep-rooted success for nearly 50 years. Collaborating with some of the most planet-friendly brands in the world, SunOpta produces 450 total organic, non-GMO plant-...

To learn more about how food manufacturers and processors are creating the latest in craveable, consumable foods, this episode of From the Cold Corner features joined by Stacey Kinkaid, vice president of Product Development and Innovation at US Foods, and Chris Glab, chief innovation officer at Wild Brine/Bubbies. They talk about research into Gen Z dining and eating trends, how their companies ap...

It certainly seems like a hot time to be in cold storage development. This episode of From the Cold Corner features Marty Khait, co-founder and managing principal at Yukon Real Estate Partners, and author of R&FF’s special series, Farm to Frozen, to discuss new options in cold storage and more.

At Refrigerated and Frozen Foods, we talk a lot about how cold foods are produced, processed and manufactured. But what happens once those foods are ready to be distributed to retailers across the country where they will ultimately end up in consumer’s homes? This episode honors Longbow Advantage, R&FF’s 2023 Logistics Provider of the Year, and discusses the ways in which technology and automa...

On this episode of From the Cold Corner, we’re joined by three guests to discuss the latest in food processing trends and cold foods manufacturing: Craig Susser of Craig’s Vegan, a California plant-based ice cream company. Created in 2016, it was a hit in Susser’s West Hollywood restaurant and by 2018, the brand had launched a pint-sized line of its cashew-based ice creams in six flavors at over 2...

Schwan’s Hearth & Fire, a frozen pizza line created with proprietary dough and a fermentation process that makes the perfect crust. With premium toppings like roast shiitake, Portobello and cremini mushrooms, whole basil leaves and goat cheese, the brand is winning over fans. So many in fact that it was voted by readers as Refrigerated & Frozen Foods’ Best New Retail Product for 2023!  On...

In honor of June Dairy Month, meet sisters Stephanie and Hayley Painter, the duo behind Painterland Sisters Organic Skyr Yogurt, which launched in 2022, to preserve, showcase and utilize their family’s fourth-generation organic dairy farm. The Icelandic-style organic yogurt is thicker and creamier. It is lactose-free, rich in probiotics, high in protein and contains 13 essential nutrients.  Painte...

Food companies and retailers regularly donate foods to charitable organizations but often lack the capability to store and distribute those donations. Cooler Management, an Ohio-based company that designs and delivers cold storage solutions, recently launched a program to help solve the infrastructure dilemma and distribute more fresh foods to food banks, schools, retailers and more. On this episo...

Learn why a loading dock designed with a Drive-Thru applications is the gold standard for facilities like cold storage, food, beverage (and more!) and how it helps protects your employees, minimizes damage to equipment and goods, while saving money on your bottom-line through environmental control. Sponsored by: 

Sales of plant-based foods topped $7 billion in 2021, with retail sales growing three times faster than total food retail sales, according to the Plant-Based Foods Association. As demand from consumers for plant-based foods, especially protein alternatives in the meat and dairy aisles, continues to grow, data suggests alt-proteins will only move further into the mainstream. On this two-part episod...

Sales of plant-based foods topped $7 billion in 2021, with retail sales growing three times faster than total food retail sales, according to the Plant-Based Foods Association. As demand from consumers for plant-based foods, especially protein alternatives in the meat and dairy aisles, continues to grow, data suggests alt-proteins will only move further into the mainstream. On this two-part episod...

On this episode of From the Cold Corner, we’re joined by Dustin Norton, Sustainability Program Manager at Primus Builders, to discuss sustainability initiatives, LEED certification and more in the design and construction of cold storage facilities.