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We hit the 100 media RSVP mark this morning, topping last year’s final RSVP list, and still with seven weeks to go before our June 30 event in New York City.

Our goal is 125 attendees, and all signs point to us getting there.

A sampling of media outlets on the list include Food Network, Food Network Magazine, Food & Wine, Every Day With Rachael Ray, O The Oprah Magazine, Martha Stewart Living, Real Simple, Ladies’ Home Journal, Brides, DailyCandy, TheNibble, Parade, Men’s Fitness, SELF, Woman’s Day, Family Circle, Travel + Leisure, New York Daily News, TIME, Newsweek and Fast Company.

The list goes on.

We have only a few exhibitor tables left, so if you’d like to show off your newest gourmet food, beverage and kitchenware products to this influential group, drop me a line today or submit the exhibitor application.

Alton Brown of Food Network might not like this gadget because it’s a “uni-tasker,” but I think it’s pretty cool. (Hey Alton, isn’t your fancy infrared thermometer also a uni-tasker? Just kidding. I really like you).

Anyway…gadget blog BoingBoing this week highlights this Spoon Scale that measures up to 300 gms (10.5 ounces) and goes as low as 1/10 gm. I’m disregarding all inferences that this is a great gift for drug dealers, ’cause I don’t roll that way.

It’s just for measuring food.

We’re down to the final three exhibitor tables for our Food Fete media event on June 30 in New York, so contact me ASAP if you’ve been on the fence about participating. The event is on track to be our best yet, and is one of the most cost-effective and efficient ways to create a spike in your media relations activities.

As of today, we have 80 media on the RSVP list, including editors from Every Day With Rachael Ray, Martha Stewart Living online, Food Network, Food & Wine, Parade, All You, SELF, Better Homes & Gardens, Family Circle, First, Ladies Home Journal, Woman’s Day Time, Fortune and Fast Company, among many others.

Download and submit the Exhibitor Application to get things started.

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I’m going to share one of my secret obsessions. Ultra-cool kitchen appliances and housewares.

Appliancist.com feeds my obsession like no other site with its photos and reviews of the coolest appliances and housewares I’ve ever seen.

I don’t live in a place where I could have hardly any of them, but I love knowing they’re out there…just waiting for me someday!

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I don’t know why I’ve never done this on a larger scale until now, but I finally posted photos from past Food Fete events on Flickr.

Click here to see pix from our July ‘06 and January ‘05 (our first!) events.

I promise to do better for future events.

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I talk to a lot of small specialty food companies in doing what I do. When the conversation turns to how to grow their business, I consistently hear comments that point to gaps in their ability to easily find resources and experts to get critical things done.

A new site called The Gourmet Business Directory has just launched, which aims to fill those gaps with an online resource of suppliers and consultants necessary for starting and growing a food business.

The Gourmet Business Directory has set its sights on becoming the go-to resource for food manufacturers who are looking for food brokers, distributors, co-packers, labeling companies, packaging suppliers and fulfillment vendors, among other types of businesses.

There is a nominal fee for vendor companies to be included in the directory, however the online directory is free for food companies looking to find helpful resources.

Gourmet Business Directory was started by Ryan Montague, a management consultant specializing in brand and business development with an exclusive focus on gourmet and specialty food.

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Someone with the ingenuity (I wish I had) to be creative with some Peeps.

Click the link to see more fun with Peeps.

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I’ve just launched a private survey of food journalists to measure their opinions on topics dealing with how food & lifestyle brands and their agencies work with the press.

Food editors who’d like to take the survey can email me at info (at) foodfete (dot) com to receive a link. The survey closes March 20.

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On any given trip to the grocery or specialty food store, you can’t help but notice all the different health bars that are getting more and more difficult to classify; energy bars, protein bars, wellness bars, fitness bars, nutrition bars…or whatever you choose to call them.

Each boasts its own health and nutrition claims, making you wonder how they can cram all that stuff into a little bar that’s supposed to be a healthy dietary choice.

And while I’m the type who will at least try most of them out of curiosity, I’ve increasingly found that the healthier the bars claim to be, the worse they tend to taste.

But that’s not the case for a line of wellness bars from Attune Foods, a San Francisco company that has incorporated probiotic bacteria into its products. Probiotics (as well as prebiotics and other good bacteria) are a current nutritional trend that promote healthy digestive and immune systems. Attune claims its bars have five times the live active cultures found in yogurt, and contain less sugar than most yogurts.

While some so-called health bars I’ve tasted are “just okay,” (or at least not nasty enough to spit out), Attune’s bars taste really good. Marketed as probiotic wellness bars, their fruit flavored granola bars are natural tasting, with a soft, chewy texture that leaves you wanting more. The fruit flavors include strawberry, wild berry, lemon and mango peach.

Attune also makes several chocolate probiotic bars that are thinner than the granola varieties, and deliver the classic “snap” you find when eating a properly-tempered, premium chocolate bar. The chocolate flavors include chocolate crisp, dark chocolate, mint chocolate and blueberry vanilla.

Nutritionally speaking, Attune’s chocolate probiotic bars range from 80-100 calories, while the granola varieties have 170. None of them have more than 10g of sugar and total fat ranges from 6-8g. You can review all the Nutrition Facts here.

Unlike most energy or wellness bars, Attune bars need to be refrigerated to safeguard the probiotic cultures. They can, however, be kept unrefrigerated long enough for you to take them on the go.

If I had one negative comment about Attune (and it’s minor), the granola bars were a bit sweet for my personal taste, but not so much that it ruined the experience. If you’re wanting to take in probiotic cultures as part of your health regimen, I found Attune bars to be a good way to make that happen.

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chocfrey.jpgChocolat Frey, the Swiss chocolatier that has been making premium chocolates since 1887, has signed on to sponsor the Food Fete media gift bag for this summer’s event on June 30 in New York City.

Chocolat Frey is the number one chocolate brand in Switzerland, often regarded as the chocolate capital of the world.

What’s different about Chocolat Frey’s chocolate is that is holds the distinction of being 100% Swiss made, from bean to bar. Despite its heritage that spans more than a century, Chocolat Frey only began exporting its chocolate to the US in 2006, and currently sells exclusively at Target.

Chocolat Frey has a very broad product line (over 350 flavors), including an assortment of uniquely flavored bars, chocolate covered marshmallows and other confections.

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