Grocery Industry Honours Rookies of the Year

Retail Council of Canada Reveals Winners of 20^th Annual Canadian Grand Prix New Product Awards

TORONTO, June 6, 2013 /CNW/ - Tide® Pods™ from Procter & Gamble Inc. was the big winner at the 20^th annual Canadian Grand Prix New Product Awards.  The awards program, presented by Retail Council of Canada (RCC), recognizes the top new food, non-food and private label products across 26 categories.

During last night's gala at the Toronto Congress Centre, Tide Pods won best new Household Product, and also two special awards for best Innovation and Originality, and most Innovative Packaging.  Tide used a revolutionary three-chamber technology to combine laundry detergent, stain remover and a brightener in one compact pod.

The other product to earn multiple awards was Country Harvest™ 100% Whole Grain Bread from Weston Bakeries Limited.  The hearty bread, with exceptional health benefits, won the Grand Prix Award in the Bakery category, and was named All-Canadian new product of the year.

The fourth of the night's special awards was for Consumer Acceptance (household penetration rate of a product), and was won by iögo™ Nano - Drinkable Yogurt from Ultima Foods Inc.

The Healthy Innovation Award was won by Vitala Foods for their VITA-D^TM Sunshine Eggs. The VITA-D^TM Sunshine Eggs also won in the Deli, Egg, Meat & Seafood category.

All of the winners were announced June 5, 2013 at Toronto Congress Centre, as part of the STORE 2013 retail conference presented by RCC.  This year's Canadian Grand Prix New Product Awards was open to manufacturers and distributors for products introduced during the 2012 calendar year.

"Investing in new products is at the core of our industry's success," said Diane J. Brisebois, President and CEO of RCC, which is celebrating its 50^th anniversary.  "Last night's gala dinner celebrated our industry's ability to surprise and delight our consumers by introducing new and innovative products."

The Canadian Grand Prix New Product Awards were judged by a 32-member panel, representing consumers, media, distributors, award sponsors, and students from across Canada.  The jury gathered in March in Montreal to evaluate the food and private label products.  They assessed the non-food products in their own homes over six weeks.

The panel scored the entries for uniqueness and innovation, product characteristics, presentation and packaging, overall consumer value, and consumer acceptance.  The 127 finalists each scored at least 70% in the judging.

Four companies won for multiple products. Procter & Gamble won four awards - three for Tide Pods, plus the Personal Care category for Tampax Radiant Tampons. Canada Safeway won awards for three private label products: Edwards Coffee, 326 g (Beverage), Debi Lilly Savoy Candle (Non-Food), and Safeway Tuna, 170 g (Prepared Food & Entrée). Metro Richelieu took private label awards in the Confectionery, Snack & Dessert category for Irresistibles Dark Chocolate Covered Caramels with sea salt, and in the Bakery category for Fresh 2 Go Toscana Focaccia.  S. C. Johnson and Son won in the General Merchandise category for OFF! Clip-on™, and in the Paper, Plastic & Foil category for Ziploc® Brand Perfect Portions.

Brisebois said that the Grand Prix winners, and all of the entrants, "exemplify the industry's leadership and innovation."

The winners and finalists in this competition can use the Grand Prix Awards logo on their packaging for the next two years.

About Retail Council of Canada (RCC)

Retail Council of Canada (www.retailcouncil.org), founded in 1963, is a not-for-profit, industry-funded association.  RCC represents more than 45,000 store fronts of all retail formats across Canada, including department, grocery, independent merchants, regional and national specialty chains, and online merchants.

RCC's Grocery Division was established in 2011, and represents Canada's largest grocery retailers, encompassing more than 90 per cent of all grocery sales. It is a source of information, advice and expertise on all matters affecting food retail, including food safety and recall, labelling, nutrition, health and wellness, product packaging, supply chain issues and environmental stewardship.

2012 Canadian Grand Prix New Product Awards
Winners by Category

Food

Bakery
WESTON BAKERIES LIMITED
Country Harvest™ 100% Whole Grain Bread

Beverages
KRAFT CANADA INC.
NABOB Bold

Condiments & Sauces
7000 ISLANDS FOOD CORP.
Pulo™ Philippine Cuisine

Confectionery
DARE FOODS LIMITED
RealFruit® Gummies

Dairy Products
LIBERTÉ
Liberté Froúto Greek Yogurt

Deli, Egg, Meat & Seafood
VITALA FOODS
Vita-D™ Sunshine Eggs

Dessert
SUNRISE SOYA FOODS
Sunrise® Super Squeezies™ Dessert Tubes

Frozen or Refrigerated Prepared Food & Entrees
HAPPY PLANET FOODS, INC.
Happy Planet® Fresh Soup

Fruits, vegetables & produce
GARDEN PROTEIN INTERNATIONAL
gardein

Shelf Stable Prepared Food & Entrees
BEST BRANDS LTD.
St-Hubert® Chicken Broths (900mL)

Snack
OLD DUTCH FOODS LTD.
Northern Choice Chickpea Tortilla Chips

Non-Food

Baby Care
BABY GOURMET FOODS INC
Squoosh™

General Merchandise
S. C. JOHNSON AND SON, LIMITED
OFF! Clip-on™

Health Care
GLAXOSMITHKLINE CONSUMER HEALTHCARE INC.
TUMS® freshers™ antacid

Household Products
PROCTER & GAMBLE INC.
Tide® Pods™

Paper, Plastic & Foil
S. C. JOHNSON AND SON, LIMITED
Ziploc® Brand Perfect Portions

Personal Care
PROCTER & GAMBLE INC.
Tampax Radiant Tampons

Pet Needs
DLM FOODS CANADA CORP.
Milk-Bone* Healthy Favorites*

Private Label

Bakery
METRO RICHELIEU INC.
Fresh 2 Go Toscana Focaccia

Beverages
CANADA SAFEWAY LIMITED
Edwards Coffee, 326 g

Condiments & Sauces
SOBEYS INC.
Sensations by Compliments Extra Virgin Olive Oil 3L

Confectionery, Snack & Dessert
METRO RICHELIEU INC.
Irresistibles Dark Chocolate Covered Caramels with sea salt

Dairy, Eggs, Meat & Seafood
LOBLAW BRANDS LIMITED
PC "Free From" Angus Beef Burgers

Non-Food
CANADA SAFEWAY LIMITED
Debi Lilly Savoy Candle

Prepared Food & Entrees
CANADA SAFEWAY LIMITED
Safeway Tuna, 170 g

Special Awards

All Canadian
WESTON BAKERIES LIMITED
Country Harvest™ 100% Whole Grain Bread

Consumer Acceptance
ULTIMA FOODS INC.
iögo™ Nano - Drinkable Yogurt

Canadian Grand Prix Healthy Innovation
VITALA FOODS
VITA-D^TM Sunshine Eggs

Innovation and Originality
PROCTER & GAMBLE INC.
Tide® Pods™

Innovative Packaging
PROCTER & GAMBLE INC.
Tide® Pods™

SOURCE: Retail Council of Canada

Devon Pool
Retail Council of Canada
416-467-3759
[email protected]