OTTAWA, ONTARIO, CANADA - The Canadian Produce Marketing Association has revealed its CPMA Virtual New Product Showcase, which is traditionally held at the CPMA Convention and Trade Show. The shift to a new virtual platform comes amidst the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, but CPMA has put an innovative foot forward to bring the most exciting products to the trade and the buy-side portfolio, responding to adversity with opportunity.

The 2020 CPMA Virtual New Product Showcase featured 56 products from 44 companies this year, with winners honored across four product categories: the Organic Product Award, Packaging Innovation Award, Best Snackable Product, and the Best New Product Award.

Drumroll, please. Here are the products that took the prize in each fresh produce category:

Best New Product Award Winner: The Little Potato Company’s Easy Sides

Easy Sides are seasoned, fully-cooked creamer potatoes that speak to the convenience we all crave and are hot and crispy in seven minutes. The items are available in four culinary-inspired flavors showcasing pairing options for a complete meal solution. Shoppers’ meal planning dilemmas can finally rest with ease.

Packaging Innovation Award Winner: Mucci Farms’ Paper Top Seal

Dressing to impress, Mucci Farms has refreshed its existing sustainable package with a new, innovative solution to reduce plastic even more. The Paper Top Seal innovation is available in multiple formats and Mucci Farms products. This pack is now 100 percent recyclable.

Best Snackable Product Award: Mastronardi® Produce’s SUNSET^® Honey Bombs^™Golden Cherry Tomatoes-on-the-Vine

Sweet-like-honey with the perfect crunch, Honey Bombs are the latest addition to the SUNSET Bombs^™ lineup of on-the-vine snacking tomatoes. Offering the same high-impact Bombs taste, Honey Bombs bring a unique, golden-hued color and fruit-like flavor. The award was previously called Freggie-Approved Product and, with its new name, it brings the new and the fresh in product ingenuity.

Organic Product Award Winner: La Huerta Imports’ Wana Bana Organic Fruit Puree

Selected from the best fruits found in Ecuador, Wana Bana exotic-flavored 100 percent Organic Fruit Purees are extracted without adding preservatives and also boast no added sugar, only the fruit. This product is packed in packets that do not require refrigeration for up to 12 months.

According to a press release, CPMA would like to thank all companies who submitted products for the 2020 CPMA Virtual New Product Showcase, as well as all the judges who participated, and the 2020 showcase sponsor, Canadian Grocer.

To check out the product submissions in full, please visit the CPMA Convention and Trade Show website. Mark your calendars for the next New Product Showcase but in-person, along with a digital component, at the 2021 CPMA Convention and Trade Show, taking place March 2-4, 2021, in Vancouver, British Columbia.

Canadian Produce Marketing Association