Blount Fine Foods Introduces SQF Certified Gluten Free Soups & Chowders for Restaurants and Food Service

Boston, Mass. (March 1, 2010) — Blount Fine Foods, a leading manufacturer of hand-crafted artisan soups and seafood products, today announcesd from the floor of the International Boston Seafood Show that through proper testing and validation, 15 of its soup and chowder varieties have been certified as gluten-free according to the FDA’s Good Manufacturing Practices (GMPs) along with product testing and validation.
As a result, Blount Fine Foods is marketing these products as containing less than 5ppm (parts per million) of gluten which is below the FDA’s current proposal of 20 ppm. These products do not contain any source of gluten such as, wheat, rye, oats or barley. It has been reported that one-fifth of Americans purchase gluten-free food products.
Restaurants always want to offer choice to their customers, and families that live with food allergies also want assurances.” said William Bigelow, Blount’s director of research and development. By offering 15 varieties of soups that we certify as gluten-free, Blount is delivering both variety and assurance.”
This step of certifying a line of soups as gluten-free certainly separates Blount from our competition,” added Bob Sewall, Blount’s vice president of sales and marketing.
The varieties, which are ready to ship immediately, are:

Chicken Tortilla Soup
Chicken & Wild Rice Soup
Beef Chili with Beans
Manhattan Clam Chowder
Organic Tomato Bisque
Spiced Pumpkin Bisque
Maryland Crab Soup
Portuguese Kale Soup
Stuffed Pepper Soup
3 Bean Chili
Fire-Roasted Vegetable Soup
Tuscan Bean & Sausage Soup
Hunter Stew
Sausage & Lentil Soup
Vegetarian Split Pea Soup

About Blount Fine Foods

Blount Fine Foods is a family owned company that has been processing food since 1946. It is the largest manufacturer of lobster bisque in America and produces more than 350 proprietary soup recipes, including 75 varieties of clam chowder alone. Its product lines include fresh and frozen gourmet soups for food-service and retail as well as custom clam meat products and breaded seafood. Blount's gourmet soups and specialty foods are made with the finest and freshest ingredients, handcrafted by a dedicated team through unparalleled customer collaboration.

Blount operates production facilities at its Fall River, Massachusetts headquarters and in Warren, Rhode Island. Customers include national restaurant chains that have their custom soups made for them in accordance with their secret recipes. Similarly, the deli departments of many large and small supermarket chains offer Blount-created hot-to-go soup selections as well as fresh store-brand pre-packed soup cups.

Blount also carries a full line of fresh and frozen soups sold to Restaurants, Club Stores and Retailers nationwide under the Legal Sea Foods and Panera Bread brands. Blount specialty clam products are used by other famous soup makers, restaurants and retailers alike.

The hallmark of Blount's success is a great team, known as Team Blount. This team works hard to assure great customer service and impeccable quality. Blount has been the partner of choice for some of America's best-known foodservice distributors, restaurateurs, retailers, club stores and other food processors.

The company is managed by an innovative and collaborative management team and supported by well trained and empowered production team that generates over 60 million servings of hand-crafted gourmet soups each year.

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EDITORS NOTE: Photography of groundbreaking ceremony, architects' rendering, packaging and plated product as well as product samples available upon request.