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Sourcing high quality, locally grown ingredients is paramount to award-winning Sunshine Coast restaurant and pizzeria, Augello’s Mooloolaba’s Owner Simon Best.http://www.stevecafeandcuisine.com/

And it’s why the restaurant has been the first to use the country’s oldest and most iconic brands, Rosella’s new traceable Australian foodservice ingredients in its quality dishes.

Rosella has partnered with Australia’s largest non-genetically modified tomato grower and processor, Kagome Australia, based in Echuca and the Murray Valley region – to launch a new traceable, foodservice range for the nation’s booming $79 billion foodservice industry.

The new Rosella range includes 1kg or more packs of tomato paste, tomato puree, pizza sauces, tomato sauce and Napoli sauce, with each having a unique ‘paddock-to-plate’ branding tag traceable to the region it was grown and made in.

Augello’s Owner Simon Best said Rosella’s ready-made Australian tomato products were vital for the business and their award-winning pizza and pasta dishes.

“I buy Australian for everything I can. We’re an Italian restaurant, but we’re not in Italy and we’re cooking with Australian ingredients. We hunt out the freshest, highest quality ingredients for our menu and its why we’re proud to use Rosella’s new range,” Mr Best said.

“We use the sauces in our pastas, pizza bases and in our red-based risotto chicken cacciatore, plus we add it to our sand crab lasagne bisque sauce—it gives it great colour and flavour.

“Going back 25 years we made everything from scratch, but with the way these products have advanced, you only need to tweak them slightly and get just as great a product—with a big saving on time and resources.

“I think it’s even better to be able to trace the product to the farm. You know exactly where a batch has come from – and we can proudly assure customers we support local produce,” Mr Best said.

Rosella’s owner, Sabrands, Chief Executive Officer Anthony Davie, said the Australian-owned company was excited for its food-service expansion – proud to be sharing its household reputation as a champion of Australian-grown produce now also to cafés, pubs, clubs, institutions, restaurants, and major quick-service restaurant brands.

“Having provided consumers with quality, locally grown produce for over a century at Rosella – it’s hugely exciting to now bring that same opportunity to commercial kitchens – and their customers,” Mr Davie said.

“Research shows nine out of 10 Aussies are more likely to buy locally made products. It’s good for our farmers and local communities – so it’s a smart move for restaurants and food brands to use Australian ingredients – commercially and ethically. Consumers want and expect this – no matter whether they eat at home or in a restaurant.

“It’s a great partnership that will continue to build a bright future for one of Australia’s oldest and favourite brands.”

Kagome Australia CEO Jason Fritsch said the company was proud to partner with a brand with a rich history in Australia.

“We aim to make sure the food industry and consumers consciously choose to buy and eat at places who support local produce,” Mr Fritsch said.

“Kagome and Rosella proudly invest in our people, technology, farming and manufacturing practices to make sure we minimise our waste, support sustainable farming and irrigation practices, and get the foodservice industry and consumers thinking and caring about where their food comes from – right down to the farm it’s grown in.”

The new wholesale range will be available nationally through foodservice distributors. They’re in addition to Rosella’s consumer range it’s built since 1895 – which includes sauces, soups and condiments, sold in retail supermarkets and grocery channels.

While the partnership will create significant benefits for both organisations and its people, they will remain separate, and there will be no impact on Sabrands Group’s and Kagome’s portfolios.