Vermont Business Magazine This year’s sofi Awards, at the Summer Fancy Food Show, were a success for Vermont, goats, and caramel. Fat Toad Farm, a small, family-run, goat dairy in Brookfield, Vermont, received gold for Outstanding Product Line for their Farmstead Goat’s Milk Caramel Sauces, known as cajeta, a traditional Mexican confection. Fat Toad Farm is run by husband and wife team Steve Reid and Judith Irving, and their daughter Calley Hastings. The family has spent the last eight years building ahigh-quality herd of Alpinemilking goats andperfecting the art of caramel making. Their award-winning product line of goat’s milk caramel sauces comprised of eight mouthwatering flavors (Original, Salted Bourbon, Cold Brew Coffee, Spicy Dark Chocolate, Vanilla Bean, Irish Whiskey Cream, Vermont Maple, and Cinnamon), can be found online at www.fattoadfarm.com and in specialty food stores across the United States.
The sofi Award is considered a prestigious award in the $109-billion specialty food industry. Winners were selected from over 2,770 entries across 32 award categories. “We are honored to be among so many talented specialty food producers,” says Calley Hastings, co-owner of Fat Toad Farm. “We have worked hard to be innovative and interesting but at the same time we have always stayed true to our process which has allowed us to continue to produce a high quality, delicious goat’s milk caramel sauce. We are grateful to the Specialty Food Association, our customers, our fans, and most of all our goats!”
Fat Toad Farm was in good company at this year’s awards. Three other Vermont companies took home the gold, including Vermont Creamery for Outstanding Classic Product for their Cultured Butter Sea Salt Basket; Big Picture Farm for Outstanding Confection for their Goat Milk Chai Caramels and Outstanding New Product for their Raspberry Rhubarb Goat Milk Caramels; and Wozz! Kitchen Creations for Outstanding Salsas for their Kiwi Lime Salsa Verde.
Fat Toad Farm offers farmer led tours throughout the year by reservation only and has a farm store which is open 7 days a week 10am-4pm. Visit their website www.fattoadfarm.com to learn more about their sofi Award, goat’s milk caramel sauces, farm tours, and more!
TOP PHOTO:Calley Hastings and Christine Porcaro. Courtesy photo.
TheSpecialty Food Association's2015 SOFI™ Awards recently concluded on30 June.ChatsworthGoods.com, an online specialty food and beverage store, looked a bit deeper into the numbers behind the annual "Oscar's" ofartisan specialty foodsto create this visual guide.