story published in the Santa Barbara News-Press on 1/10/19
Could a pot-infused olive oil produced in Santa Barbara
become the next gourmet food best-seller?
Foodies have their eyes on San Francisco this month, as the
City by the Bay hosts one of the world’s largest exhibitions of gourmet foods.
The Winter Fancy Food Show takes over the Mascone Center for three days, from
January 13 to 15, and is expected to draw close to 70,000 people. That’s a lot
of eyes – and a lot of taste buds – on more than 1,400 specialty food companies
attending from around the globe, including five from Santa Barbara.
“It’s a sign that a company that does what we do has really
come a long way,” says exhibitor Craig Makela, owner with wife Cindy of
California Coast Naturals. Back in the early 1980s, when they owned Santa
Barbara Olive Co., “no one would buy extra virgin olive oil. People didn’t know
how to use it. It was too pungent, too strong. It’s taken a lot of years of
consumer education.”
And olive oil’s come a long way, too. One of the nearly 20
new products California Coast Naturals will be intorudcing at next week’s show
is an extra virgin olive oil infused with CBD, a compound in cannabis purported
to have various medical benefits without the pot “high.” CBD, or cannabidiol,
is often used to treat anxiety and even epileptic seizures. A five-ounce bottle
of the Makelas’ oil, which is made from olives they grow organically on their
Santa Barbara ranch, contains 150 mg. of CBD and “does not affect the flavor of
the oil,” according to Chad Makela, the owners’ son. “You can use it just like
any other old oil – in a salad, for dipping, for finishing off a pasta sauce or
on pizza.” The product, which is marketed as a dietary supplement, has seen
some consumer testing at local farmers’ markets and has received “the highest
feedback we’ve gotten from any other product,” according to the younger Makela.
If it’s a hit at the Fancy Food Show, the CBD-infused EVOO
could hit local store shelves immediately, with a suggested retail price of
$29.99 for a five-ounce bottle.
The Makelas sold their popular brand in 2009 and, after a
seven-year non-compete clause, reentered the fancy food arena with California
Coast Naturals, which grows and produces a varied line of California-grown organic
olives and olive oils. The pair began participating in the high-profile Fancy
Food Show in 1983 when, as Craig Makela recalls, “there were only 270 booths
and about 3000 visitors.” The husband-and-wife team, which has held myriad
roles within the Specialty Food Association, which produces the show, were
inducted into its Specialty Food Hall of Fame last year.
For Mr. Makela, the widely expanded visitor base is a
continued opportunity to educate consumers, many of whom are still unaware that
olives and oils sold at U.S. stores are actually imported. “Olive products with
[domestic names on the label] – they actually come from South America or
Europe.” Attending the Fancy Food Show is, in part, a chance to “shake up” the
olive industry, he adds.
Other local companies attending next week’s show include
McConnell’s Fine Ice Cream, which introduced its new winter line of flavors just
last week; Edward & Sons Trading Co., purveyors of vegetarian foods;
Pacific Resources International, importers of Manuka honey and sea salt from
New Zealand; and Pacific Pickle Works.
For more information on California Coast Naturals, check out cacoastnaturals.com.
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