OCTOBER 2011
CELEBRATING 131 YEARS AS CANADA’S PREMIER HORTICULTURAL PUBLICATION
VOLUME 61 NUMBER 10
A case history for value-added horticulture The Cider Keg adds sparkle to apples KAREN DAVIDSON Christmas is Thanksgiving for Cheryl Peck and her family at The Cider Keg. That’s because October to December is the biggest sales season for this fifthgeneration, 125-acre apple farm near Vittoria, Ontario. With onequarter of the apples destined for a value-added treat, the harvest tastes sweetest as sparkling cider, fruit spreads or pie in a jar. “We always made apple cider as a fall tradition,” says Peck, general manager, “but the business started to grow with the retail store in 1990.” For starters, fresh cider was picked up in local stores in Simcoe, Paris and Brantford. Fortunately, this chain of independent stores was purchased by a leading chain and The Cider Keg business continued to grow. Long before the buy-local movement, Peck and her parents, Tom and Joan Haskett, were developing The Cider Keg brand with a loyal clientele of other onfarm markets. Their apples had a ready market at the Norfolk Fruit Growers’ Association, but they also wanted to diversify from the staple commodity. Sparkling ciders offered a niche that separated The Cider Keg from other cider makers. Today, that strategy still works with their products sold in independent grocery chains, delis, cheese shops and other members of the Ontario Farm Fresh Marketing Association.
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Thanksgiving is a time for traditional foods such as pumpkin pie and apple cider. At The Cider Keg, sparkling cider is added to the menu with a distinctly Canadian twist of berries, rhubarb and sometimes saskatoons. Cheryl Peck celebrates the 21st year of her retail store near Vittoria, Ontario where a quarter of the apple crop finds its way into a jar or bottle. Photos by Denis Cahill. While the retail outlet in Vittoria is well-known on the southern shores of Lake Erie, Peck concentrates on wholesale customers coast to coast, relying on their website (www.ciderkeg.com) and more recently, Facebook and Twitter accounts. Peck uses a variety of social media resources for frequent dialogue with wholesale and retail customers on what’s new for upcoming gift basket seasons. Their processed products mean that they can be bought for Christmas inventories with no fear of expired best-before dates. The sparkling ciders – which represent a majority percentage of the business –- are particularly gift-worthy for celebratory occasions. The non-alcoholic product offers a champagne-type fizz. To reach wholesalers, Peck exhibits at several shows including the Toronto Gift Show in August and the Ontario Fruit and Vegetable Convention in February. The preserves, higher
in fruit and lower in sugar, embrace health trends. Future steps are to strengthen presence in specific Ontario markets such as Ottawa, Windsor and eventually the apple of everyone’s eye: Toronto. “We’ve looked at export markets in border states to Lake Erie,” says Peck, “trying to duplicate our success in on-farm markets. And we’ve had interest from Asian countries and the Middle East.” To support these marketing initiatives, Peck must maintain a stellar food safety program. It starts with custom-made steel processing machinery made by her father Tom Haskett and brother Mike. All the processing is on-farm, so she runs a gamut of food safety audits every year, ranging from chain stores’ thirdparty audits to the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, local health department, global GAP and workmen’s compensation. “The food safety programs
require extensive resources and time,” she says. “Our dedication to these details ensure a safe product for our own families and our customers. We’ve written our own food safety program, because if you don’t write your own, you don’t own it. A template from a consultant just doesn’t fit our operation.” Peck says that the success of The Cider Keg is being expert at their own food safety, while finding time to innovate with new products and marketing. ‘Pumpkin in a Jar’ has been the most recent addition to the family with its savoury sauce used on top of baked brie, in cheesecakes or over ice cream, waffles, toast or crepes. It’s those innovative products that propel The Cider Keg to the top of the invitation list when Canada is showcasing local foods. Her Sparkling Apple Strawberry Rhubarb Cider was served to leaders of the G20 summit last year.
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We’ve written our own food safety program, because if you don’t write your own, you don’t own it. A template from a consultant just doesn’t fit our operation. - Cheryl Peck