Hazelnut Growers of Oregon Expand with New Snack, Candy and Oil Products
Hazelnut Growers of Oregon is expanding its Oregon Orchard snack and candy lineup with convenient 4 oz. packages and seven new chocolate flavors. And for the first time, the company is introducing two new retail bottles of hazelnut oil: an 8.45 oz. (250 ml) Extra Virgin Hazelnut Oil and a 16.9 oz. (500 ml) bottle of Refined Hazelnut Oil. The different oils serve different cooking methods (e.g., baking versus frying).
The convenient new 4 oz., stand-up gusseted pouches will launch in April for the existing chocolate and seasoned hazelnut flavors (nine items), along with the debut of seven exciting new chocolate-covered hazelnuts. The new flavors will encourage and inspire pairing ideas with other products in the grocery store, such as wine, coffee, cheese, meats and fruits. The new chocolate flavors are Salted Caramel, Butterscotch, Pinot Noir, Maple Bacon, Dark Cherry, Mocha and Blackberry. All of these items are gluten free, Kosher certified and do not contain any artificial flavors or ingredients, a requirement for most natural grocery sets in specialty and conventional store chains.
Along with the new flavors, the packaging has received a new look. Dan Herndon, HGO’s Vice President of Sales and Marketing, explained, “We wanted to leverage some of the design elements of our original baking and seasoned packaging into this new candy line, while highlighting the benefits and features of our premium chocolate products. This, coupled with a desire to meet market expectations for convenience and offer an affordable price were the reasons behind this new look and size.” The new lineup will start shipping in mid April for a suggested retail price of $4.99 at Wilco Farm Stores in the Pacific Northwest, Farm Store, Oregon Orchard and on Amazon.
In addition to the new packaging and snack flavors, HGO is releasing two versions of hazelnut oil: an Extra Virgin Hazelnut Oil and a high-heat Refined Hazelnut oil.
The Extra Virgin Hazelnut Oil (250 ml) is an excellent alternative to olive oil when making salad dressing vinaigrettes, sauces, baking goods or as a substitute for clarified butter. It also imparts a “nutty” flavor and aroma. For roasting, frying and grilling, it is best to use the odorless Refined Hazelnut Oil (500 ml), which has a higher smoke point of 470 degrees.
Hazelnuts are a good source of vitamins B6 and E and are Keto-friendly. All Oregon Orchard snacks are produced with HGO members’ hazelnuts, which are steam pasteurized in small batches at the Safe Quality Food Level 3 Certified processing facility in Aurora.