Around the Industry - AU pizza news

Dough Rises for Pizza Capers drivers Pizza Capers has raised the wages of its casual delivery drivers by 20 percent after the company realised the high price of petrol was affecting recruitment. “The increase in fuel prices has really affected our ability to recruit delivery drivers so we have raised the rates of our casual delivery drivers from $5 to $6.50 in addition to our usual $10 shift allowance,” Pizza Capers Human Resources Manager Kathy Patterson said. Ms Patterson said Pizza hourly rates for in-store drivers start at $17.10 per hour (introductory rate) plus an extra $2 per delivery. “We believe we offer the highest rates in the pizza industry and hope the great payment terms plus the natural perks of the job attract new drivers as we gear up for the busy Christmas period.We want to have at least three drivers per store so there are many vacancies we want to fill. Our drivers also get a 40 percent discount on Pizza Capers meals and casual drivers are paid a minimum of five deliveries per shift.”

Crust Gourmet Pizza Wins Recognition as Healthy Alternative From an article by Daniel Palmer featured on web site by PMQ editorial partner Australian Food News (www.ausfoodnews.com.au/). For the complete article, go to www.ausfoodnews.com.au/ and search “Crust”. Crust Gourmet Pizza Bars has confirmed their reputation as a retailer to watch following the NRA American Express Rewards for Excellence. The awards, organized by the National Retail Association (NRA), were held for the 14th time, with Crust presented with a specially created encouragement award in the Best Food Retailer category after the judges found it very hard to split Crust and SumoSalad. The competition for Best Food Retailer incorporated a strong list of up and coming franchises, with Boost Juice Bars, Deli Fresco, Dreamy Donuts, Healthy Habits, Pizza Capers and Ten 10 Eats joining Crust and SumoSalad as finalists. It is no surprise to see many of the finalists operating franchises that promote healthier alternatives to traditional fast food, as it is representative of a growing trend in the food industry. Such has been the success of healthy take away food creations that six of the fastest growing franchises in Australia are food retailers that have taken a healthy approach. Crust Gourmet Pizza Bars epitomise the trend with the resounding success of their pizza outlets - the burgeoning franchise has grown from eight to 18 stores in the past twelve months alone and has plans to expand to 50 by the end of 2009. Crust is also a finalist in the Food Challenge Award’s Health & Wellbeing Category, while founder Costa Anastasiadis is a Victorian finalist for this year’s Ernst & Young ‘Young Entrepreneur of the Year’ Award. Crust was the first company from the pizza industry to gain the Heart Foundation’s ‘tick of approval’ and, according to Mr Anastasiadis, the phenomenal success of their Healthier Choice Pizza range indicates the desire for customers to have healthier options.

“We launched the Tick approved pizzas because Australians eat 190 million take-away pizzas each year, but there were no healthier options available within the take-away pizza industry,” he said. “The success of this range has propelled Crust on the path to success and this encouragement award recognises our future potential.We are proud that we have been able to show the pizza industry that it is possible to offer a healthier product.” With such a growth in consumer demand for healthy alternatives, those who have adapted to changing preferences have proven very successful, and many established fast-food restaurants have sought to update their menus to ensure they don’t get left behind by the new competition.

New Pasta to Suit Aussie tastes From an article by James Ferre featured on web site by PMQ editorial partner Australian Food News (www.ausfoodnews.com.au/). For the complete article, go to www.ausfoodnews.com.au/ and search “Crust”. A new, brighter, deep-yellow pasta that meets Aussie tastes and cooking style will be the culinary end product of an improved durum wheat variety bred by the NSW Department of Primary Industries (DPI) to be released to growers next year, the NSW Minister for Primary Industries, Ian Macdonald, has advised.”The new variety has been given the name Caparoi, an appropriate name derived from the Italian word capitano which means ‘leader’,” Minister Macdonald said.“I expect Caparoi to live up to its name and become a leading variety especially sought after by pasta makers as well as other users of durum wheats. Farmers will benefit from its improved agronomic performance - and consumers will love it as spaghetti or other forms of pasta.” Mr Macdonald said pasta quality testing carried out on Caparoi by NSW DPI chemist Dr Mike Sissons at Tamworth had revealed the new variety’s key attribute was its excellent yellow pigment content which translates into a bright, clean yellow semolina and pasta product.