Beaverton Foods dominates at recent mustard competition with four Gold medals

Oregon’s 87-year-old specialty condiment manufacturer has done it again – taking home a grand total of eight awards; four of them Gold medals – at the 21st annual World-Wide Mustard Competition. The event involved more than 100 judges at the National Mustard Museum in Middleton, WI. The global competition has included entries from as far away as Japan, Greece and Sweden.

Barry Levenson, curator of the National Mustard Museum, noted in an email: “The rest of the world is ‘yellow with envy’ of Beaverton’s long dominance at the World-Wide Mustard Competition.”

Here is a listing of Beaverton Foods’ award winners, categories and medals: Gold, Sweet Hot: Inglehoffer Sweet Hot Mustard; Gold, Pepper Hot (Scorching Hot): Inglehoffer Ghost Pepper Mustard; Gold, Horseradish/Wasabi: Inglehoffer Hot Horseradish Mustard; Gold, Fruit: Beaver Cranberry Mustard; Silver, Classic Hot: Beaver Brand Dusseldorf Mustard; Silver, Horseradish/Wasabi: Inglehoffer Horseradish Wasabi Mustard; Bronze, Pepper Hot (Mild to Medium): Inglehoffer Sweet Hot Mustard; and Bronze, Herb/Veggie: Inglehoffer Creamy Dill.

Domonic Biggi, CEO of Beaverton Foods, said the fourth generation family owned and operated company is proud to be a long-time participant in the renowned international mustard competition.

“It’s humbling to say we have won more than 150 medals at this annual competition,” Biggi said. “We are especially pleased that our new Inglehoffer Ghost Pepper Mustard was selected for a Gold medal. Additionally, we’re grateful that culinary experts around the world like our products.”

The annual competition is open to all commercial mustard producers and agents worldwide. There are 16 flavor categories of which there are gold, silver and bronze awards given to the contestants. Since 1995, judges consisting of chefs, food writers and mustard aficionados have blind tasted the mustards in the competition.

A list of all the medal winners can be seen at the museum website: www.mustardmuseum.com. The National Mustard Museum holds the world’s largest collection of mustards and mustard memorabilia. Also, check out the museum’s product store here: http://store.mustardmuseum.com.

Beaverton Foods’ Beaver Brand and Inglehoffer are the leading shelf-stable horseradish and award-winning specialty mustards in the US* and it is the largest Safe Quality Food (SQF) certified processor of authentic wasabi products in North America. The company also offers a wide variety of best-selling gourmet sauces, garlic, spices, and other unique specialty condiments packaged under these labels: Beaver, Inglehoffer, Napa Valley, Tulelake and Pacific Farms. In addition to its own brands, the company develops, produces and co-packs a broad range of products for companies in the US and abroad.

About Beaverton Foods:
Since 1929, the privately held Beaverton Foods has thrived by following wholesome business practices set in place by Founder Rose Biggi (pronounced Bee Gee). What started in Rose’s basement, grinding and bottling homegrown horseradish roots, has now grown to a family owned, multimillion dollar corporation with more than 150 specialty condiments. These products are sold in mainstream grocery and specialty foods stores, restaurants, and gourmet shops throughout the US and in 12 foreign countries. Today, Rose’s son Gene Biggi serves as company Chairman. CEO Domonic Biggi refers to his father as the “Maestro of Mustard” and “Master Innovator.” Gene Biggi first developed his palate for developing unique specialty condiments from his mother Rose’s kitchen as a kid. He was the first in the nation to develop and bottle Chinese Hot Mustard and Honey Mustard. Domonic says his father is actively involved in all new product development. Fourth generation Jeff Biggi says of his grandfather: “He is selfmade … he created the category niches; there was no jalapeno, fruit or whole grain categories when he started developing mustards in the 1950s.”

Industry professionals share the same sentiments about Gene Biggi. National Mustard Museum Curator Barry Levenson called Gene “fearless” in the art of mustard making. “Gene Biggi never ceases to amaze me,” he noted. “He still comes up with new mustard flavors that seem to anticipate the hottest trends in taste. Gene is not only imaginative; he is also fearless. Not every flavor will take off, but he is willing to commit to adventurous flavors.”

The company has 70 employees at its 70,000-square-foot headquarters based in Hillsboro, Oregon. In addition to its HACCP program the fourth generation family owned company also has the following certifications: kosher, organic, gluten free and SQF (Safe Quality Food). For more information, call (503) 646-8138 or visit www.beavertonfoods.com. Orders can be made online or by calling (800) 223-8076.