ROMEOVILLE, Ill., April 18, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Maria Reye, KeHE's Category Director for oils, recently spoke at two major industry events:

• California Olive Oil Council Convention (COOC) – Reyes gave the keynote address, "Building a Brand in a Crowded Marketplace," in Monterey, California on Saturday, April 5^th.
• The New York International Olive Oil Competition (NYIOOC) – Wednesday, April 9^th Reyes spoke in NYC on the topic of, "Going Big: Establishing a National Distribution Footprint."

"The 'foodie' mentality has hit the olive oil category," stated Maria Reyes, "and KeHE is seeing an increased interest among consumers for unique flavor profiles and high quality oils coming from different regions of the world."

"Since mainstream olive oil has become commoditized,"  Reyes continued, "the focus for KeHE is identifying for the grocery retailer the right mix of specialty products. Offering shoppers higher quality oils translates into higher margins for retailers and better, healthier products for the consumers."

"Our team of experts are passionate about helping the industry's highest quality olive oil producers from around the world succeed here in the American market," said KeHE President and CEO, Brandon Barnholt.  "Our retail partners look to us for education on what olive oil products are meeting consumers' evolving expectations," continued Barnholt.

In addition to industry events, KeHE provides its own educational programs for retailers. For example, KeHE's 2013 Holiday Show featured a "Global Extra Virgin Olive Oil Experience," featuring a tasting bar where attendees learned how to taste premium extra virgin olive oil like a pro. At this event, Tom Mueller, author of the New York Times best seller, Extra Virginity: The Sublime and Scandalous World of Olive Oil, met with retailers to share his passion for extra virgin olive oil, and educate them about how to make better selections of olive oil to offer their customers.

About KeHE
KeHE Distributors, LLC, an employee owned company based in Romeoville, IL, provides Natural & Organic, Specialty & Gourmet, International & Multicultural and Fresh products to over 35,000 retail outlets throughout North America. For more information about KeHE, visit www.kehe.com.

MEDIA CONTACTS:
Ari Goldsmith, KeHE Senior Director of Marketing, Ari.Goldsmith@kehe.com
Lisa Mabe, Hewar Social Communications
202-505-2890, Lisa@hewarcommunications.com

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SOURCE KeHE Distributors, LLC