FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: John Alpers

Royal Food Service Atlanta, Georgia

678.686.2216, jalpers@royalfoodservice.com

Royal Food Service's Spring Local Food Show A Delicious Success! Atlanta, Georgia (Wednesday, May 17, 2017) - To make local produce from Georgia and surrounding states more visible and accessible to chefs, restaurateurs, and school nutrition directors in its service area, Royal Food Service held its second food show on May 17, 2017. This by-invitation event featured forty-four farms and producers who gathered on Royal's docks to highlight their best seasonal produce and other items. Hundreds attended including locally renowned chefs—some of the best of Atlanta and surrounding areas! A visit from Georgia's agriculture leader, Commissioner Gary Black, led to a tour of the many local products and meeting the growers. Over 50 school nutrition directors and their teams arrived to meet the farmers and consider local products for their nutrition programs. We were pleased to host these great local farms and producers at the show: Allison's Honey, Back to the Basics 101, Baker Farms, Calhoun Produce, Cherokee Satsumas, Chicago Pickles, Chinese Southern Belle, City Greens, Dairy Direct, Doux South Pickles, Flavor 1st, Florida Georgia Citrus, FreshLink, Genuine Georgia, Georgia Peas & Produce, Hillside Farms, Jaemor Farms, Kyvan Sauces, L&M Farms, L&R/Lathem Family Farms, L.G. Herndon Farms, Lauri Jo's, Lipman Produce, Natalie's Orchid Island, Nix Fruit Co., Oliver Oils, Paramount, Pearson Farm, Pero Family Farms, Qihe Mushrooms, R.L. Schreiber, Southern Press & Packing, Southern Straws, Southern Valley Fruit & Vegetable, StoneCreek Hydroponics, Sunny Creek Farm, Swain Foods, Sweet Grass Dairy, Udderly Cool Cheese, Vonnie's Greens, and West Coast Products. Royal Food Service's sales reps—many of which are also trained chefs—donned aprons to dish up five tasty meals consisting of all local produce and other ingredients. Imagine Hickory Smoked Pork Sliders made with Carolina Barbecue Sauce and Doux South's Angry Cukes. Or a delicious AtlantaFresh Greek Yogurt Parfait with Jaemor Farm's delicious strawberries, Allison's honey, and Nick's granola. Greener Fields Together accompanied Royal Food Service providing information and answering questions about the value of sustainable agriculture on the distribution side and the hospitality side of the industry. Learn more at www.MakeYourMealsMatter.com. Royal's fresh-cut processing facility, FreshSense Foods, Inc. was also on hand to answer questions and lead tours of their processing facility. Royal Food Service is grateful for the many who attended, including our local farmers and producers who came from a distance, and to the chefs and other attendees. If you would like to learn more about the

farmers and their products, please call Royal Food Service at 404.366.4299, or you can email them at Marketing@RoyalFoodservice.com. You can also find us on these social networks: Facebook: www.facebook.com/royalfoodservice Twitter: www.twitter.com/royalfoodsvc Instagram: www.instagram.com/royalfoodservicega Food show photo gallery: http://pix.sfly.com/4-FCJANG

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About Royal Food Service: Royal Food Service, now in its 23rd year of business, carries a complete line of perishable products including fresh fruits and vegetables, certified organic, fresh dairy, shelled and liquid eggs, fresh juices, dried fruits and nuts, Kosher pickles, IQF fruits, purées from the Napa Valley, herbs, fresh olives, value-added fruit and vegetables, gourmet foods, a full line of specialty and seasonal produce and more. As a member of PRO*ACT, Royal can provide unparalleled quality and selection and this is supported by a quality control staff that guarantees your product from the "field to the plate." For further information, visit www.RoyalFoodService.com. About Nutri-Line Foods (FreshSense Foods, Inc.): This fresh cut processing facility began in 2013 and has expanded from 15,000 sq. ft. facility to over 30,000 sq. ft. in less than four years. FreshSense offers a better choice for safe, quality processed foods due to the layout of its facilities, state-of-the-art equipment, highly trained staff and food safety measures. They are currently certified for HACCP, CCOF organically-grown produce processing, and Kosher certified. Learn more about FreshSense at www.FreshSenseFoods.com. About Greener Fields Together & Make Your Meals Matter Greener Fields Together is a sustainability program for the entire produce value chain. It was created and is administered by PRO*ACT and will be run by PRO*ACT and its national network of independently-owned local purveyors. As a formalized, stand-alone program, Greener Fields Together engages and involves farmers, distributors, foodservice operators and retail locations in efforts to work toward safer produce from seed to fork. Learn more at www.GreenerFieldsTogether.org. About the Georgia Department of Agriculture (Georgia Grown): The Georgia Department of Agriculture (GDA) is the voice of the state’s agriculture community. The department's mission is to provide excellence in services and regulatory functions, to protect and promote agriculture and consumer interests, and to ensure an abundance of safe food and fiber for Georgia, America, and the world by using state-of-the-art technology and a professional workforce. For further information, visit www.agr.georgia.gov.

Photos available in higher resolution. Please contact Reed Crouch, 404.500.4063 or rcrouch@royalfoodservice.com, or download them from our photo gallery at http://pix.sfly.com/4-FCJANG

Overhead view of the 2017 Spring Local Food Show hosted by Royal Food Service, May 17, 2017.

Georgia Agriculture Commissioner, Gary Black, center, poses with (L to R) Adam Fleming (General Manager, Royal Food Service), Katie Whitehurst (School Director, Royal Food Service), Kevin Whitehurst (Owner, Nutri-Line Foods/FreshSense Foods), and John Alpers (V.P. of Sales & Marketing, Royal Food Service).

Ashley Lin (Sustainability Coordinator, PRO*ACT) explains the benefits of Greener Fields Together—a sustainable agriculture program that benefits hospitality institutions—to Olivia Rader (Woodsmoke Provisions).

CHEFS

Adam Rice (Executive Chef, Guckenheimer@Google), center, poses with Autumn Bernich (Client Services Manager, Royal Food Service) and Austin Hubbard (Account Manager, Royal Food Service).

Cameron Thompson (Culinary Director, Farm Burger-Decatur), center, poses with Richard Greet (Sales Manager, Royal Food Service) and John Alpers (V.P. of Sales & Marketing, Royal Food Service).

Chris Williams (Executive Chef, Compass Group), center, poses with Austin Hubbard (Account Manager, Royal Food Service) and Autumn Bernich (Client Services Manager, Royal Food Service).

Ryan Whitten (Executive Chef, Turner Broadcast Restaurant Association) poses with Richard Greet (Sales Manager, Royal Food Service).

Cristy Nolton (Executive Chef, Yeah! Burger) shakes hands with John Alpers (V.P. of Sales & Marketing, Royal Food Service).

Chefs Natalie Garzon and Jane Escalera with The Epstein School at the booth of Southern Valley Fruits & Vegetables based in Lake Norman, Georgia.

VENDORS

Darren Dudman (Buyer, Royal Food Service) poses with Brandon and Teri Allison (Allison's Honey - Cleveland, Georgia).

Mark Hungerland and Liz Brennan with Doux South Pickles based in Decatur, Georgia stands behind their great southern style pickle products at the 2017 Spring Local Food Show hosted by Royal Food Service.

Ginger Butts with Back to the Basics 101 based in Cochran, Georgia, displays soft-milled wheat flour products at the 2017 Spring Local Food Show hosted by Royal Food Service.

Anna Ligon (Sales & Marketing), Nate Branch (Sales & Purchasing), and Katie Murray (Public Relations) with Southern Valley Fruit & Vegetable based in Lake Norman, Georgia.

Drew Echols (Farm Manager) and Caroline Lewallen (Agritourism & Marketing Coodinator) of Jaemor Farms in Alto, Georgia present their delicious strawberries, peaches, jams and breads at the 2017 Spring Local Food Show hosted by Royal Food Service.

B.J. McCormick of Pero Family Farms (center) poses with Bartow County School District's nutrition directors, Christy Williamson (left) and Kalin Bryan (right).

Mack and Alicia Glass with Cherokee Satsumas based in Marianna, Florida.

Karen and Jeff Green with Udderly Cool Dairy based in Roopville, Georgia.