NICRA March 2021 Bulletin

March 2021

THE BULLETIN THE

OFFICIAL

PUBLICATION

OF

THE

NATIONAL

ICE

CREAM

RETAILERS

ASSOCIATION

Combating Listeria What is it, and how to reduce the risk of contamination in your facility

Social Media Competitor Analysis 9 steps you should take!

Protecting Your Operation More than meets the eye!

CONECON

t We s

nicramembersonly

nicraofficial

nicra_org

A MESSAGE FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

This past year has taught us that some of the changes enacted by businesses and individuals to adapt to COVID restrictions and mandates actually benefit many in a post COVID setting. Companies realize that employees CAN work from home and get a substantial amount of work done. Meetings can be held virtually and still have a great effect on outcomes and efficiency. People do want food and desserts delivered to their homes and offices.

As an association, we have also adapted to these business conditions and have found surprising benefits and results. Our Executive Committee meetings were always remote calls, however we have now conducted 2 Board meetings via Zoom which have proven to be very effective and efficient. This experience has extended to our November Board meeting which usually coincides with our National Convention. This November, the Board will meet remotely a week before the convention to conduct the business of the association so as to give board members time to mingle with attendees and shake some hands (or bump some elbows) with members rather than be locked up in meetings for the 1st day.

Similarly, the process of hosting a “virtual trade show” seemed preposterous a couple of years ago. And yet, last year we held our first ever National Convention and Trade Show virtually with amazing results.

This month, we are hosting another virtual trade event – Conecon West.

This event is occurring on Wednesday the 24th of March and is FREE for NICRA members. The event features a virtual trade show floor, and speakers and workshops from industry leaders based on the west coast. The event will be of value for everyone to attend, however the trade show will feature products and services that are available to the western region of the United States. Our goal is to have one of these events for each of the regions of the country to connect suppliers, retailers and wholesalers in particular regions of the US. We would love to see you there – register at www.coneconwest.com. And also save the dates for our Orlando National Convention on the 7th 8th and 9th of November this year. If you look at those dates on a calendar, you might be confused; this will be a Sunday Monday Tuesday convention.

We hope to see you at both of these events and look forward to bumping elbows with you all again soon.

Steve Christensen

Executive Director NICRA

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If you have employees or team members on the Members Only Facebook Page please make sure they are listed as a sub account on your membership record.

As we process names and additions to the page we look for matching membership records. If there are no matching membership records we cannot grant employees or team members access.

Click over here to see how its done:

Going beyond what you thought you needed in a point-ofsale system.

Prolific’s easy-to-use system lets you modify every menu to perfectly fit your business type.

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Welcome to The National Ice Cream Retailers Association Mary Claire White Sugar Ghost Memphis, Tennessee

Kelly Seidl Kelly's Homemade Ice Cream Orlando, Florida

Doug Andrew Auke Bay Ice Cream Company Juneau, Alaska

Kristina Stanley 360Mainestreet Southwest harbor, Maine

Megan Winters Sweet Dream Ice Cream Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Shaun Halladay John David Harmon Castle Creamery Life Raft Treats La Grande, Oregon Charleston, South Carolina

Derek Smiley Smiley's Ice Cream Mount Crawford, Virginia Amelia Raley Sweet Ritual Austin, Texas

Christy Hatcher Lil e's Ice Cream Plain City, Ohio Tracy Homenik Bellas creamery Grafton, Ohio Terri Thornton

Chris Wynn Wynn's Ice Cream Co. San Marcos, California

Mike Beach Papa Curl Ice cream

Luke Becker Four Boys Ice Cream Manalapan, New Jersey

Melissa Horst Millie's Homemade Homestead, Pennsylvania

Colleen Strohmaier Home Sweet Cone Ice Cream Waukee, Iowa Maraline Olson Screamin' Mimi's Sebastopol, California Michael Spotts Remember When Ice Cream, Inc. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Miriam K Mr. Aina San Francisco, California Mary Blanchard Blanchard’s Creamery Edgecomb, Maine Rebecca May MayDay Enterprises, LLC

FOOD SAFETY SUPPORT HOT-LINE FOR

SMALL/ARTISAN DAIRY PROCESSORS Not sure where to start? Our network of food safety experts from Universities across the US are here to help you take the next step by providing free one-on-one plan consultation and review.

315-787-2600

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Dairyfoodsafetycoach@cornell.edu

What is Listeria and how can you reduce the risk of contamination in your facility?

Microorganisms exist in the world around us, outside in nature, on surfaces in our homes, and even on our skin and within our bodies. While many of these microorganisms are safe or even beneficial to humans, some are harmful and can cause illness or even death, these are called pathogens. One pathogen in particular that dairy processors should be aware of is Listeria monocytogenes due to its ability to thrive in wet environments, grow in high-fat dairy products, and survive freezing temperatures.

Listeria can enter processing facilities on the shoes or clothing of an employee, on ingredients or packaging materials, or even on small pests. Once the pathogen is in the facility it can get onto food-contact surfaces through a variety of scenarios, such as cleaning the floor drain with a high-powered hose or employee crosscontamination. Therefore, dairy facilities with a farm on-site need to be extra careful not to bring any contaminants from the farm into the processing facility.

Processors should also be aware of where their ingredients come from and how they are processed, especially if the ingredients are going directly into the finished ice cream. Ingredients going into “raw” ice cream base are less risky

because they will be pasteurized along with the ice cream base. Ingredients that are going into the ice cream post-pasteurization need to come with a Certificate of Analysis (COA) indicating that the ingredient is free of pathogens or be treated with heat or drying prior to inclusion in the ice cream.

Your first line of defense against the growth of Listeria in your facility is sanitation and good practices. Make sure you have written programs (GMPs, PRPs, SSOPs,...) in place that your employees are properly trained on and follow. Below are additional actions you can take to protect your facility against Listeria.

1. Have the facility “dry out.” Listeria likes a wet environment and will die off in dry environments. Therefore, if you adjust your production schedule to have “dry days,” maybe work on maintenance or clerical work, between production days there is an opportunity for the pathogen to die off between runs. On maintenance days, be sure to check for any leaks or cracks in the building because these can allow contaminated water or pests to enter your facility.

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2. Implement doorway sanitation. This can include placing a sanitizing shoebath mat at all entrances to the processing facility, having employees change footwear from street shoes to designated work boots, or having employees use shoe coverings. If using a sanitizer shoebath, make sure to check the concentration of the sanitizer and change out the sanitizing solution at least daily.

3. Identify potential harborage sites and be sure to regularly clean and sanitize these locations. Harborage sites include small crevices and hard-to-reach areas that may be difficult to clean, areas where it is frequently wet such as floor drains, and high traffic areas. Make sure to follow the directions on the sanitizer (do not dilute) and check the concentration of your sanitizing solution to assure that it is in the proper range to be effective. The effectiveness of cleaning and sanitation can be verified through environmental monitoring, including ATP, indicator organisms, and/or Listeria species swabbing. This is a complex area, if you are just starting you may want to consult a professional or learn more in the online ice cream class (https://www.idfa.org/trainingopportunities) or a focused EM online class (https://foodsafety.ncsu.edu/environmentalmonitoring-for-food-safety/).

4. Code tools and cleaning equipment to prevent cross-contamination. Tools and cleaning equipment can be coded to distinguish between those that are used for maintenance, cleaning, on food-contact surfaces, on non-food contact surfaces, on the “raw” side of the plant, and the postprocessing (after pasteurization) side of the plant. An effective way to code tools and equipment is to color-code and/or have separate locations with distinct signage to

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identify what the tool/equipment should be used for.

5. Add signage to remind employees to wash their hands and prevent crosscontamination. Signage can be an effective tool to prevent crosscontamination. You can use signage to remind employees to wash their hands before starting work, after changing gloves or job tasks, and whenever they are dirty.

Signage can also be used to indicate the flow of traffic and remind employees not to bring tools/equipment into areas where it is not designated to be.

6.Reach out to local food safety experts for help when needed. There are a lot of resources available for training and support of your small or medium-sized dairy plant such as University Extension Programs and Trade Associations. Please visit Safe Ice Cream Hub (www.safeicecream.org) to locate links for resources near you.

Stephanie Cotter, Ph.D. North Carolina State Universityy.

? w o n K u o y d i D Take Advantage of your NICRA Membership Benefits

We have received many calls and emails regarding current membership benefits.

Members Only Section of the NICRA Website.

Your access to the members-only section of the website includes the following: Backdated copies of the Monthly NICRA Bulletin A full member directory with listings of other ice cream selling members and suppliers to the industry Our Ideas Kit with manuals and white papers on topics such as business planning, operational procedures and a whole slew of other topics Video-Based Training NICRA has contracted the Scoop School Online Training program for all current members and their managers and employees.

This online video-based training, worth over $600 annually is accessible through the members-only section of the site and has video modules covering topics such as: Opening an ice cream or frozen dessert business Frozen dessert marketing and promotion Small business finance for frozen dessert stores Employee hiring training and motivation techniques And much more Click HERE to access the video training.

The Members Only NICRA Closed Facebook Group This is one of the great benefits of NICRA membership, There are over 300 members conversing over this group which is a great value to new and seasoned ice cream business owners.

Members can add managers/co owners using their allotted sub accounts on our NICRA.org website.

Click HERE to access the Facebook Forum.

Annual Yearbook, Calendar and Decal Each year we send out a yearbook with a listing of active retail and supplier members which is a great resource to your business.

This information is also available on Members Only section of the Web Site.

Discounted Services NICRA is constantly approaching regional and national service providers for discounts on good and services to help you open and grow your business.

Currently, we have discounts available for: Business Liability Insurance Constant Contact Email marketing Avis car rental Fed Ex Shipping Click HERE to access these discounts.

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The Annual NICRA Trade Show and Convention Each year in November, our members and suppliers gather at a rotating location across the country to enjoy each other’s company, network and meet industry suppliers and exhibitors. At this event, we schedule workshops and seminars with industry leaders, Ice Cream competitions and awards.

You need to be a member of the organization to attend these events.

Click HERE to see current information on this years Convention.

Bryce Thomson Scholarship Your employees are now eligible to apply for the Bryce Thomson Scholarship. Each year

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at the NICRA Tradeshow and Convention the association gives away $20,000 in employee scholarships to students in need.

Details, updates and deadlines for the program can be found HERE. Ice Cream Competition and Clinic NICRA subsidizes entry for members who manufacture ice cream to have their Vanilla, Chocolate, and Strawberry products tested in accordance with FDA food safety standards and then scored for quality by a national collegiate accredited team.

Likewise, the Best New Flavor for dairy & nondairy is also selected at the convention.

Details, updates, and deadlines for the program can be found HERE.

PROTECTING YOUR OPERATION---MORE THAN MEETS THE EYE. Most business owners in the Frozen Desert arena learn the weaknesses of their operation over time from “real world experiences”. While most owners are busy focusing on the new flavors they want to serve or new ideas they want to initiate in their stores----there is a small, secret group of “parts” hiding around your store that have other ideas in mind.

Most operators with any time of experience have already learned that every piece of equipment in your operation is going to break down, fail to operate at desired levels or cause damage at some point. In many cases these failures will shut your operation down—partially or fully. This shut down can last a few hours or days. For other owners they will avoid this problem because they planned and took advantage of advanced systems available today that can monitor their systems and provide early warning of any potential problems.

Did you know that over 14,000 Americans face a water damage emergency every day? The costs of water damage in homes exceeds $13B of loss per year. These numbers do not include the costs of losses in business----where the abundance of more equipment, more water lines and more opportunity for failure exists---and we have not even

begun to discuss the costs of refrigerator/freezer losses due to failure or downtime.

The problems experienced operators include:

by

many

*Freezer / Refrigerator failure, causing damage or loss to product—which can be caused by any number of components failing—even on new equipment. *Doors being left open on Freezers / Refrigerators, which also lead to product damage or loss. *Circuit Breakers “tripping” which turn off equipment. *Water Damage, from leaking faucets, water fixture leaks, burst water lines feeding equipment, leaking solenoids, back flow from drains. *Break-in’s or Unauthorized return of staff after hours. *Storage room theft.

And list goes on.

Today advanced systems are available that can provide protection & monitoring 24/7.

These systems can monitor all your cooling systems, water lines, temperatures, and a full list of other equipment & situations. By providing online Web Portals and Mobile Phone Apps---you will be in constant contact with your operation. These systems will monitor the condition or

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temperature of your operation & equipment.

If they fail or rise in temperature to chosen “trip” points—you will receive an immediate notification via Text Message, Email, and a Phone Call.

This advance notice can make the difference between catching a problem early---and remaining open. Or being too late to notice— and face the total loss of stored food products—including all your creams and other food products. The time & cost to replace these losses can be excessive and insurance coverage for such loss is limited in most cases---if you have coverage at all.

Most importantly---advanced systems today ensure that your system is working ALL the time! You will be notified if any sensor fails to check in or give you many weeks advance notice of low battery conditions---although many of the sensor’s batteries can last up to 10 years!

Its wise for owners to take a serious look at their exposure. You will be shocked at how many “small” problems can grow into a major issues within minutes.

Your time is valuable, and peace of mind is invaluable. The convenience of knowing the condition of any piece of equipment by simply looking at your mobile phone application---is a convenience that should not be overlooked.

Plus—some systems provide full & complete records of all the temperatures & conditions of your equipment. This is very handy when documentation is needed for Health Safety Inspectors. The proof of your food safety is as handy as opening your online portal!

Dan Blessing is the owner of ABW Innovations. A company that designs ideas &

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equipment for the Food Service Industry. He is also President of Island Cream Co., an award-winning Ice Cream Store in Lahaina, HI.

Dan Blessing ABW Innovations

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How to Conduct a Social Media Competitor Analysis in 9 Steps Target Market A vital step in creating a social media strategy for your business is conducting a thorough analysis of your competitors to see how your brand stacks up.

When done correctly, a social media competitor analysis will offer key insights into your competitors’ products and services, content strategy, advertising goals, and overall approach to social media.

Though a social media analysis of the competition can give you valuable insights into what works in your industry, some areas you might need to improve and how to shape your social strategy moving forward, you should be careful about getting too caught up in comparing yourself to others.

So, how exactly do you conduct a social media competitor analysis? We break it down into 9 easy to follow steps below: 1. Identify Your Competitors Do you know who your top 3 competitors are?

Before you can conduct a social media audit, it’s important to identify brands that align with your business i.e. your competitors.

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Don’t just look at your direct competitors, but also indirect competitors, replacement

competitors and even others in different markets or related industries that aren’t your competitors at all.

Direct competitors are competitors that are the most obvious. They offer products and services that are more or less the same as yours.

Indirect competitors are businesses that sell the same products as you but also specialize in other areas.

Replacement competitors don’t have to offer the exact same products or services as you do, but they do compete for the same customer base.

2. Define Your Goals and KPIs Once you’ve identified your competitors, it’s time to define your goals. Conducting a social media audit without a clear purpose in mind won’t benefit your business.

Defining your goals and how you’ll measure them will not only help hold you accountable but serve as a guide for your strategy and budget.

Do you want to…

Increase brand awareness?

Generate leads and sales?

Increase community engagement?

Grow your brand’s audience?

Increase website traffic?

3. Choose the Platforms You’ll Audit Now it’s time to start your audit. Search your competitor’s profiles to find out on which platforms they’re the most active.

Start with Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, but don’t forget other popular platforms like YouTube, Linkedin and even TikTok. Take note of where they are investing their time and resources and areas of opportunity they may be missing.

4. Monitor Performance Over Time Once you’ve identified where your competitors are most active on social media, it’s time to dig a little deeper to understand how they engage and grow their audiences.

Here are some metrics you’ll want to track: Profile Metrics: How many followers do they have?

On average, how many posts do they publish each week?

Where are they more active?

How many likes, shares, or comments does each post receive?

Content Metrics What types of content do they share?

Are they running any ads or boosting posts?

Do they use live video?

What is their image to video post ratio?

Brand Metrics What information is included in their profiles?

What tone of voice do they use on their profile updates?

How well do their followers interact with these posts?

What branding methods do they apply?

Use the information you gather to gain insight into a competitor’s digital strategy and spark content inspiration.

5. Evaluate Their Content Strategy A well-defined content strategy is one of the most important aspects of social media management.

People are not interested in content that doesn’t serve a purpose or answer one of their needs.

Evaluate your competitor’s content strategy to identify areas they’re outperforming you and content ideas you may have overlooked.

What types of content do they post? Is it text, photos, videos or links? How much of their content is original, promotional, curated, or educational?

Pay attention to: Messages Format Caption Hashtags Campaigns

Pay close attention to how often they post on social media. Along with best practices for each platform, this will help you make decisions about your own content calendar.

6. Take a Look at Engagement It’s easy to get caught up in the number of followers your competitors have, especially if they have significantly more than you. But remember, engagement rates are key to growth and social media success.

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Follow these aspects to find out how your competitors perform: Number of posts they publish Number of replies Number of likes Response time How they respond to clients Keep an eye on the following metrics: Profile engagement and engagement rate Organic post engagement Boosted post engagement Engagement over time (day to day, month to month) Post types ranked by engagement Hashtag engagement Likes, comments, share 7. Understand Engagement Choose 10 random posts (or a month’s worth of data) to analyze if you want to dig a little deeper into understanding how people engage with their content.

Note how many likes, comments, shares/retweets each post gets to obtain an average for each engagement.

8. Determine When People Are Most Active Social media is a great way to amplify your brand awareness. But, it’s not enough to just post content whenever you feel like it.

The content you post should be wellresearched and add value to your customers. It should also be timely.

Identify when most users are active on each social network so you know the best time to connect with them. Doing so will

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help increase your chances of reaching highly targeted consumers in large

9. Check Out Their Ad Strategy Social media success requires striking the right balance between organic and paid content. When conducting a social media audit, don’t forget to perform a competitive analysis for paid media.

You probably won’t be able to find the actual amount your competitors spend on paid social media ad campaigns, but you can find out if they are spending money. This will give you a clear idea of what areas of focus they are investing in.

Check out the page transparency section on their Facebook profile to see any ads they are currently running.

On Twitter, if they appear under the “Who to Follow” column on the left side of your feed, you know they’re paying to get more Twitter followers.

Lastly, you can browse through their social pages to look for any sponsored ads or posts on each platform individually.

Take note of engagement, the number of sponsored posts and the ratio of organic versus paid posts to gain insight into their social media advertising strategy.

TargetMarket

DIREC 2022 DIREC DIREC DIREC DIREC DIREC y r o t c e D ir

Please verify the directory information on your NICRA membership page.

This year's yearbook will include your listed store address.

Conecon 2021 Save the Date Date: November 7th, 8th and 9th Location: The Rosen Plaza in Orlando, Florida Conecon 2021 is scheduled for the 7th, 8th and 9th of November this year!

We will be providing updates and timelines on Convention and Trade show activities over the next few weeks.

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CONECON

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JOIN US WEDNESDAY, MARCH 24TH

ICE CREAM & FROZEN DESSERT VIRTUAL TRADE EVENT

FEATURING WORKSHOPS, KEYNOTES, & VIRTUAL TRADE SHOW FLOOR

FREE FOR NICRA MEMBERS $25 FOR NON MEMBERS Kim Malek Salt & Straw

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JP Lopez & Adrienne Borlongan Wanderlust Creamery

REGISTER NOW CONECONWEST.COM

MARKETING CALENDAR MARCH 2021 Daily Holidays National Peanut Lovers Day: 1 Dr. Seuss Day: 2 Princess Day: 3 National Grammar Day: 4 Dress in Blue Day: 5 Employee Appreciation Day: 5 National Frozen Food Day: 6 Oreo Cookie Day: 6 National Cereal Day: 7 National Flapjacks Day: 7 National Peanut Cluster Day: 8 National Retro Video Game Day: 8 Barbie Day: 9 Mario Day: 10 Donald Duck Day: 13 Potato Chip Day: 14 Panda Day: 16 Campfire Day: 17 National Sloppy Joe Day: 18 National Chocolate Caramel Day: 19 Spring (Vernal Equinox): 20

World Poetry Day: 21 World Water Day: 22 National Chia Day: 23 National Chocolate Covered Raisins Day: 24 Pecan Day: 25 Purple Day: 26 Spinach Day: 26 National Mom & Pop Business Owner's Day: 29 Doctors Day: 30 National Crayon Day: 31

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MARKETING CALENDAR APRIL 2021 Daily Holidays April Fools or All Fools Day: 1 National Burrito Day: 1 (First Thursday) Good Friday: 2 National Hand Made Day: 3 Easter: 4 National Deep Dish Pizza Day: 5 Hostess Twinkie Day: 6 National Beer Day: 7 National Unicorn Day: 9 National Siblings Day: 10 National Pet Day: 11 National Licorice Day: 12 Ramadan: 12-5/11 Scrabble Day: 13 Thomas Jefferson Day: 13 National Dolphin Day: 14 National Pecan Day: 14 Nabisco Animal Cracker Day: 18 Bicycle Day: 19 Administrative Professionals Day or Secretary's Day: 21 Banana Day: 21 Kindergarten Day: 21 National Chocolate-Covered Cashews Day: 21 National Jelly Bean Day: 22

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World Penguin Day: 25 Alien Day: 26 National Pretzel Day: 26 Pretzel Day: 26 Babe Ruth Day: 27 National Superhero Day: 28 Dandelion Day: 30 National Bubble Tea Day: 30

A NOTE FOR OUR SUPPLIER MEMBERS Hey there, Supplier Member. Hopefully by now you have seen quite a few changes in the way NICRA is improving member benefits and communicating with our members.

Our main method of communication is still our monthly Bulletin published on the 10th of each month. Up until recently, the NICRA Bulletin has struggled to attract advertisers and we have been offering free ads to those supplier members who contributed an article.

THE GOOD NEWS IS.....

We have recently put extra effort into increasing the effectiveness of the Bulletin with the following functions: Full Color Front Cover President and Executive Director Messages Monthly Food Safety Articles Marketing and Event Calendars More Links to articles and online content.

This has led to high engagement through open rates and link clicks.

With this higher engagement, we are having more inquiries by Supplier Members about advertising to our members again in the Bulletin. For this purpose, we are publishing the NICRA Bulletin Advertising rates for 2020.

Please find them as follows: 1 issues 3 issues

6 issues

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issues 1/4 page

$70

$65

$60

$50

1/2 page

$90

$85

$80

$70

Full Page

$160

$150

$140

$120

DISPLAY ADVERTISING Frequency rates are based on the total number of insertions used within a twelvemonth period.

Space Reservations: 10th of month preceding publication Material Deadline: 15th of month preceding publication.

Please direct any questions to Steve Christensen, Executive Director at the below contact details.

743 Spirit 40 Park Dr, Suite 121, Chesterfield MO 63005 636 778 1822 * Toll Free: 866-303-6960 E-Mail: info@nicra.org * Web: www.nicra.org

NICRA OFFICERS 2020 President Dave Deadman, Chocolate Shoppe Ice Cream, Madison, WI Vice President Patti Otte, Sweet Firefly Gourmet Ice Cream, Richardson.

TX Treasurer Charlie Wilcox, Marianne’s Ice Cream, Santa Cruz, CA

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Secretary Kelly Larson, Sweet Temptations, Grand Haven, MI Immediate Past President George Xouris, Andia's Ice Cream, Cary, NC Executive Director Steve Christensen, Chesterfield, MO Terms Ending Annual Meeting 2021 Bob Hearn, Hearn’s Ice Cream, St Mary’s ON Canada Zach Burton, Nielsen Massey, Waukegan IL Christine D’Amico, Over the Top, Pleasant Hill IA Terms Ending Annual Meeting 2022 Charlie Bomboy, Bomboy's Homemade Ice Cream, Havre De Grace, MD Dirk White, The Alaskan Creamery, Sitka, AK Kyle Cameron, Joy Cone Company, Wirtz, PA Rick Pizzi, Pizzi Farm Ice Cream, Waltham, MA Jill Curran, Kimball Farm, Inc., Westford, MA Terms Ending Annual Meeting 2023 Valerie Henrici, Sue Kloter, Donnie Montgomery, Andy Jones, 2020 SUPPLIER OFFICERS President Ben Keser, Novelty Cone, Pennsauken Township, NJ Vice President Evan Waldt, Ice Cream Equipment Spec. Reno, NV Secretary/Treasurer Nichole Theriault, I.Rice & Company, Inc.. Philadelphia, PA Chairman Kyle Cameron, Joy Cone Co., Hermitage, PA COMMITTEES AND COMMITTEE CHAIRMAN Executive Committee David Deadman, Chocolate Shoppe Ice Cream, Madison, WI Nominating Committee George Xouris, Andia’s Homemade Ice Cream, Morrisville, NC

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Convention Committee Dave Deadman, Chocolate Shoppe Ice Cream, Madison, WI Membership Committee Patti Otte, Sweet Firefly Gourmet Ice Cream, Richardson. TX Ice Cream Clinic Committee Christine D’Amico, Over the Top, Pleasant Hill IA Scholarship Committee Sue Kloter, Kloter Ice Cream Barn, Ellington, CT NONDISCRIMINATION POLICY NICRA is committed to a policy of nondiscrimination in all of its endeavors. To that end, NICRA shall not tolerate any words or acts of discrimination, harassment or any inappropriate behavior in general against any person affiliated with NICRA, including its members and guests, with regard to race, sex, color, creed, religion, age, national origin, disability, marital status or sexual orientation.

This Bulletin is published by: National Ice Cream Retailers Association 743 Spirit 40 Park Dr., Suite 121 Chesterfield, MO 63005 George Xouris, Chairman Publications Committee Steve Christensen, Executive Director, National Ice Cream Retailers Association.

This issue of the NICRA Bulletin is now available online at http://www.nicra.org. Click on the Members Only button and enter your Username and Password. If you cannot find your Username and Password, call the NICRA office at 866-303-6960 or send an e-mail to info@nicra.org requesting the information.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Please “LIKE” us on Facebook using your personal Facebook page (not your business Facebook page) in order to receive our comments in your News Feed.