Category Archives: Events

USA Pears Strut Their Stuff on the Catwalk

Lynsey By on

When you think fashion, the cities that probably come to mind are New York, Paris and Milan.  Add Chennai to that list.  Chennai is the fifth largest city in India, known for its culture, music and arts – and home of Chennai International Fashion Week (CIFW). You might be wondering what the connection is between pears and an international fashion show.  Read on!  It was a fun and unique opportunity to showcase the natural beauty of USA Pears. On December 14-20, celebrities, models and up-and-coming designers gathered in Chennai for a series of 35 fashion shows, including popular Indian designers Gunjan & Rahul. Inspired by the vibrant colors of USA Pears, the duo designed a collection of 35 pieces that captures the essence of our favorite fruit.  From fresh greens and yellows to warm blushes and cinnamon browns, the runway Continue reading →

100 Days ’til the XXI Olympic Winter Games!

Jenny By on

It’s tough to tell in this photo, but there’s a pear embroidered on this guy’s cap, and that’s because USA Pears is an official headgear sponsor of Olympic athlete Torin Koos.  In 100 days, he’ll be in Vancouver, B.C. to cross-country ski his heart out for the gold! Torin grew up in Leavenworth, Washington, which is located in the Wenatchee growing district that’s world famous for pears.  Click here to read an interview where Torin professes his love for skiing and pears, and here to read an article posted today on NBCOlympics.com, where Torin talks about his sport and the upcoming winter games. Check back for more updates on Torin’s quest for the gold! Facebook Twitter Google+ Pinterest LinkedIn

Celebrate Pears this Weekend – Fruit Loop Style!

Jenny By on

The Hood River Valley is world renowned for growing incredible pears, and the members of the Hood River Fruit Loop are PROUD of it!  This weekend, September 19-20, is the official Pear Celebration where you can taste more than 18 varieties of pears, sample special pear desserts, drink pear cider and wine, tour pear orchards and more.  Check out the map and list of attractions at hoodriverfruitloop.com.  Can’t make it to Hood River for the Pear Celebration this weekend? Never fear, because several of the Fruit Loop farms offer gifts by mail.  We’re talkin’ canned pears, pear butter, pear sauce, dried pears, pear wine, and gift boxes of fresh pears, of course! Facebook Twitter Google+ Pinterest LinkedIn

A Gift From Our Pear-loving Peanut Pals

Jenny By on

We went to the PMA (Produce Marketing Association) foodservice show a couple of weeks ago in beautiful Monterey, California, and boy was it grand.  Imagine a sea of colorful fruit, veggie and nut-themed booths with friendly people in them who are all giving away tasty treats featuring their produce – everything from guacamole, to fruit smoothies, salads, chocolate covered fruit – you name it, and I was one of those friendly people!   We were right in the middle of all the action with our fancy new USA Pears booth, handing out our delectable cupcakes. Ah yes, it was a produce dream-world of magic.  Among my favorite booths was the National Peanut Board’s.  They were serving up a super-delicious pear and peanut smoothie, and were kind enough to share their recipe with us.  So enjoy this refreshing and slightly exotic-tasting drink, and be sure to visit Continue reading →

Meeting the Gentlemen of Honor Society

Lynsey By on

The USA Pear family and some lucky contest winners (there’s still time for you, too – visit www.usapears.org to enter to win) got to experience the opportunity of a lifetime last week when Honor Society came to Portland to open up for the Jonas Brothers’ world tour.  Soundcheck with one of the hottest bands in the country?  Meet and greet with our favorite new group?  Both bands and an American Idol winner live in concert?  We got to enjoy all of the above. The afternoon began with a short wait in the “VIP” line outside the Rose Garden arena in Portland.  With the necessary bracelets in place, we joined a select group of screaming girls for the Jonas Brothers soundcheck “party.”  The boys sang 3 songs and sounded great – and it was really cool to experience soundcheck – how Continue reading →

PEARing up with Honor Society

Lynsey By on

USA Pears are proud to sponsor Honor Society, an up-and-coming band that is currently touring with the Jonas Brothers and will headline their own “Full Moon Crazy” tour later this summer of 2009. Get to know this band and their music – “Tastes Like PEARadise” is a great place to start, we’re positive that this one is going to go straight to the top of the charts.  If you missed the music video’s YouTube debut, you can check it out here. Honor Society arrived a day early before their Portland, Oregon show, and the fans were given an awesome opportunity to come out to a local Albertsons store to see the band perform an exclusive acoustic show, go shopping with the guys for USA Pears and hang out with Michael, Jason, Alexander and Andrew (new nickname: “Anjou”). The guys came Continue reading →

Tears for Pears: A Recap of Our Student Chef Competition

Jenny By on

Taste.  Texture.  Creativity.  Originality.  Appearance.  Oh and one more very important thing:  Prominent Use of Fresh USA Pears.  These were the criteria our three culinary student finalists were judged on last week as they traveled from their respective citites to Portland to vie for first place in the USA Pears Student Culinary Competition.  After receiving entries from around the country, we narrowed down the entrants to three student rockstars:    Dallas Hinesly from Texas Culinary Acadamy in Austin, Texas, who submitted “Sweet Potato and Pear Gnocchi with Grilled Pork and a Balsamic Pear Glaze”   Nicole Mau from South Seattle Community College in Seattle, Washington, who submitted “Red Anjou Poire Frite”     Andrea Howard from Florida Culinary Institute in West Palm Beach, Florida, who submitted “Pear Risotto & Pear Poached in Red Wine”   Here’s how it went down: In the Continue reading →

Happy Birthday, Packy!

Lynsey By on

Every year the Oregon Zoo celebrates Packy’s birthday with an “Elephantastic” celebration.  This year Packy, the oldest and largest Asian elephant in the United States, turned 47 years old.   Since he was born in 1962 at 225 pounds, he has grown to be 10 feet 6 inches tall at the shoulder and 14,000 pounds! As Oregon’s state fruit, of course we were pleased to be able to provide some delicious USA Pears to help sweeten up Packy’s birthday cake!  The whole wheat cake weighed in at 40 pounds, topped with carrots, celery, and frosting, with a USA Pear filling – and everyone knows that the best part of the cake is the filling! A huge crowd sang “Happy Birthday” to Packy as he came outside to eat his cake.  As soon as he saw it, he went right to it Continue reading →

USA Pears at the Boston Marathon!

Jenny By on

If you’re in Boston April 17-19, be sure to swing by the USA Pears booth at the John Hancock Sports & Fitness Expo.  We’ll be sampling fresh pears, handing out recipes, answering questions about pears, and more!  The Expo is open to the public and admission is free. The Hynes Convention Center is located just a quarter-mile from the Boston Marathon finish line in Copley Square.  Last year, over 80,000 people attended…we hope to see you there!  Facebook Twitter Google+ Pinterest LinkedIn