In today’s private label marketplace, which is full of uncertainty, there remains a number of manufacturers that refuse to let negative external factors hamper their flare for doing business. These companies continue to strive to meet the needs of customers, while also being innovators for the entire industry.

For the seventh consecutive year, PL Buyer calls attention to these private label patriarchs who are committed to product quality and establishing partnerships with retailers. Recipients of PL Buyer’s Category Colonel Award are nominated by the retailers who work closely with them, and who consider them worthy of being called industry leaders. This year’s competition honors an unprecedented 83 Category Colonels, 58 of which have won in years past. Of these current winners, attention also must be called to the eight companies that have been selected as a Category Colonel every year since the award’s inception in 2001.

So what’s it like being a PL Buyer Category Colonel? We’ll let them tell you. As in years past, we’ve asked this year’s award winners to offer up insight (sometimes quite candidly) on today’s most pertinent topics within the private label industry. In a time when it appears everyone has something to say, it was easy to determine the theme of the discussion with the 2007 batch of Category Colonels: communication.

This year, we asked both sides of the table the same questions in an attempt to see where there is fluid communication and shared ideas, and where there is a disconnect. Topics of discussion include where product innovation stands on the priority list, the acceptable level of “face-time” taking place in business relationships and who’s responsible for developing more environmentally sustainable products.

The results of our questioning were as professional and informative as the companies and individuals whom we had the pleasure of interviewing. A big “Thank You” goes out to all the retailers who helped establish this year’s list and contributed to the survey, and congratulations to all the 2007 Category Colonels!

PRODUCT CATEGORY	WINNER
Air Fresheners	Chase Products Co.
Baby Products	PBM Products LLC
Baby Diapers	Tyco Health Care
Baked Goods	Gold Standard Baking
Bakery Mixes	Gilster Mary Lee Corp.
Bath & Body	RC International
Batteries	Energizer Holdings Inc.
Beverage Mixes	Sturm Foods
Bottled Water	Niagara Water
Breakfast Foods	Ralston Foods
Cameras/Film	Ferrania Technologies
Candy/Chocolate	Bartons Candy
Canned Soups	Morgan Foods
Canned Vegetables	Seneca Foods Corp.
Carbonated Soft Drinks	Cott Corp.
Natural Cheese	Great Lakes Cheese Co. Inc.
Shelf-Stable Cheese	Berner Foods Inc.
Cleaning Aids	Clean Ones Corp.
Coffee/Tea	Mother Parkers Tea and Coffee Inc.
Condiments	Red Gold Inc.
Cotton	U.S. Cotton LLC
Cookies	Bremner Foods Inc.
Cosmetic Supplies	Millers Forge Inc.
Dairy	Dean Foods Co.
Deli Meats	Carl Buddig
Dressings	E.D. Smith USA Inc.
Dry Soups	ST Specialty Foods Inc.
Eggs	Sparboe Farms
Eye Care	Bausch & Lomb Inc.
Feminine Hygiene	Rostam US
First Aid Products	Vi-Jon Laboratories
Foils/Wraps	Reynolds Consumer Products / Alcoa
Food/Trash Bags	Covalence Specialty Materials Corp.
Foot Care	Premier Brands of America
Frozen Bread/Dough	Joseph Campione Inc.
Frozen Fruit	FrozSun Inc.
Frozen Pizza	Palermo's
Frozen Prepared Meals	Windsor Foods
Frozen Snacks/Appetizers	Culinary Destinations Inc.
Frozen Vegetables	Lakeside Foods Inc.
Fruit Snacks	Amport Foods / American Importing Co.
Hair Care	Vi-Jon Laboratories
Honey	Sioux Honey Association
Household Cleaning Products	JAWS International Ltd.
Ice Cream	Fieldbrook Foods Corp.
Jams/Jellies/Preserves	The Carriage House Cos. Inc.
Juices	Cliffstar Corp.
Labels	Smyth Companies Inc.
Laundry Products	Huish Detergents Inc.
Meat	Huisken Meat Co.
Meat Snacks	Mirab USA Inc.
Nuts/Seeds	John B. Sanfilippo & Son Inc.
Oils	ACH Food Products
Olives	Musco Family Olive Co.
Oral Care	Ranir
Organic	Solana Gold Organics
OTC	Perrigo
Paper Products	Potlach Consumer Products
Pasta	American Italian Pasta Co.
Pet Food	Mars Pet Care U.S.
Pet Supplies	Virbac Corp.
Pickles	Bay Valley Foods
Plastic Cups/Bowls/Utensils	Solo Cup Co.
Plastic Storage	Presto Products Co.
Poultry	Simmons Foods
Pre-Moistened Wipes	Nice-Pak Products Inc.
Produce	River Ranch Fresh Foods LLC
Puddings/Gelatins	Hormel Foods Corp.
Refrigerated Dough Products	The Sara Lee Bakery Group
Refrigerated Juices	Silver Springs Citrus
Rice	Riviana Foods Inc.
Salty Snacks, Chips	Snack Alliance Inc.
Salty Snacks, Pretzels	Anderson Bakery Co.
Sauces & Spreads	The Carriage House Cos. Inc.
Seafood, Canned	Chicken of the Sea
Seafood, Frozen	High Liner Foods Inc.
Self-Diagnostic Products	Inverness Medical Products
Shaving Products	American Safety Razor Co.
Skin Care	Vi-Jon Laboratories
Snack/Granola Bars	ConAgra Store Brands
Spices/Seasonings	McCormick & Co.
Syrups	The Carriage House Cos. Inc.
Vinegars	Mizkan Americas Inc.
Vitamins/Nutritional Supplements	VitaCeutical Labs