What's New in Rice Archive
Celebrate National Rice Month - 2009
Designated National Rice Month by Congress in 1991, September celebrates the many benefits of U.S.-grown rice and the farmers who make it all possible. In honor of National Rice Month, grocery stores, restaurants, schools and rice-growing communities across the country are gearing up in support of the industry's use of sustainable practices and to show support for U.S. farmers and our economy.
U.S. rice helps foodservice professionals reduce their food miles by choosing domestically grown rice rather than rice transported from thousands of miles away. National Rice Month provides the perfect opportunity to highlight the many varieties of U.S. rice available to assist chefs and operators in making responsible food choices.
Choosing U.S.-grown rice also creates wetlands and habitats for wildlife, helps to preserve U.S. agriculture in rice-producing states and builds farm-to-table awareness of sustainable food options. Look for the new "Grown in the USA" logo to identify rice products grown by farmers to the highest quality standards.
Texas Roadhouse and USA Rice Partner on National Rice Month Promotion 
Currently operating over 325 restaurants in 46 states, Texas Roadhouse
restaurants have been pleasing customers with their hand-cut steaks, ribs, chicken, fish, fresh-baked breads and homemade side items since 1993. As a part of the Great Steak of Texas promotion, and in honor of National Rice Month, Texas Roadhouse will be promoting seasoned, U.S.-grown rice with their filet medallions, sirloin kabobs and sirloin beef tips throughout September.
Texas Roadhouse is an example of the growing number of foodservice operations menuing more U.S.-grown foods as a commitment to the health of the environment, natural resources and agricultural communities.
"Partnering with the USA Rice Federation presented an ideal opportunity to further reinforce our commitment to quality ingredients from American farmers," said Chris Jacobsen, Vice President of Marketing for Texas Roadhouse. "The September Great Steak of Texas event is one of our core promotions that our patrons look forward to each year, and we felt it would offer a fun and unique way to help celebrate National Rice Month."
Promotional efforts include:
- Website features on TexasRoadhouse.com
and MenuRice.com - In-unit point of sale materials such as menu cards, flyers and lobby mobiles
- Cooking segments on local television morning shows
- Rice eating contest for kids with Texas Roadhouse mascot Andy Armadillo
Texas Roadhouse was voted #1 in both menu variety and value in Restaurants & Institutions magazine's Choice in Chains guest survey.
Healthy Rice Bowls are Cool for Back to School
Just in time for the new school year, the USA Rice Federation's annual
"Healthy Rice Bowls Contest"
will kick off in support of healthful eating habits for children returning to school. Running from September 1 through November 6, the contest encourages Kindergarten through 12th grade (K-12) school foodservice personnel to create their own signature Rice Bowls.
They may also show how they're creatively serving USA Rice's Beef Teriyaki Rice Bowl - featured as one of SNA's "All-Star School Lunch" menu items in October. Rice Bowls have quickly become a lunchtime favorite among students and are ideal for delivering the balanced nutrition that kids require.
The Grand Prize Winner will receive a $250 VISA gift card toward their school's education fund, one heavy-duty commercial cooker for their school and one 10-cup Sensor Logic cooker for their home kitchen. First and Second runners up will receive a heavy-duty commercial cooker for their school. Winners will be featured on USA Rice's foodservice website MenuRice.com, which attracts more than 15,000 visits a month.
For details on how to enter and submit entries by November 6, click here.
The California Rice Commission, the state that produces medium and short grain japonica-style rice used in U.S. sushi, will hosts its
bi-annual SushiMasters contest this month at Aratani/Japan America Theatre in Los Angeles. The competition is between winners of the three SushiMasters Regional Competitions held earlier this year in Washington, D.C., Miami Beach, FL and Sausalito, CA. A fourth competitor will be defending SushiMasters State Finals Champion, Tomoharu Nakamura of Sanraku, San Francisco.