THUNDER BAY – Anne-Marie Calonego would love to follow in Ben and Jerry’s footsteps – only with gelato instead of ice cream as her path to fame and fortune.
Calonego opened Prime Gelato last July in Thunder Bay’s downtown north core, drawing the attention of thousands of hungry customers eager to sample her specialty flavours that include the likes of Skull Rock Stout, carrot cake and burnt butter sage.
Using local ingredients whenever possible, Prime Gelato has already built a loyal following.
Calonego is hoping they’ll follow her into specialty stores as she’s set to launch sales into local specialty grocery stores and restaurants.
It’s a move she couldn’t make until she acquired her dairy plant licence, a rigorous process which is so stringent even she isn’t always allowed into her own processing facility – located at the rear of her Red River Road store.
“We have our retail shop for our brand awareness, to get our name out there, but we want to produce pints for wholesale and we’re going focus on the Thunder Bay market for the first year. Then, as we grow and get better, we want to target southern Ontario,” Calonego said on Thursday, opening her doors to give away free gelato for two hours in celebration of her achievement.
The designation, handed out by the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, makes Prime Gelato the lone licensed dairy plant in Northwestern Ontario manufacturing gelato or ice cream.
Among the stores expected to carry her products, which include gelato pops, are Agostino’s Deli on the city’s south side, which will begin sales immediately. Maltese and The Cheese Encounter will begin sales in the next few weeks.
Restaurants offering it on their menu will include Uptown Cut, the Sovereign Room and The Foundry.
The gelato is as local as it gets. The milk and cream come from the Slate River Valley, and the eggs, honey, maple syrup, coffee, beer, wild blueberries, carrots and herbs are also locally produced.
Calonego said they also use no fillers, preservatives or artificial flavours.
“I think that’s what consumers are looking for,” she said.
“I think it’s important for sustainability. I think it’s important to know where your food comes from and I think it’s important to know you’re eating real food.”
