Earlier this month the National Restaurant Association announced the recipients of the 2016 Kitchen Innovations (KI) Awards. The recipients were chosen by a panel of expert judges for providing innovations that “address operator concerns from labor, energy and water efficiency to food safety, sanitation, cross-functionality and space-saving.” Stoelting was recognized for its AutoVend system, a soft-serve frozen yogurt vending machine.
“Stoelting’s AutoVend dispenses up to two flavors and four toppings in multiple sizes, including one spoon per cup, all within 30 seconds of the items being selected. The system is operator programmable, linked real time for easy analytics, and sends real time service/maintenance email alerts.”
Stoelting will have two units on display for the NRA Show. One will be in their booth (#4037) and the other in the Kitchen Innovations Pavilion. The machine can dispense 154 servings before a refill is needed. It can accept cash, credit card and coupons or vouchers. The primary application for these machines would be any retail environment that has 24 hour access including colleges, convenience stores, airports, hospitals, etc.
The development of the AutoVend machine was started with a partnership with Famous Brands for the TCBY franchise. Back in April 2015, the machine made its debut in Las Vegas at the National Automatic Merchandising Association’s OneShow. That machine was the only one of its kind at the time. The first TCBY vending machine was installed at the University of South Florida last September.
The recipients of the KI Awards and their products will be showcased in the interactive Kitchen Innovations Pavilion at the 2016 NRA Hotel-Motel Show held in Chicago on May 21-24, 2016.
For additional information, visit http://stoeltingfoodservice.com/
