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FAAN Announces Winner of First FAANtastic Divvies Cookie Contest

Allergy-Friendly Double Chocolate Brownie Bite Cookie Tops With Judges

FAIRFAX, Va. (April 20, 2010) – Elizabeth Ilson of Tarpon Springs, Fla., beat out more than 260 other entries with her Double Chocolate Brownie Bites cookie to become the grand prize winner of the FAANtastic Divvies Cookie Contest, sponsored by the Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network (FAAN) and Divvies, an allergy-friendly sweets and snacks company.

“This cookie recipe was a happy accident that resulted from many failed attempts to make brownies,” Ilson said. “A few tweaks turned my disastrous brownie batter into my son's favorite cookie! I am just so thrilled and honored that this cookie recipe won the contest.”

Ilson’s cookie will be introduced to the food allergy community at FAAN’s Walk for Food Allergy events beginning in August, and will be commercially produced and available from Divvies’ online store.  

Five finalists made it to the final stage of the competition – being tasted and judged by an esteemed panel of judges with food allergy connections that consisted of celebrated chef and FAAN spokesperson Ming Tsai, Divvies founder/owner Lori Sandler and her son Benjamin, Sen. Christopher Dodd (D-Conn.) and his daughter Grace, FAAN CEO Julia Bradsher, and Ron Triani, chairman of FAAN’s Board of Directors.

“It was a pleasure to take part in the judging for the FAANtastic Divvies Cookie Contest,” Tsai said. “It's great to see more people taking the time to create delicious treats for people with food allergies. The winner, Double Chocolate Brownie Bites, was really a moist and tasty cookie. I'm sure the cookie will be loved by all whether they have an allergy or not.”

Four other recipes made it to the final round: Chocolate Cherry Chunk Cookies from Megan Edison of Grand Rapids, Mich., Cinnamon Bites from Mary Levette of Columbia, S.C., Choc-O-Holic Cookie from Kelly Brady of San Jose, Calif., and County Fair Cookies from Elinor Ives of
Fiskdale, Mass.

"The FAANtastic Divvies Cookie Contest kept me busy in the kitchen for weeks,” Sandler said. “There were so many delicious recipes.”

Rules of the contest required all cookie recipes to be free of peanuts, tree nuts, milk, and eggs, among the top allergens in the U.S., which is consistent with products produced by Divvies. As recent studies have shown, there has been an increase in the number of individuals with food allergies. This statistic identifies a need for more allergy-friendly policies and products for this growing population.

“Being a judge for this contest was a wonderful opportunity to enjoy so many tasty allergy-friendly cookies,” Bradsher said. “It was hard to select just one to win.”

As winner of the FAANtastic Divvies Cookie Contest, Ilson will receive two nights’ stay and waterpark passes for up to four individuals at a Great Wolf Water Park Resort and up to four round-trip airline tickets to travel to her chosen Great Wolf Lodge location if it is greater than 150 miles from her home. 

Contest participants who submitted recipes this year are encouraged to re-enter next year’s contest. The 2011 contest will launch in the 4th quarter of 2010.  For  information about this year’s  FAANtastic Divvies Cookie Contest, visit www.foodallergy.org.

About FAAN

Founded in 1991, the Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network (FAAN) is the world leader in information, resources, and programs for food allergy, a potentially life-threatening medical condition that afflicts as many as 15 million Americans, including almost 6 million children. A nonprofit organization based in Fairfax, Va., FAAN is dedicated to increasing public awareness of food allergy and its consequences, to educating people about the condition, and to advancing research on behalf of all those affected by it. FAAN provides information and educational resources about food allergy to patients, their families, schools, health professionals, pharmaceutical companies, the food industry, and government officials. On May 9, 2012, FAAN announced its intent to merge with the other leading food allergy organization, the Food Allergy Initiative, pending state regulatory approval. To become a member or for more information, please visit FAAN at www.foodallergy.org.

Media Contact

Nancy Gregory
Media Relations
(703) 563-3066
E-mail: ngregory@foodallergy.org