TORONTO — Second Harvest reached a bittersweet milestone, delivering its six millionth pound of food this year — the first time in the organization's 25-year history that such a high volume of food has been recovered in a fiscal year.

"We are committed to feeding Toronto's hungry, especially during difficult times,” says Melissa Dedic, a food raiser at Second Harvest. “This year, we responded to the dramatic increase in the demand for food by growing our food donations significantly. The food we recover and donate helps those most affected by the recession start rebuilding their lives."

TORONTO — Courvoisier has just launched L'Essence de Courvoisier, a new addition to its collection of cognacs.

Only 50 bottles of the limited-edition elixir will be sold in select liquor stores and at on-premise accounts Canada-wide for an approximate retail price of $3,200 per bottle.

The new cognac embodies Courvoisier's philosophy of fusing the traditions of a centuries-old cognac house with innovation. The blend consists of special reserves from the early 20th century, complemented by newer 'eaux de vie,’ marking innovations in distillation and barrel-making techniques.

TORONTO — This week, the duffers of the foodservice industry gathered at Devil’s Pulpit Golf Club in Caledon, Ont., for the 18th Annual Friends of We Care Golf Tournament.

A cheque for more than $54,000, collected through industry support, was presented to We Care ambassadors, Tyler Preece and Sydney Weaver. It's enough to provide more than 270 days at Easter Seals camp for children with physical disabilities this summer.

On the corporate side, the following companies lent their sponsorship support: Danone Foodservice, Fiera Foods Company, Lassonde Beverages, Smucker Foods of Canada, Cardinal Meats Specialists Ltd., Export Packers Company Ltd., H.J. Heinz Company of Canada, Pickle Barrel Restaurants, Trailto Wine Group, Burnbrae Farms Ltd., Gay Lea Foods, Kellogg Canada, Kraft Foodservice, Parmalat Canada, Mother Parker’s Tea & Coffee Inc., Kozy Shack Foodservice, Canadian Restaurant and Foodservice News, Canada Dry Mott’s, Magnum Food Brokers Inc.

TORONTO — The Ex, the annual carnival that descends on Toronto to mark the end of summer, usually leaves residents with stomach aches from too many little cinnamon dusted doughnuts — or this year’s deep-fried butter — but thanks to some top chefs, attendees will now have some gourmet comfort food to take with them into the fall.

At the Dairy Farmers of Canada’s Grate Canadian Grilled Cheese Cook-Off, chefs from across Canada put their spin on the Canadian favourite, and chef Michael Howell of The Tempest restaurant in Wolfville, N.S., came out on top with his Panini Toscano. The winning dish combined figs, prosciutto, arugula and Canadian Gouda cheese from Fox Hill in Nova Scotia.