Story from Elberton Star
The Flavor of Georgia food product contest is an annual event celebrating the many flavors Georgia has to offer. Market-ready prototypes (as was Fulghum’s case) or commercially available food products from across the state are judged and critiqued by a panel of food experts. Entries are judged based on flavor, best use of Georgian ingredients, Georgia theme, unique or innovative qualities, commercial appeal and originality.
Steeped deeply in her Christian roots, Fulghum said she spent a lot of time praying about the decision to enter the contest. “I didn’t decide to enter until the last minute,” she said.
This wasn’t her first attempt at a food competition. A few years ago, after a successful campaign of selling fried pies using her grandmother’s recipe as a means to help the Royston Church of God build a new building, Cindy decided to try to market the sweet and fruity pies. She entered them in the contest two years ago but they did not garner the attention she had hoped.
Ecclesiastes 11:1 was her confirmation after praying and finding a set of notes she had taken on a sermon about a year before and placed in her Bible. Cindy explains, “I had not really paid much attention to those notes and the scripture just stood out to me to read, so I looked it up and it said to ‘Cast thy bread upon the waters; for thou shalt find it after many days.’ I felt God was inspiring this so I wanted to give it all I had.”
So she entered the contest. Not only did she become one of the 26 Finalists out of 126 participants, but she won the Flavor of Georgia’s coveted People’s Choice Award for 2012. And she hasn’t stopped since. It was her sign to market this delicious product. That is where that determined spirit comes into play. “I have stayed true to my word. Only the finest ingredients would go into my product and only the best company would make my product. We have accomplished that.”
And with those promises backing her efforts, she expresses her hopes for the product: “I am proud to bring this product from my table to your table. I hope you will remember to use the Chicken Log at all your family gatherings, church socials, tailgating parties, showers, weddings, and as a wonderful snack to have on hand.”
From my table to yours,
Cindy R. Fulghum
Three Generations of Georgia