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"People want to see it at retail, not only
in a consumer packaged good, but also
in the perimeter of the store, where
they can buy it fresh and take it home
and eat it," Bowden says. "The perimeter of the store continues to grow and
our products are a great fit for the prepared deli."

A need for authenticity
One of Del Real's calling cards, says
marketing manager Socorro Morales, is
the authenticity and quality of its food.
"We'veand consumers have consistently told us that our products taste
homemade or restaurant quality, this
is because we make our products with
traditional ingredients and cooking
methods." Morales says.
That's important when trying to attract
end consumers, whether they're shop-

ping at ethnic channel retailers or general market retailers. Shoppers at ethnic
channel retailers know what to expect
when it comes to authentic Mexican
food, while more mainstream shoppers
are increasing their desire for it.
"Consumers are changing and millennials love authentic foods," Bowden
says. "They're looking for our kind of
product too, so we fit well in the general market retailer."
That authenticity has helped Del Real
carve out a niche for itself, but it doesn't
come easy. Take the labor-intensive process used for the company's popular tamales, for example.
The masa begins as a 1.200-pound
batch of non-GMO corn, steeped in
lime-infused water and stone-ground
into a dough. The picadillo is made by
hand-trimming blocks of pork, slicing

Clean Label is the
New Normal

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PHOTO: DEL REAL

it, cooking it, shredding it and then
combining it with a sauce of softened
ground peppers. That is then added to a
mix of pork broth, salt and spice blend.
The entire concoction is then cooked
and co-extruded with the masa to produce tamales that are hand-wrapped in
corn husks and steam-cooked before
being refrigerated and packaged.
"It's one of our more complex items and
some of our competition takes shortcuts and you just don't get the same
quality," Bowden says. "Our products
are hand-made and produced in relatively small batches. You're not able to
get the quality we produce unless you
go through that hard work and laborintense process."
While the production of tamales is a
more complicated process than most,
Del Real also goes out of its way when
making its other offerings. Meats are
cooked in with open-kettle cooking, the
same that is used in homes and restaurants. "We really go out of our way to
maintain traditional cooking methods
you would use at home or in a restaurant," Bowden says. "What you end up
getting is a product that is very authentic and has a very clean label because
we don't over-process it or use preservatives or additives.

Simply Soup Bases

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Organic Certified and Traditional Bases
* No Gluten
* No MSG, HVP or AYE
* No Artificial Colors, Ingredients or Flavors

"Many manufacturers will put all their
raw materials in a bag, seal the bag and
then cook the bag. You just don't get
the same textures and flavors coming
through like you do when you cook it
the way you would at home."

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COOK
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That taste and quality has helped attract
not only end consumers, but investors.
Palladium Equity Partners, a private equity firm, made a significant investment
in Del Real last year, a move that Bowden
says was intended to supercharge the
company's growth with the future goal

®
WB E Ce rtifi ed

®
SES
LIGHT GOURMET BA

'S DE

commissary INSIDER

ph (219) 879-8236
sales@integrativeflavors.com
www.integrativeflavors.com
http://www.integrativeflavors.com
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