Supermarket Perimeter - May 2019 - 108

R&D

by Andy Nelson

COMMISSARIES, CENTRAL
KITCHENS AND OTHER FACILITIES that supply prepared
and other value-added foods to
grocery retail are always on the
lookout for that edge that will
separate their products from the
competition's. Fortunately, leading
spice manufacturers are stepping
up to the plate with new products
to help them do just that.
The culinary experts at
Pekin, Illinois-based Excalibur
Seasoning, a premier meat and
seafood seasoning company,
have developed a new product that provides just the right

amount of ﬂavor - guaranteed -
to their customers' proteins.
Excalibur's Proper Portions
dry rub program, which marked
its official kickoff at The Meat
Conference in Dallas, provides
grocers and processors with
stackable towers ﬁlled with
seasoning packets featuring the
company's most popular ﬂavors.
Spices are dispensed out of the
bottom of the towers in ﬁ xed,
pre-determined amounts.
With Proper Portions, commissaries, central kitchens and
retailers who prepare meats
instore now have a much more
predictable way of ensuring that
meats are seasoned consistently,
says John Brewer, Excalibur's vice

Getting
the proper
amount on
the product
is key. All
servings
are premeasured,
which means
less waste and
a consistently
great taste."
John Brewer, Excalibur
108 - MAY 2019

McCormick stays busy
with 2019 rollouts
Hunt Valley, Maryland-based
spice giant McCormick & Co. has
a variety of new products that
either have been released already
or will be released later this year.
In the U.S., McCormick has
launched its new Zatarain's
Garden District Kitchen range.
The meal solutions product line,
inspired by the culinary heritage
of New Orleans, is plant-based
and high in both protein and ﬁber.
The company also continues
to renovate its dry recipe mixes
for simple and clean ingredient

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statements that still deliver
delicious ﬂavor. "We are continually improving our portfolio to
strengthen our relevance with
consumers," says Lawrence
Kurzius, McCormick's president
and CEO. "In the U.S., we're expanding our McCormick Gourmet
line with a range of premium
salts and peppers."

Also on tap for 2019,
McCormick and the cooking video web site BuzzFeed Tasty plan
to launch a seasonings blends
range available both through
the direct-to-consumer channel
and at retail. "We're thrilled with
this new partnership, which will
deliver substantial incremental
impressions and reach to an audience primarily under 35 years
of age and further accelerate our
digital platform," Kurzius says.
McCormick also plans to introduce its "ONE" product platform
later this year. The line consists
of one-dish recipe mix ﬂavors
created through the combination
of artiﬁcial intelligence and the
company's consumer insights.
McCormick is collaborating with
IBM on the project.
"We're entering in a new era of
ﬂavor innovation," Kurzius says.
"This proprietary cutting-edge
technology, which we have previously discussed as computational

EXCALIBUR, MCCORMICK, EVERSON

ADDING SPICE

president of sales and marketing.
"Sometimes you have one
person who pours it on, another who's stingy," Brewer says.
"Getting the proper amount on
the product is key. All servings
are pre-measured, which means
less waste and a consistently
great taste."
Today's fresh food specialists can now perfectly season
the customer's protein at the
commissary, central kitchen or
store, pack it with their purchase
to ﬂavor at home, or combine it
with today's trendy pre-packaged
meal kits, Brewer says.
Excalibur says it's ﬁrst to market with the concept. "We haven't
seen anyone else with this type
of program," Brewer says.
The 1 lb Proper Portions
packages ship 300 units to a
case. Brewer adds that because
each packet is individually sealed,
the chance of contamination is
greatly reduced.
Proper Portions are available in
the following ﬂavors:
x Ultimate Steak & Roast
x Smokehouse BBQ
x Butter Garlic
x Rosemary, Basil & Thyme
x Bourbon Pepper
x Captain's Bay
x Salmon Grill
http://www.supermarketperimeter.com
Supermarket Perimeter - May 2019

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