Supermarket Perimeter - October 2021 - 52

Produce
SALAD
BY ANDY NELSON
THE DEMAND FOR SALAD KITS and other fresh, convenient and
healthy options continues to grow. According to FMI's 2021 Power of
Produce report, sales of value-added lettuce and other fresh produce
came to $15.5 billion, or 22.3% of total produce sales.
Expect those numbers to keep climbing - more than three in 10
shoppers, according to FMI, said they will purchase more value-added
produce in the upcoming year, and at higher rates than were reported in
the previous four years.
During the pandemic, food safety concerns were at an all-time high
and there was a strong demand for salad kits, said Tal Shoshan, CEO of
Ontario, Calif.-based FiveStar Gourmet Foods.
For FiveStar, that translated into brisk movement of the company's
new Value Plus line of its Simply Fresh Salads, which addresses food
safety concerns while also appealing to price-conscious consumers,
Shoshan said.
The Value Plus line features familiar classics like Chicken Caesar Salad
with Lemon Caesar Dressing, Cranberry Walnut Salad with Very Berry
Vinaigrette and Asian Sesame Salad with Honey Sesame Dressing.
" They've sold exceptionally well given that during the pandemic
many consumers were much more money-cautious, " Shoshan said.
" Keeping up with this high demand, while maintaining our excellent
quality produce, was key to our success throughout the worst part of
the pandemic and beyond. "
52 - OCTOBER 2021
And even with the worst of the pandemic over, FiveStar has
continued to see strong growth. The top driver now, Shoshan said,
is the company's Simply Fresh Premium Salads. Top sellers in the
category range from Santa Fe Style Salad with Chicken and Ultimate
BLT Salad with Chicken to Taco Salad - Made with Beyond Meat to
the family-sized Fig & Walnut Salad, one of the company's newer
offerings.
During the height of the pandemic and with stay-at-home orders in
effect, consumers were much more open to trying and experimenting
with new items and this resulted in consumers doing more in-home
scratch cooking. As the pandemic continued on, consumers looked
for more convenient options to make their lives easier, especially as
they became fatigued with cooking at home, and now have become
accustomed to these more convenient options which they continue to
seek out today.
In 2020, FiveStar introduced its SimplyFresh 2GO line, a line extension
of the Simply Fresh brand. One year later, Shoshan said, it's thriving.
" It's been a huge success. So many consumers were seeking
convenient, fresh solutions for at-home use during the pandemic. Our
customers raved about the line and were particularly impressed with
the quality and variety of our offerings. "
Shoshan expects one lasting legacy of COVID to be greater attention
to foods that consumers perceive as having health benefits.
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Supermarket Perimeter - October 2021

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