Supermarket Perimeter - October 2021 - 54

Produce
Demand for both
easy meal solutions
and more nutritious
fare drove Fresh
Express' most recent
salad innovations.
for convenience-oriented kits and
ready-to-eat salad lines, Goldfield
said. For Dole, that meant the
expansion of its FreshTakes RTE line
from limited to national distribution.
" Demand for salad kits overall
continues to grow feverishly while
supplies rush to catch up, " Goldfield
red cabbage, and carrots. And the dressing is the ultimate touch -
popular sweet onions and a perfectly balanced Dijon dressing. "
Italian Balsamic, meanwhile, is being pitched as an easy way to
provide delicious, cost-efficient, restaurant-inspired solutions for time
pressed consumers. The salad features a bed of iceberg and green
leaf lettuce and radicchio tossed with a white balsamic vinaigrette and
topped with focaccia croutons and an Italian cheese blend.
Kickin' Bacon Ranch Chopped provides the flavors of classic jalapeno
poppers without the heat, Golderman said.
" We layer in uncured smoky bacon bits and cheddar tortillas strips
with crisp red and green cabbage, green leaf lettuce, carrots and green
onions, all smothered with a creamy jalapeño ranch dressing. "
The fourth new salad from Fresh Express, Bacon Thousand Island,
features iceberg and green leaf lettuce topped with honey butter
cornbread crisps, Parmesan cheese crisps, uncured smoky bacon bits
and a creamy bacon thousand island dressing.
Chopped, ranch and pepper: three can't misses
In July, Charlotte, N.C.-based Dole Food Co. added to its DOLE
Chopped! Salad line with the introduction of two new salads:
* DOLE Buffalo Ranch Chopped! Salad, a blend of DOLE Green
Cabbage, Green Leaf Lettuce, Kale, Red Cabbage, Carrots,
blue cheese crumbles, fried onions and Dole's Buffalo Ranch
Dressing;
* and DOLE Peppercorn Ranch Chopped! Salad which combines
DOLE Iceberg, Green Leaf Lettuce, Red Cabbage, Carrots and
Radishes with crumbled cornbread croutons, crushed black
peppercorn and Dole's Peppercorn Ranch Dressing.
The kits sell for a suggested retail price (SRP) of $3.99.
Bil Goldfield, Dole's director of corporate communications, said
the new offerings take advantage of two facts: ranch is the top salad
dressing choice, and black pepper is the top spice.
Dole is also planning more additions to the DOLE Chopped! and
DOLE FreshTakes ready-to-eat (RTE) salad lines, with announcements
expected before the end of the year, Goldfield said.
Despite a measured return to " normal, " family life remains as frantic
and busy as ever, if not more so, which continues to drive demand
54 - OCTOBER 2021
supermarketperimeter.com
said. " Chopped salad kits remain the biggest driver of growth in the
salad and vegetable category, and Dole is building on its legacy in
chopped salad kits by launching on-trend, flavor-forward new additions
to its Chopped! line. "
The impact of the pandemic also cannot be overstated, Goldfield
added. Store shelves were wiped clean at the onset of the lockdowns.
Dole experienced increased demand in both packaged salads and its
commodity produce, as consumers recognized the need for nutritious
foods during shelter-in-place orders and as stores remained open and
operational.
While demand for many products has since returned to normal
levels, salads continue to outperform as convenience still resonates,
he said.
" We continue to see spikes in demand for packaged salads in warmer
months - a phenomenon that will no doubt intensify this year as the
country continues to open up and return to at least an assemblance of
normal. "
FRESH EXPRESS, DOLE
http://www.supermarketperimeter.com
Supermarket Perimeter - October 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Supermarket Perimeter - October 2021
