November 2021 Grocery Insight

Grocery Insight November 2021

UNFI maintains a steady course serving loyal consumers amidst choppy landscape

Inside Special Report: UNFI Special Report: Private Label Cooking Oils Special Report: Refrigerated Desserts Special Report: Apples Special Report: Asparagus Special Report: Tamales Special Report: Freeeze Dried Snacking Special Report: Pretzels Special Report: Dough Special Report: Regional Merchandising in Eggs

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Special Report UNFI

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nited Natural Foods Inc. (UNFI) was founded in 1976 by Michael Funk and has grown to become one of the leading sources of sustainable organic and natural foods in the grocery industry. The company has more than 5,000 products across 200 categories.

According to company leaders, UNFI is comprised of a team of wholesalers that provide one of the largest assortments of products to customers throughout North America. Whether the customers are natural product superstores, independent retailers, conventional supermarket chains, e-commerce retailers or food service customers, UNFI has a broad range of products to meet all of their individual needs.

Despite the unpredictable past two years, UNFI has maintained its support for retailers and their customers by navigating through the uncertainty. The distributor has kept shelves stocked and wholesome and nutritious food accessible through new e-commerce partnerships and strategic leadership promotions and appointments. These moves have allowed the company to not only maintain its strong presence within the industry but also proven to its partners they can count on UNFI during unpredictable and unprecedented times.

the world. This better enabled UNFI to become a leading source of sustainable organic and natural foods. The company continued to add brands and companies to its name such as Select Nutrition Distributors, Roots ‘N Fruits Cooperative, Millbrook Distribution Services and SunOpta Distribution Group, which was one of the company’s first Canadian partnerships.

It wasn’t until 2012 when UNFI added Honest Green to its establishment that the company really began to strengthen its e-commerce business within the natural product sector. The company had a longstanding focus on produce until 2014, when UNFI added Tony’s Fine Foods, which added specialty protein, cheeses, deli and bakery items. In 2018, UNFI acquired SUPERVALU. This was a strategic move with leaders from both sides describing the combined company as “North America’s premier food wholesaler.” The acquisition was expected to expedite the company’s growth strategy by instantly upgrading the variety and collection of products they offer on their shelves. Since its inception, the company has considered each acquisition or ‘move’ a resolute, effective step toward better serving its customers and communities.

In 1976, Michael Funk began selling organic produce out of his car but soon created Mountain People’s Warehouse in Auburn, CA. Funk had an idea to go where other distributors had not gone before, and this idea became a turning point for the company. The following year, Norman Cloutier opened Cornucopia Natural Foods in Rhode Island.

He then transformed the company into a warehouse for wholesale distribution.

In 1996, Cornucopia joined forces with Mountain People’s Warehouse to form UNFI. The years after the merger saw several expansions and acquisitions, and UNFI became the largest full line natural foods distributor in the Western US. Another turning point in the company’s history was in 1998, when Albert’s Organics, the first certified organic distributor, joined UNFI and helped build relationships with organic farms around

The company continued to move forward despite external circumstances that might have set back its competitors. The company has focused on its leadership team and finding the right people to help guide it through Covid achieve its goals and hold up UNFI’s mission and responsibilities to consumers it serves. There have been many key, strategic appointments that occurred on the leadership team in 2021.

The company has recently announced the promotion of Steve Dietz to the role of Chief Customer Officer, which is a new role the company has created. Dietz is responsible for overseeing UNFI’s sales efforts throughout the US and Canada.

He has been serving as the company’s President of the Pacific Region since 2018 and has helped UNFI shape and achieve its long-term goals.

In June, the company announced the appointment of J. Alexander Miller

History

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Leadership

Douglas to the role of CEO and a member of its Board of Directors. Douglas has a track record of being a customer-focused, strategic leader with expertise in distribution, sales, marketing and e-commerce.

In May, UNFI promoted Matt Whitney to Chief Strategy and Innovation Officer after he joined the team in early 2020.

Whitney is now responsible for leading the company’s Professional Services and E-commerce business units.

Recent News

Recently the company has been making several moves to keep up with the ever-changing market. In October 2021, UNFI partnered with DoorDash to bring cutting edge grocery delivery solutions to independent retailers across the country. The partnership allows for local grocery retailers to take advantage of the platform DoorDash has created to help set up an e-commerce presence that addresses consumers’ needs. Delivery services have become an important, relevant part of the industry, and according to the company, the partnership will allow for UNFI to grow its end-toend and last-mile-delivery services to its e-commerce solutions targeted for retail partners ranging from smaller mom and pop shops to big box.

UNFI’s decision to join forces with DoorDash is intended to assist indie grocery retailers expand their business, drawing in new consumers while simultaneously maintaining its current shopper following through serving additional online shoppers, particularly those residing in less accessible areas. Taking added convenience and combining it with a broader delivery area is expected to propel shopper loyalty and drive basket rings specifically amongst the digital consumer base. “We are excited to work with UNFI to empower local grocers to build an e-commerce and delivery offering that will give customers access to robust local grocery selection on the DoorDash app,” said Fuad Hannon, VP of New Verticals at DoorDash.

“We are proud to play a part in helping local grocers grow their businesses and helping consumers access convenient, on-demand grocery delivery from their local neighborhoods.”

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Special Report

Private Label Cooking Oils

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n the grand landscape of cooking oils, private label brands have emerged as viable options for consumers looking for both new taste and cooking experiences as well as affordability and a greater likelihood to be in stock. On a more granular level, however, each retailer and supplier has come away from the last year and a half with a diverse mosaic of insights and data with regards to supply side challenges, consumer taste preferences and more, which collectively inform how the category is generally faring: “winning.”

Peter Wynkoop for La Tourangelle used “winning” in a deeper discussion over consumer trends in the last 18 months. “Prior to the pandemic, the coconut oil category was declining double digits,” he said. “A few retailers started to reduce the amount of shelf space they gave the brands and provide more space to private brands. Then the pandemic hit, which then propped up sales for coconut oil branded items. Now we’re 18 months into the pandemic and the same trends that we saw pre-pandemic are back. Branded coconut oils are struggling, and private label is winning. In response, we are sharing a two-brand strategy with customers. All retailers need for this segment is one premium brand and a selection of private label offerings.”

Catania Oils has likewise seen an uptick in sales in 2021, but Mark Coleman for Catania Oils said this is also compared against the wild consumer behavior that characterized the onset of the pandemic. “Due to retailers stocking up to meet consumer demand in 2020, the first quarter of this year saw a dramatic slowdown in retailers’ needs. However, by mid-summer, we started to see retail heat up again as uncertainty crept in amid signs of supply chain issues across the globe. Retailers and consumers alike have been stocking up at a rapid pace in the hopes of not experiencing what Covid brought in 2020.”

However, the difference between this year and last is what has happened with the labor market, Coleman said. “The lack of the everyday worker has caused most companies across the country to re-evaluate their go-to-market apPG 4 / GR O C E R Y I N S I G H T

proach in satisfying consumer demand.

Labor and supply chain issues are the two main issues driving concern. Factor this in with inflation, now we see ‘shrinkflation’ happening across the retail sector where the national CPG companies are reducing the package size but keeping the price either the same or only taking a slight price increase versus a much larger one.”

These supply challenges make it so communication between retail buyers and suppliers is that much more crucial, Coleman said. “Catania Oils has always set its sights on being a low-cost producer as it thrives in a commodity driven category like vegetable oils and olive oils. One of the company’s core values is ‘customer focused’ and that is a driving force behind the company’s success.

Communication plays a large role in this area. Catania has implemented daily meetings between all departments in order to effectively communicate whatever difficulties might pose as a barrier to satisfying the customer,” he said.”

From the end consumer perspective, Paula Yoder-McMahon with Tops Markets shares, “Multiple cost increases are driving consumers to purchase new brands. With long-term out of stocks due to specific brands production interruptions, which is causing out of stocks on the shelf, consumers are shifting to what is simply available.”

When there is some breathing room on the supply side, Wynkoop said product integrity and high standards are still paramount in La Tourangelle’s ability to support its retailers. “Quite frankly, educating customers in this complex category continues to be an opportunity,” he said. “The best effort we can make is to create a great product and deliver on the expectations of the customer. Secondly, educating the customer through our packaging is key (providing smoke points, pointing out if the oil is neutral in flavor etc).”

La Tourangelle makes its mark through its expertise with specialty oils, Wynkoop continued. “Our expertise gives our retailers assurances that we are sourcing the best oils in the world, which also means we bottle authentic oils. There is a lot of adulteration of oils

in the market, not only with extra virgin olive oil but avocado oil and other specialty oils. Our testing standards for our private label match that of our brand, which are some of the strictest in the industry. Secondly, we provide insights to our customers on what are the latest trends in the oil category. With this expertise we can help retailers make the best decisions on what selection of specialty oils to carry.”

Private brands in this category have evolved leaps and bounds in the last 15 to 20 years as trust with the consumer base is quite high, said Coleman. “Catania Oils continues to collaborate with its retailer customer base to encourage private brand trial of some of the newer and healthier oils hitting the marketplace. An example of this is avocado oil.

One of the healthier oils available, avocado oil is also great for high heat cooking and is readily available for private brand supply.”

Another innovation La Tourangelle is looking toward into the new year is the use of cooking oil sprays that contain no chemicals. “The current brand leader in sprays uses aerosol technology, which mixes oil with butane and other harsh chemicals,” Wynkoop said. “Consumers are becoming savvier when it comes to what they use to cook, and they want to use ingredients in their purest forms.

The sprays that we manufacture use a technology that sprays only oil. Some of the biggest retailers in the US have moved their private label sprays to use this type of technology and we anticipate more will be coming on board in the future.”

Before they can turn their attention to innovation again, suppliers have to ensure their supply base is in order. “In normal years, retailers are looking for what is the hottest new item they can get on the shelf in a private brand,” said Coleman. “However, as we head in to 2022, retailers need to know that their supplier base is solely focused on communication and on delivering orders as close to on time as humanly possible.

The supply chain disruptions and labor shortages are still at its peak, so it is imperative that daily communication with our retailer base remains top priority.”

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Special Report Refrigerated Desserts

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efrigerated desserts are allowing consumers to indulge in an array of creamy and decadent flavors on the go during busy schedules and in individualized snack cups to balance indulgences in moderation.

Kraft Heinz Co.

Nearly half of American consumers treat themselves to marshmallows straight from the bag in addition to melting them in s’mores and topping their hot cocoa with them, according to Kraft Heinz Co. With this data, Kraft Heinz subsequently brought toasting s’mores around the campfire into consumers’ homes this past spring. Kraft’s Jet-Puffed brand launched a line of bite-sized marshmallow bites in three flavors—coconut, birthday cake and s’mores—in stand-up, resealable bags allowing consumers to treat themselves to a sweet snack anytime they want without hassle.

Simultaneously, the Jet-Puffed brand also launched regular, mini and strawberry marshmallows in stand up resealable pouches to not only make on-thego snacking simpler and convenient for consumers but to also keep their indulgences softer longer.

“Our new resealable packaging and Jet-Puffed Bites lineup are answering a consumer desire for more snackable marshmallows,” said Allison Kelly, Associate Director at Kraft Heinz. “The stand-up resealable bags deliver marshmallows that are easy to store and help them stay soft and fluffy, while our new Bites flavors offer an exciting variety of new indulgent flavors.”

Lakeview Farms

Lakeview Farms offers retailers a portfolio of dessert category brands in-

cluding Señor Rico, Winky, The Cheesecake Factory At Home and Lakeview Farms Desserts. While each brand is unique in its own right, they are linked by offering consumers appealing dessert options made with homestyle recipes and pure ingredients. The Lakeview Farms Desserts line offers crème desserts, gelatins, parfaits, puddings and ring molds. The Lakeview Farms Fruit & Gel Desserts, as an example, come in a 12-pack of 3.5 oz. cups allowing consumers to quickly enjoy a sweet treat on the go, in their car or at their desk without spending time on prep and cleanup or a mess. A nod to Latino culture, Señor Rico’s offers traditional puddings, flans and gelatins. The line includes rice pudding in chocolate hazelnut, dulche de leche and mango sauce flavors; caramel and oven baked flans and gelatins in snack packs in regular and sugar-free offerings. The Cheesecake Factory At Home line features 5 oz. and 5.5 oz. pudding cups in flavors like cake batter strawberry royale, chocolate black-out and vanilla fudge duet. Winky Desserts features gelatin desserts in 3.25 oz. snack cups and in bite-sized form in 10 oz. resealable bags. The line also includes chocolate pudding in 22 oz. containers, sugar-free parfaits in 3.5 oz. cups and fruit gelatin and crème gelatin desserts in 20 oz. tubs.

Petit Pot

Petit Pot combined its expertise in age-old French pastry with cutting-edge California-based culinary style and formed a crème and custard fusion that combines the flavors and textures each is appreciated for. The company offers consumers Dark Chocolate Pot de Crème, an organic French pudding the company describes as “silky and deca-

dent.” Dessert connoisseurs are encouraged to pair this treat with fresh pear, granola or vanilla cookie crumbs.

Pots & Co

Pots & Co dessert recipes are created by restaurant chefs who have been Michelin-trained and are known for exclusively using caliber ingredients including Cornish sea salt, fresh lemon juice and Colombian cocoa. Each dessert is handmade and the chefs guarantee they and consumers can pronounce all the ingredients. Each cake is baked in a handmade ceramic pot, giving them one-of-a-kind, unparalleled flavor and texture. The Pots & Co line includes a salted caramel and chocolate pot de crème, chocolate fudge lava cake, an upside-down lemon cheesecake, sticky toffee lava cake, hot chocolate and salted caramel lava cake and an apple and cinnamon crumble. These desserts come in 4 packs of 3.5 oz. pots.

Raymundo’s Food Group

Raymundo’s Food Group’s portfolio of desserts spans flan, gelatin and crème, rice pudding and pudding. The company also offers a line of small batch which includes caramel flan and cinnamon rice pudding in 4-packs of 4 oz. cups. The flan comes in traditional and caramel flavors in individualized packages to make snack time easier and to promote sharing with friends and family. The gelatin and crème line includes regular and sugar-free options, crème parfaits, tri-color gelatin cups and gelatin with fruit inside. The rice pudding comes in traditional and cinnamon options. And finally the pudding is offered in Butterfinger pieces, Nilla pieces and banana and Nutter Butter pieces with chocolate peanut butter pudding.

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Special Report Apples

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pples as a crop may never completely separate from its connotations of the American frontier, but today’s growers are anything but representative of that slower-paced agricultural life from a different era. Apple suppliers now occupy a full spectrum of industry ranging from the agrarian to the high tech, from continuing to innovate more apple varieties, to meeting consumer demand for sustainable—yet, Covid-safe—packaging, from convincing the public to eat more apples while markets are giving more shelf space to imported, exotic fruits, to figuring out the best way to reach their target audiences and working with retailers to get those points across.

“Sage Fruit is committed to providing the highest quality product and service to our customers, and we pride ourselves on being at the forefront of technology and innovation,” said Chuck Sinks, President, Sage Fruit. “We successfully provide a one-stop shop for our partners that includes conventional and organic apples, pears and cherries.

As we work to keep our retail partners ahead of the curve, we are currently testing more environmentally friendly packaging that we know their consumers are demanding.”

Founded in 1934, Starr Ranch Growers has kept pace with new technologies and demand as well. “Starr Ranch Growers is one of the original apple growers out here in Washington state,” said Brent Shammo, National Marketing Representative for Starr Ranch Growers. “We have continuously improved our business with new varieties, more sustainable and fully recyclable packaging, updated tech in our packing sheds and out in the orchards, and countless innovative solutions to meet an ever-changing consumer.”

FirstFruits Marketing of Washington is currently making great headway with its Opal variety, said General Manager Chuck Zeutenhorst, but getting this innovation into the hands—and stomachs—of consumers demands a high level of execution, he said. “By execution, I mean all areas of your company are executing at a very high level. We’ve PG 8 / GR O C E R Y I N S I G H T

had to change and up our game on the farming level, on the storage level, on the packing level, and on the sales and marketing level and ultimately into the retailer where you’re executing through your entire process to create a value to the end consumer that every time he picks up an apple, he has a good eating experience. That’s our goal every day.”

Further compounding the various needs that apple growers are trying to meet are consumers’ concerns for product safety, overall ethical business practices and sustainability, often conveyed through the retailers they patronize. It wasn’t like this a few decades ago, said Zeutenhorst. “The retailer now wants to make sure we’re taking care of our employees appropriately. They want to make sure we’re taking care of the land appropriately, judicious use of electricity, integrated pest management programs and on and on and on. It’s just become much more interrelated between us and them. It’s become much more of a partnership than just a sales experience, them buying product from us.”

Starr Ranch Growers sustains its partnerships, in part, with relevant point of sale material, social media campaigns and its website, said Shammo.

"Explaining how all our varieties are naturally cross pollinated and how our new sustainable packaging helps the environment are key to giving the customers a great eating experience and letting them know we are all doing our part to protect the environment. Customers are also realizing that we have a lot of great varieties out there that eat better than some of the older varieties which leads to newer apples like the Juici, Envy, Honeycrisp leading the category in growth,” he said.

As all apple growers find ways to encourage greater consumption of apples, Sage Fruit is embarking on a “Good Health in Hand” campaign for its retail partners for next year’s apple season to highlight the healthy attributes of apples, Sinks said. The company continues to explore packaging options that meet consumers’ demands for more sustainable options even while keeping them safe in the era of Covid. “There was an

increase in demand for bagged product over the last year and a half, and while it’s leveling out now, we expect to see a higher number of bags on retail shelves than what we would have seen five years ago,” he said.

To protect the integrity of its apples, Sage Fruit will continue to offer Apeel-treated organic apples next season, Sinks said. “Utilizing Apeel technology, we create a barrier on the fruit that helps prevent moisture loss and keeps product fresher for longer,” he said.

“Our goal is to provide our customers, and their consumers, with increased availability of premium organic apples.”

While Apeel is a plant-derived coating, the use of an external ingredient to treat the apples may turn some consumers off, and this is where Zeutenhorst said consumer education is so important. “We do a lot of organic farming here,” he said. “It’s incredibly regulated. One of the central themes for us as growers is to let people know how involved we are as companies. There’s this generalized idea that we sit out here trying to do negative things to the environment or whatever else. Absolutely not true. We live in these areas.

Our families are in these areas, and we work hard every day to produce really safe products for the US consumer and beyond. That’s a huge, huge thing not only in apples but in produce, is bridging that gap between the producer, the grower and the consumer for there to be an understanding of what’s going on, not only how safe their produce items are, but the amount of effort that goes in to making an apple or a potato or onion or whatever else.”

For Starr Ranch Growers, the effort also includes a concerted effort to improve packaging. “New, sustainable packaging from corrugated cardboard consumer packs that use no plastic to our new 100 percent recyclable HiC2 #2 pouch bags have helped us to become a leader in innovative packaging for the apple/pear/cherry category,” said Shammo. “We are continuously innovating and changing our orchards to match customer demands for great tasting apples.”

Fall Just Got

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Special Report

Pet Products in the Grocery Channel

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hough pet owners aim to support their local, pet specialty retail businesses when possible, the shifts in culture in the last 20 months that have many people still working from home and trying to reduce multiple shopping trips has led to more focus on maximizing education and sales in the grocery aisle. Suppliers and retailers have seen demand for occupying treats, toys and chews increase as pet owners want to both engage with their pets more as well as keep them occupied while they’re working from home.

Cat owners have also come around to cleaning litter boxes more frequently and working in more wet canned foods to their pets’ diets to promote better hydration. Knowing pet owners are doing some portion of their stocking up while doing their grocery shopping, these suppliers are ensuring they’re supporting their grocery retailer partners with high-quality products, fair prices, intuitive marketing support and reliably stocked inventory.

“The Covid pandemic has kept more residents at home and created a high demand for adopting dogs that also reflected in an increased need for chews to play and keep dogs entertained,” said Akiva Boclin, Director of The Lennox International. “Lennox has introduced new products and above all, we continue to make sure that replenishment to our customers is on time and without back orders.”

Consumers are really focusing on the occupying treat group of products, said Fritz Goodnow, CEO of Rush Direct, Inc. Pet Products. Accordingly, the company has extended existing lines and is planning to introduce products designed to safely keep pets entertained and stimulated while pet parents are nearby during office hours. “This might be to keep a pet happy while they work from home or such. To that end Rush Direct has extended the Ultra Chewy Double Treat Bone line in terms of both flavor, bone size and pack size to accommodate the needs of our consumers and their pets. We are also launching our Ultra Chewy Pawsible line of plant-based rawhide replacement treats that meet the needs of owners of large, medium PG 10 / GROCE R Y I N S I G H T

and small dogs with retriever rolls, curls and chips,” he said.

Joe Toscano, Vice President/Director Trade and Industry Development at Nestlé Purina North America offers a glimpse into how the feline segment has evolved in the last year and a half with pet parents spending more time at home and having more opportunities to observe and act on cleaning litter boxes and ensuring their pets are well-nourished and well-hydrated.

“For cats, we are seeing wet food being feed more on a consistent basis, which is beneficial for cats since most don’t drink enough water. Incorporating wet cat food into their diets can increase their water intake, improving overall hydration. In this same area, we have seen an increase in the feeding of complements category, which includes, soups, broths and other items that may also help with a cat’s hydration,” Toscano said.

“Outside of food, we are seeing that cat owners are seeing and changing their litter boxes more often. With people home a bit more, they see the litter box more often and think, ‘I should clean that now,’ contributing to litter sales growing at almost 10 percent,” he added. “A more general trend for pet food is the flourishing of super premium pet food. Better for you has translated to better for your pet, and people continue to want to feed good food to their four-legged family members.”

These sorts of insights shared between suppliers and their grocery retail partners are grounded in a collective resolve to help each other succeed with trustworthy and reliable products to place on shelves. Toscano said, “We craft 99 percent of our pet products at Purina-owned facilities in the US, which are 100 percent zero waste for disposal, so we can keep a close eye on every step of the process. We keep our ingredients safe with 100,000 daily quality checks.

We know exactly what goes into every batch, who made it, when it was made and where it’s going, and we only select dog and cat food ingredients for nutrition that helps your pet live his best life possible.”

Goodnow, with Rush Direct, said,

“Our treats are built on the premise that we can make great quality available to consumers at a great value. We deliver quality and value products on time, every time, to make sure our retailers are in a great position to always meet the needs of their consumers. We help make our buyer successful.”

While Mammoth Pet Products has been one of the reigning pet shop brands for rope toys for several years and continues to focus on supporting those shops, that reputation the company has built is now buoying its endeavor in grocery. “It has helped us tremendously on the grocery side of the business because there is now carryover and grocery is asking for the brands with success in this area,” Mark Pasco, VP of Sales said.

“We have continued doing it exactly the same way since inception building one toy at a time with a focus on quality and not quantity. It has proven well for us and we continue growing stronger each year as a leading and trusted supplier.”

Heading into the new year, Mammoth will continue focusing on core products that consumers ask for by name, such as the Tirebiters and Flossy Chews rope toys, Pasco said. “We also have a number of exciting new products that will be kicked off late in the first quarter of 2022 that will help to keep our brand growing strong into the new year and beyond. We have a responsibility to our customer base to keep our line new and fresh and we don’t take it lightly.”

Lennox, similarly, is adding to its product offerings and also increasing transparency for its consumers. Boclin said, “During the last two years we have added new information to our packaging including lab testing results or details related to products sourcing as well as advising consumers to make an educated decision prior to purchasing products for their beloved pets. Our goals have remained the same in our 31 years in business: to supply a consistent, high-quality line of assorted of dog chews and treats at an affordable price and to make sure retailers and distributors who support our lines have all the product they need to have their shelves always full.”

Special Report Asparagus

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rocery retailers have observed how asparagus has transitioned from a seasonal category to a yearround staple due to consumer request.

Even though demand experiences a pattern of peaks and valleys each year, the overall appetite for year-round asparagus remains steady and consistent.

Even out of season, asparagus is highly sought after, and consumers are willing to pay more for it. Retailers have characterized the vegetable as one that dutifully drives sales and consumer interest. One facet of being able to supply asparagus regularly, retailers say, is the time well spent nurturing their partnerships with suppliers.

Within the category, shoppers overwhelmingly prefer local and fresh. Expectations and popularity of being able to enjoy asparagus 12 months out of the year has tasked suppliers with sourcing further away, subsequently driving the price up. However, consumers are loyal to the category and to retailers who offer reliable supply and are not price sensitive. During asparagus season, grocery retailers are given the opportunity to drive consumer demand with aggressive prices and merchandising. It is integral to promote with retailers during the times of the year when asparagus prices can fluctuate.

“Asparagus sales have been higher last year, which is a common factor due to the pandemic, but overall sales have maintained momentum up until now,” said Bruno Bertucci with Longo's. “Local season was fair, but supply and quality were very good.”

“Asparagus has always been great for Gelson’s and continues to grow annually,” said John Savidan with Gelson's.

“For us, green asparagus leads the charge followed by white and purple varieties when available. Our customer base is very particular when it comes to quality and the size they prefer. At Gelson’s we rarely switch from sizing and almost always carry large unless there is a supply issue. In my opinion, asparagus has gained popularity over the last few years and in particular during the pandemic. Asparagus is versatile and serves well whether it’s raw, grilled, steamed, poached, or boiled making it a PG 12 / GROCE R Y I N S I G H T

solid year-round vegetable.”

“Consumer preference and demand is very particular in regards to asparagus,” said Gary Roselli with Foodtown. “Consumers have gravitated more and more to asparagus and Brussels sprouts, and both have seen similar rises in both demand and retail.”

Consumers’ preferences for locally sourced versus frozen has challenged retailers to strike a balance of keeping up with demand for locally sourced produce all yearlong.

“We offer local first, then, when that runs out or is in short supply, we offer new crop and close to home for freshness and consistency,” Bertucci said.

“Unfortunately for us, asparagus has a very small window of being a local item,” Savidan said. “As long as quality and sizing are good, so are our customers. It’s not uncommon for asparagus to be procured from Mexico or Peru, and we most certainly jump on California product when it’s available which is usually a very small window in the spring. From a buying and sourcing perspective, we see asparagus as a seasonal item, but I really don’t believe that our customers do. Regardless of the time of year at Gelson’s our customers can bypass the frozen aisle because they know they can count on getting a great eating, fresh bunch of asparagus each and every time they shop.”

“The good thing about asparagus is we have the ability to source it throughout the year from various locations such as Mexico, Peru, and even right here is New Jersey!” Roselli said. “We tend to focus more on the local aspect in the summer months until that runs out.

Unfortunately, it’s not very long due to weather constraints but once the season ends, we start to source from Peru and Mexico. Peru has some of the best asparagus outside of locally grown!”

The asparagus category has its share of misconceptions which suppliers are addressing through education and humor to engage retailers and end customers in a dialogue that can result in exploration and sales.

“We see untapped potential where there’s a lot of customers who haven’t necessarily eaten asparagus before,”

said Chris Ramirez, President of Altar Produce. “What we do to really promote it is to make sure we dial in on those time periods when we know there is a lot of asparagus going on and we can make it very accessible for everybody.

It’s important to take advantage of those time periods. If the retailer wants to increase their demand, they need to also take advantage of those time periods. If the retailer decides not to promote and just to sit on the pricing, it won’t have the same effect as if you’re promoting. The market and asparagus is so volatile, you need to be able to react and those are the kinds of customers that we enjoy working with, not those that can’t react to the changes in the market conditions. It’s crucial for us to have new customers try the vegetable.

When they see a price point that’s attractive to them, it opens the doors to be able to increase your consumer base.

But if it’s always sitting on the shelves at the $3.99, chances are people are going to shy away from it. If you see it one week and it’s 98 cents or $1.98 then it’s more appealing and again, there’s specific time periods when we can hit those prices. We need to make sure we’re promoting.”

“Listing everything from: thick asparagus are tough and woody; to asparagus should only be cooked in an asparagus steamer; to asparagus makes your pee smell, there are numerous asparaMYTHS still in circulation,” said Charles Welsh of Welsh Bros. “To demystify them, we as a grower and our retail and foodservice customers employ a variety of myth-busting techniques. These include: branded product hang tags; regular communications on our social streams covering everything from recipes, to storage tips, to asparaHACKS, to extending fridge life due to our proprietary hydro-cooling system; consumer facing branded shipping / display boxes and working with retailers to create eye-catching displays, recipe cards, cross-merchandising and, when appropriate, sampling opportunities. We have and continue to focus on one thing in our efforts to make our mark in the asparagus category—delivering premium fresh produce."

Special Report Tamales

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uppliers are tasked with enlightening retailers to the fact tamales are in high demand across the US. Tamales suppliers are responding to expectations of spicy flavor profiles, respecting traditional meals and bringing hectic families to a halt with fragrant and flavor forward entrees. Suppliers are bringing to retail shelves authentic Latin dishes and are even drawing in some of the harder-to-please consumers who are nostalgic for their abuela’s homemade cooking. These dishes require multiple steps to prepare and families either lack the time or are intimidated by what’s involved in preparing such an all-encompassing recipe. However, suppliers are ensuring consumers can regularly indulge in these dishes at home without requiring time or culinary skills and without spoiling memories of their families’ secret recipes.

Consumers are demanding spicy and hot dishes on top of robust flavors, said Tucson Tamale Founder Todd Martin.

“Hot and spicy things are always a hit but more so than ever people are looking for hot and spicy on top of great flavors,” Martin said. “People cooking at home for a year and a half made them more adventurous.”

In terms of adapting and ensuring they can continue to meet shoppers’ needs, “We are a self-manufacturer and we had always planned on adding capacity,” he continued. “We opened a second manufacturing facility here in Tucson so that increased our capacity by five-fold. And now, this year we are trying to keep the supply chain moving.

We are doing really well from a manufacturing perspective but the supply chain, it’s still happening but everything is delayed. Fortunately we monitor our inventory levels and pretty much everything is in stock everywhere. Everyone is trying to stay ahead of the game, increasing inventory levels, etc.”

“There are a lot more consumers across the country buying the product across all seasons as opposed to maybe just in the 4th quarter. And it’s not just people in Texas and in California and in places that know tamales but there seems to be broader demand,” said Louis McEneny, President of Texas Tamale PG 14 / GROCE R Y I N S I G H T

Company. “It’s consistent growth from year over year and I’ve seen it over the last 10 years. It’s just a broader acceptance of the product and maybe in the last year, I’ve seen retailers reaching out more saying we want to improve our tamale category.”

“Tamales and specifically with the Texas Tamale Company, we’re very well positioned in the market,” said McEneny. “Tamales seem to be a little bit closer on consumer acceptance.

We've been looking at empanadas and some other items and consumers just don’t seem ready to go after that. For some reason, with tamales, people seem more willing, and I don’t know if that’s from Hispanic Americans or just general acceptance of Mexican food or Tex Mex food across the country. When you start getting into Central American or even South American, food there’s a little bit more confusion because even Mexican Americans don’t know what empanadas are because they don’t eat those.”

“When you start diving into tamales and you start talking to people who have a relationship with them, it’s almost like going to an American and saying, ‘Hey, I know you like Thanksgiving dinner, but how about you let somebody else cook it and all of your traditions are different than what I’m going to give you,’ and then see what happens,” McEneny said. “People get defensive.

There are a lot of different ways to make tamales and there are a lot of things to put in them. That's difficult and that’s something that we don’t shy away from.

It’s hard to have Thanksgiving dinner every week and you don’t really want to cook Thanksgiving dinner every week either. You don’t want to cook tamales every week, it’s a pain. So it’s not like you can’t have it whenever you want it, but it doesn’t mean you can’t have the ones that you love and sometimes you can’t compare things. That's something we’ve been able to get past. There’s such a mindset from people that know the product, people who are adopters or current eaters of tamales, to get over the idea of ‘my grandmother’s tamales are the best.’ Nobody is saying they aren’t, but it doesn’t mean you can’t go to

the grocery store and buy these once a week for dinner or for a snack, and people are starting to see that where it’s not just something you make at home. The difference between a homemade waffle and an Eggo waffle is dramatic, but people still buy Eggo waffles and they still eat homemade waffles, and so it’s been interesting to see that transition.”

Educating retailers and consumers who don’t live in the Southwestern states requires addressing misconceptions that people have long-held and have prevented category exploration.

“What’s really interesting is when we talk to some buyers, they are either not very familiar with tamales or Mexican food and their first response—and this is a subset of buyers, not all buyers— that they say they don’t have Hispanic customers so nobody will buy the tamales,” Martin said. “We just show them the data that Mexican food is actually the No. 1 food in America, that more than 75 percent of all Americans say they like and enjoy Mexican foods. It’s showing them that Mexican food isn’t just for Hispanics—it’s for everybody.

Just like Italian. Once we’ve shown them that, then comes the a-ha moment, now they get it. That’s one of the biggest misconceptions. The second one for us is people who have had tamales said, ‘Oh I had a tamale once, and I didn’t like it.’

Then they try ours and they say, ‘I love this!’ Our flavor profiles are elevated from what you typically think of when you get a tamale. And so it’s really reeducating them not just on what tamales can and should be, but what ours are.”

"We’re working with the stores and trying to find opportunities," McEneny said. "Stores are very actively trying to develop out their multicultural platform within the frozen section of not just Tex Mex and Hispanic but Asian and Italian—anything as people have been pushed away from restaurants. Then the question is how fast do restaurants come back and do people still have the same demand to go to restaurants to say, 'How do I find that caliber of food at home and that convenience and affordability?' Millennials are looking for authentic flavors and something different than what they’ve eaten as kids."

#1 FROZEN TAMALE IN THE NATION! LORALIE HOLLY • LHOLLY@TEXASTAMALE.COM • TEXASTAMALE.COM • 713.795.5500

Special Report

Freeze-Dried Snacking

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reeze-dried produce allows for households to eat a balanced diet that includes the health benefits fruits and vegetables provide without having to beat the clock and enjoy these items before they perish or bruise. During the last year and a half shopping trips have involved stocking up and leaving with fuller baskets and carts to stretch time between store visits. Shelf stable items like freeze-dried snacking products allow for families to load up without worrying about quick turnarounds on expiration dates. Longer shelf lives give people time between outings, which has been a key component of shopping since early 2020. Suppliers in the freezedried snacking category responded to consumers’ demands this year with enhanced pack sizes while continuing to offer a simple way to snack on-the-go between meals throughout the day.

“We always aim to deliver on what the customer wants, and in this case, it was the larger package size,” said Andy Keane, Marketing Manager for Brothers International Food. “After the success of our 1 oz. Strawberry, we now offer our longstanding favorite Fuji-Apple fruit crisps and a brand new flavor, Mango, in our 1 oz., resealable package. The new packaging not only makes the fruit perfect for convenient, on-the-go snacking, but gives the customers a larger package they can snack on throughout the day. Our products are always made from real fruit with zero artificial colors or preservatives and are also largely allergen-free, allowing us to reach a wide variety of customers!”

The events of the last year propelled shoppers to adopt sound eating habits if they hadn’t already and those who were already including fruits and vegetables into their diet had a newfound commitment and drive. “More than ever, consumers are focused on healthy living and seek out healthy options as health continues to be an area of concern,” said Shaby Fisher, Global Marketing Manager for Chaucer’s Crunchies Food Co. “Specifically to the freeze-dried snacking category, we are continuing to see growth as consumers are looking for healthy, shelf stable options. We continue to deliver on these needs by ofPG 16 / GROCE R Y I N S I G H T

fering simple products, with simple ingredients, and spreading the word that snacking can be healthy. We highlight the health benefits of our products, all while focusing on the transparency of where they come from.”

Social media has been a proven medium and avenue for companies to educate and inform new and existing consumers about freeze-dried products and discuss what freeze-dried is not.

“It is extremely important for consumers to stay up-to-date and informed when it comes to freeze-dried snacking,” Keane said. “Often, other freezedried products contain preservatives, and/or added sugar, making it important to understand the ingredients of the product that you are buying. We have utilized the combination of our social media, blog and monthly newsletters to educate and connect with our customers and retail buyers about the benefits of our products seriously.”

“What sets us apart from many other products on the shelf is the fact that Brothers International has capabilities to source any fruit globally,” he added.

“Our product is unique and the one ingredient you begin the process with is the one and only ingredient that you end with, allowing the consumer to retain all of the natural flavors, aromas, sugars, and colors.”

During the last year, which has been marked with anxiety and unpredictability, companies would like for consumers to know that the suppliers within the category are dependable and the products themselves are a constant in their basket or cart. “We want our retailers to know that in a time of uncertainty, freeze-dried snacking continues to be a certainty,” Fisher said. “It not only provides a superior nutritional benefit above other snacks, but the preservation method also allows for pantry loading without compromising quality or nutrition. Crunchies continues to educate consumers in everything we do; from programs supporting our growing partners to our growing presence on social media. We also think it’s important to educate consumers from the shelf, and made some minor enhancements to our packaging to highlight the

nutritional benefits of our freeze-dried fruit snacks.”

Companies within the freeze-dried snacking space have made their mark while simultaneously earning trust of their retail and distribution partners as they thrive in the industry. “Brothers All Natural has continuously worked hard to provide our products and stay as a leader in the freeze-dried category, as well as a trusted supplier in the greater grocery industry,” Keane said. “Many traditional companies are pivoting to include healthier alternatives and we are proud to state we’ve always been at the forefront of this initiative. We aim to be the healthiest and tastiest snack available. As consumers continue to be more adventurous and health aware with their snacking, freeze-dried allows consumers accessible and convenient shelf-stable exotic fruits, making the category exciting and ever-changing.

Our steadfast beliefs are that less is always more and that our products are made perfectly with simple, shelf-stable ingredients containing zero additives or preservatives.”

“Crunchies has always stuck to its core values—traceability, reliability, and quality,” Fisher said. “With these core values and having strong policies and practices in place, it has allowed us to focus on providing innovative solutions to our retail partners, in turn allowing them to focus on their commitment to supporting their communities and consumers. We have been diligent in ensuring our continuity in the supply chain which is an area we have always led within the freeze-dried industry.”

Companies are hopeful for 2022 and expect to see continued growth. They are eager to continue offering choices and juicy flavors while keeping snacking occasions interesting and filling.

“Brothers All Natural is excited for the new year!” Keane said. “During 2021, the freeze-dried space has continued to grow and in 2022 we hope to launch some new innovative products to continue growing the category and offer customers even more choices. We are working to continue extending product lines, grow sales, and improve internal processes for better efficiency.”

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Special Report Pretzels

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he inability to shop at brick and ers to the aisle, but we’re bringing more are the holy grail of baking, and we stay mortar locations as frequently individuals that might not typically be very true to those roots. Our pretzels as they’d like and without a strategy salty snack consumers to the aisle.” are visually distinct with a mahogany in place has left many consumers feelUnique Snacks recently wrapped up brown crust, a shape that is not ‘cooking out of place. Alternatives like curb- a campaign to promote pretzels con- ie-cutter’ with the personal touch of side pickup, which our bakers, and a light are time savers, fluffy inside. They are "We share our story and our history with Retailers and Consumers. In rich in flavor and can and selecting and Bavaria, pretzels are the holy grail of baking, and we stay very true to paying for grocerbe enjoyed at room those roots. Our pretzels are visually distinct with a mahogany brown ies at the click of a temperature, toasted, crust, a shape that is not 'cookie-cutter' with the personal touch of our button from home or baked. We strive or the office offers Baker’s, and a light fluffy inside. They are rich in flavor and can be enjoyed for perfection and are unmatched conve- at room temperature, toasted, or baked. We strive for perfection and are proud to share these proud to share these passionately crafted treats.” nience.

Although passionately crafted — Janet Conning, Backerhaus Veit shopping for grotreats.” cery items like To achieve their lonbaked goods and gevity and status withproduce come with a sensory experi- sumption by pairing them with com- in the pretzels category, Backerhaus ence, the scent of freshly baked bread plementary beers to highlight the flavor Veit has steadily worked hard, taking its and the visual appeal of brightly hued profiles of each. Tröegs Independent responsibility to their craft and to meet fruits and vegetables, keeps shoppers Brewing and Unique Snacks kicked off consumers’ and retailers’ expectations returning to physical aisles. Suppliers a program offering shoppers options of seriously. in the pretzels category are challenged appealing combinations of craft beers “We bake pretzels every day with a with not only bringing high caliber and signature pretzels in late August commitment to quality and perfecting foods into consumers’ homes but also until the end of October. These flavor our craft,” Conning said. “Our Bavarian keeping pretzels accessible no matter profiles offered consumers unmistak- recipes are authentic; and we will nevhow consumers are shopping. It’s eas- ably flavorful pairings intended for folks er compromise keeping a simple list of ier to sell a baked good in-store as they to share with their families and friends. ingredients with no artificial colors and play upon shoppers' senses, but it's Tröegs and Unique experimented flavors, and no chemical preservatives. even more difficult when consumers with combinations to uncover ideal Our hope is that they are enjoyed at are not shopping in-person. pairings to bring out the full favors of home with family and friends.”

“Consumers continue to look for the craft beers and signature pretzels.

Rounding out 2021, Backerhaus Veit restaurant quality offerings in their The featured pairings included: Lucky is looking forward to creating opporturetail stores,” said Janet Conning, SVP Holler Hazy IPA with Sourdough Craft nities for friends and families to safeMarketing and Product Development Beer Pretzel Rings & Malted Barley, ly gather. Their belief is their pretzels for Backerhaus Veit. “Pretzel Buns are Tropical Pineapple and Haze Charmer offerings, whether it’s a fluffy twisted a popular favorite at restaurants as op- Haze Pale Ale with Multigrain Splits & pretzel or a soft pretzel bun, fosters erators promote gourmet burger and Savory Grains, Juicy Pineapple. meals and snacks people can enjoy with sandwich offerings as well as unique “Tröegs’ devotion to the art and sci- others. “We have spent so much time appetizers and small share plates. To ence of brewing flavorful, refreshing apart over the last two years, and as the help retailers capitalize on this trend, beers using only the best ingredients, calendar turns to 2022, we see more Backerhaus has launched a Retail Ready including some from right here in Penn- time with family and friends,” Conning Pretzel program that includes: Pretzel sylvania, creates a natural alignment said. “There are so many unique ways Hamburger Bun 4-count.; Pretzel Hoa- with our focus on creating distinct fla- to share these passionately crafted soft gie Roll 4-count.; Pretzel Dinner Roll vor and textural characteristics using Bavarian pretzels that they are sure to 6ct.; and Pretzel Twist 4-count. The full fewer ingredients to create greater fla- be the talk around any table - make a line-up leverages our time-honored Ba- vor,” said Justin Spannuth, Chief Operat- unique charcuterie platter, dress them varian recipe to ensure that consumers ing Officer of Unique Snacks. up and enjoy on pizza night, or they experience pretzels the way they were To dispel confusion surrounding the make the perfect sandwich—minis or meant to be!” category, Backerhaus Veit shares its traditional. Our innovation is focused “The pretzel category is fun and excit- company’s story and history to not only on expanding pretzel consumption with ing,” said a Dot’s Pretzels spokesperson educate but to connect with a consumer unique formats and flavors, so that they last fall. “Our hopes with Dot’s Pretzels base and entice people to explore their can be a part of any meal. We are helpis to reinvigorate the channel and to product line. “We share our story and ing both retailers and consumers see bring more awareness. Dot’s Pretzels our history with retailers and consum- that the possibilities are endless!” are not only bringing more pretzel buy- ers,” Conning said. “In Bavaria, pretzels PG 18 / GROCE R Y I N S I G H T

Special Report Dough

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ough category suppliers are finding that consumers still like to cook at home even if the novelty and appeal of home cooking that was kickstarted by the pandemic has largely waned. With more people resuming working in the office or in-person instruction at school, time in the kitchen is limited, so convenience is a significant selling point for pre-made dough.

Nonetheless, the desire to eat healthier and to find options for those with food sensitivities is still a strong force that leads consumers toward companies that have vegan, gluten-free and allergy-friendly options.

“This year while home baking spiked, many consumers were looking for small shortcuts allowing them to make their own baked goods without having to make it from scratch,” said Ashley Chard-Dinella, Director of Marketing for The Run-A-Ton Group. “Premade dough, like our Wholly Wholesome and Wholly Gluten Free pie shells, rolled dough and pizza dough met that need and, as such, we saw a dramatic increase in sales. As more people have gone back to work in different capacities, our dough continues to appeal to the busy semi-homemade chef who appreciates being able to cook but is short on time.

This year we have also started selling our products direct to consumer online with more consumers turning to online shopping.”

Jim Viti, VP Sales and Marketing for DeIorios Foods uses the term “healthy indulgence” to describe what consumers have sought in 2021. “Coming into the year we anticipated the possibility of putting the pandemic behind us, but that has proven to not be the case. Consumer sentiment remains steadfast to transition to healthier options with less ingredients and cleaner labels. At the same time, comfort foods continue to play a prominent role for families and individuals coping with these challenging times. We are providing solutions such as veggie-inclusion dough items that can serve as a platform for tastier meal occasions with a healthier alternative,” he said.

People are still enjoying making pizzas at home, said Terry Thompson, CEO PG 20 / GROCE R Y I N S I G H T

Feel Good Dough. “People are more concerned with their ingredients and are also being a little more creative,” she said. “I see more manufacturers also making more pizza-style cooking items like stone ovens in the backyard and sheet metal pans and stones, just a variety of things. This past year for us, we are really focusing more on the plant-based consumer as well as the vegan consumer because of the fact that our dough fits into that category very well because we have such high protein. We have like 56 grams of protein in our dough plus it tastes really good.

And if you’re vegan you’re always looking for more sources of protein as well as plant-based. It’s not even just a profitable thing but we just know that they need it so that’s our goal.”

Thompson regards her target customer as older individuals who are seeking cleaner ingredients to either maintain health and in some cases, to have complete nutrition when fighting diseases like cancer. “They’re looking for dough that offers those kinds of ingredients that matter,” she said. “And it could be anything from no sugar for one person, or organic ingredients for another, or natural probiotic for another.

We’re filling those holes in the store and people are finding us because they’re reading the ingredients.”

Consumers are also finding Feel Good Dough products in the grab and go sections of grocery stores – sometimes in delis, in addition to freezers. “Retailers are seeing the benefit of having dough in that section. For a store, having our organic dough not only in the freezer but putting it next to regular dough in the dolly, educates people,” she said.

“Because most people don’t know that’s even an option. It’s really the dough they’ve been missing. They just never even knew it was out there.”

Viti with DeIorios Foods said the company also worked quickly to fill a need in grocery. “We noted a gap on store freezer shelves in terms of fresh dough pizza-making. Most products available are on pre-baked shells, so the consumer is baking it for a second time at home and missing out on the fresh dough experience. We introduced

a raw dough pizza kit as a solution for consumers who want to be invested in creating a high-quality meal occasion while enjoying the convenience of not having to make their meal from scratch.

It’s a terrific intermediary product that promotes a combination of quality and convenience the whole family can be involved with and enjoy.”

Meanwhile, DeIorios Foods is working on carving out its space in “healthy indulgence,” said Viti. “We’re lining up solutions for this evolving category. Dietary-specific items such as veggie-inclusion, keto, paleo, vegan, organic/ non-GMO, and sustainability sensitive items are just some examples of products currently in development to service a plethora of niche requests from our grocery customers,” he said.

Across its brands, the Run-A-Ton Group has similarly noted the growing consumer demand for these types of clean eating options, said Chard-Dinella. “We have seen our online B2C business blossom as it helps serve consumers who don’t have access to the full breadth of our product in their local stores and is a valuable extension of the brick-and-mortar grocery stores which continue to be a critical resource for our consumers.”

These dough manufacturers are aware that dough has a reputation for being intimidating for someone who isn’t comfortable in the kitchen, or who simply doesn’t have the time.

“Our doughs are specifically created to achieve the homemade taste and texture with ingredients you can find in our own pantry, while saving the time and stress of baking from scratch,” said Chard-Dinella. “This makes working with dough easy and accessible. Innovation in the dough category can seem like a paradox but consumers are demanding vegan, gluten-free and allergy-friendly options. There are definitely misconceptions that if a product has any one—never mind all three—of these attributes it will not have a satisfying taste or texture. We feel that we have been able to dispel this misconception, but at the end of the day, we rely on our products to speak for themselves.”

Special Report

Regional Merchandising in Eggs

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ithin the regions leading egg suppliers call home, these companies are committed and driven to persistently support and advocate for their retail partners.

“Handsome Brook Farms offers two exceptional benefits for Northeastern shoppers,” said Matthew Sherman CMO of Handsome Brook Farms. “Foremost, we are the largest local producer of organic pasture raised eggs. We started in the Northeast (Franklin, NY) and continue to work with a robust network of family-owned farms throughout New York, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia.

This means that our Northeast shoppers are getting the most humanely and sustainably produced, freshest eggs possible that are locally raised in their region. Additionally, because of our relative size both in and out of the Northeast region, we are able to offer this exceptional quality at an extraordinary value. Our experience allows us to offer farmers market quality at competitive supermarket prices to local Northeast retailers and consumers.”

“As far as Nature’s Yoke as a strong partner to the retailers in our region the biggest thing is Nature’s Yoke and Utopihen Farms are very niche specialty egg brands so we don’t do any commodity, or caged hens,” said George Weaver IV, Marketing and Brand Specialist and fourth generation, for Nature’s Yoke, a brand which his father founded. Within the last year, the company launched the brand Utopihen Farms. “Nature’s Yoke is our 100 percent free range brand where Utopihen farms is 100 percent pasture raised, with both addressing different consumer needs,” Weaver explained.

“We’re not the price-driven category,” he continued. “We are the specialty, and because of that our pricing will tend to be higher. Sometimes at the retail shelf when the dairy manager is looking at the turn rate on SKUs for example our product won’t turn as much right at the shelf. But what we say, we look at the holistic view, the whole picture when we go into retailers and encourage them on the higher basket value. The Nature’s Yoke and Utopihen consumers who come to those retailers will have a higher basket value than most of the egg PG 22 / GROCE R Y I N S I G H T

brands in the case. And that’s because the consumers that buy our product are also buying the healthy everything if you will. What we like to encourage our retailers in is our niche products, Nature’s Yoke and Utopihen Farms both respond to direct consumer needs. For example, we do omega-3 eggs in the Nature’s Yoke brand, we do soy-free, we do duck eggs in the Utopihen brand and all of those eggs are responding to specific needs and that’s what makes us such a strong partner in a lot of ways. Big agribusiness can’t do those small products.

Working with small family farms we can respond to those needs. That’s definitely what really drives a strong partnership with our retailers and they know that anything they get from any one of the brands is coming from, for this region, is local compared to the other egg brands that are coming in from other regions.”

He added, “Another point that I’ll mention, because of this whole cagefree referendum that are coming up right now, we’re already there. There are a lot of states that are starting to move away from caged hens and going to cage-free plus. We are actually free range plus. For our partners, we can go in there and say look, you shouldn’t be worried, we are already there, we’re already meeting all of the laws. We have that all there. That's a reason why our partners love working with us.”

Egg suppliers have the same level of commitment of continually understanding their consumer following and unfolding what makes them unparalleled in their shopping habits, expectations and demands of not only the eggs but the process of farm to table. “Northeastern consumers are a uniquely diverse and savvy bunch,” Sherman said. “They tend to know a tremendous amount about the products they buy and typically care a lot about product quality and sourcing. That said, they are also very value-conscious. The brands that succeed in the Northeast have to deliver something unique at a tangible value for customers. For example, in the egg market, the most unique aspect of the Northeast region is that it is the primary market for jumbo-sized eggs because

consumers see them as a better value!”

“We know the Mid-Atlantic region and we’re learning the many other regions as well, and in a lot of ways they all speak the same language,” Weaver said.

“Since Covid, there’s been a lot more cooking and baking at home, inspired by cooking shows and things like that and as that’s been increasing the education and the importance of ethical, sustainable raised food has been growing as well. A lot of people are coming into the store way more knowledgeable and are learning what do they want?

What brand do they know they can support? A lot of the habits are around that.

They're around the duck eggs because they know they’re great for baking. The soy-free eggs because they can actually eat a soy-free egg because they’re allergic to soy, or whatever it might be. That’s the type of demands we’re seeing. Just because we’re answering those needs, that’s not the only reason I’m saying them. We’re seeing that on the category at large. People wanting to get more of their niche one off type products and for us we fit that category. We’re not the biggest egg brand in the US, that’s not who we are. We want to be able to respond directly to those consumer needs on a daily basis.”

“Our goal is to push the industry forward," he added. "Since we’ve made some pretty bold statements that we’re moving away, other competitors are doing it as well and it definitely seems to be what the market is demanding. So that’s another trend or habits that have been changing.”

As a result of preparing more meals at home, consumers are unsurprisingly seeking out larger pack sizes of eggs, which suppliers have noticed and are responding to. “Covid and eating at home have made consumers more interested in larger size packages in the egg category,” Sherman said. “For Handsome Brook, and other brands, this means introducing sizes like 18 counts in large eggs. Previously, these may not have been as appealing to consumers and retailers were not willing to devote the extra shelf space required. This has changed over the past 18 months.”

OUR TASTY NEW LOOK CLASSIC FREE RANGE ORGANIC FREE RANGE ORGANIC PASTURE RAISED

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At Benestar Brands we know taste is king, even for snackers looking to make better choices. With a wide variety of flavors and textures, we create delicious snacks that give them permission to enjoy snacking again.

Let’s start the conversation sales@benestarbrands.com

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