MONTEREY, Calif. — Just nine months after launching DOLE® All Natural Chopped Salads, Monterey, Calif.-based Dole Fresh Vegetables is expanding the popular line to leverage strong sales and growing consumer demand for greater flavor variety in the chopped salad segment.
Dole will add two new, flavor-focused chopped salad kits to its five other chopped salad SKUs introduced last fall to strengthen its grip on the segment and build upon the industry’s first and most complete line of all-natural chopped salads kits and blends.
The two new SKUs – DOLE® All Natural Chopped Sesame Asian Salad Kit and DOLE® All Natural Chopped Sunflower Crunch Salad Kit – continue Dole’s proven chopped salad formula of combining popular consumer flavor profiles with nutrient-dense nutrition provided by the goodness of kale.
National retail availability starts today with an SRP of $3.99, consistent with Dole’s other premium kits.
Dole’s two new chopped salad kits include:
- DOLE® All Natural Chopped Sesame Asian Salad Kit combines crunchy cabbage, crisp Romaine and baby kale with a refreshing combination of Asian-inspired ingredients including roasted sliced almonds, garlic wontons, sweet carrots, green onions and Dole’s original Toasted Sesame Ginger Vinaigrette.
- DOLE® All Natural Chopped Sunflower Crunch Salad Kit offers a sweet and savory mix of farmhouse-worthy lettuces, vegetables and toppings including crunchy cabbage, crisp Romaine, baby kale, sweet carrots, green onions, Applewood smoked bacon and sunflower seeds – all topped with Dole’s original Sweet Onion & Citrus Dressing.
According to Markus Eriksson, senior brand manager for Dole Fresh Vegetables, Dole’s newest chopped salad kits give consumers exactly what they want: a taste-first experience featuring layers of flavor, texture, color and crunch in every bite.
“The success of DOLE® Chopped confirms that consumers want chopped salads that combine the health benefits of salad with craveable tastes that they can’t easily recreate at home,” he said. “These two newest kits leverage such on-trend flavors as sesame ginger, roasted almond, onion, citrus and sunflower seeds to offer salad users a memorable, taste-first chopped salad experience.”
The two new kits follow three Dole chopped salad kits (Chipotle & Cheddar, BBQ Ranch and Bacon & Bleu) and two chopped salad blends (Summer Garden and Asian) introduced in September 2013. Dole created the seven chopped salad varieties after extensive research into chopped salad usage, attitudes and taste preferences, and to be consistent with its ongoing commitment to all-natural salad kit ingredients.
The two new products will be available alongside Dole’s salad kits and blends. Dole will support them with coupons; digital advertising; web, social media and shopper marketing programs; exclusive Salad Circle content; and kit-specific new recipes and serving suggestions. An exhaustive PR and sampling program will elicit product trial and reviews from food media, culinary and fitness bloggers, registered dieticians (RDs), supermarket registered dieticians (SRDs), chefs and other salad ambassadors.
About DOLE Salads
DOLE® Salads is one of the world’s largest lines of packaged salads, with a wide range of unique bagged salad blends and all-natural salad kits. The line is supported by a comprehensive online library of salad and green-based recipes, serving suggestions and entertaining tips, as well as other resources including the Dole Salad Circle, which offers a first look at new recipes and tips. For details, go to www.dolesalads.com or the DOLE® Salads Facebook page at www.facebook.com/dolesalads.
About Dole Food Company, Inc.
Dole Food Company with 2012 revenues of $4.2 billion, is one of the world’s largest producers and marketers of high-quality fresh fruit and fresh vegetables, Dole is an industry leader in many of the products it sells, as well as in nutrition education and research. For more information, please visit www.dole.com or http://investors.dole.com.
Source: Dole Food Company, Inc.
