Markon Launches Two Ready-To-Serve Salad Blends

Salinas, Calif. – To make healthful ingredients more readily available in unique and on-trend flavor combinations for foodservice operators, Markon Cooperative is introducing two salad products: Ready-Set-Serve® (RSS) Kale Color Crunch and RSS Urban Blend™. 

Both ready-to-use products offer foodservice operators easy ways to integrate new and nutrient-dense items to their menus.

• Markon’s RSS Kale Color Crunch is a vibrant blend of 30 percent rainbow kale, 30 percent shaved Brussels sprouts, 10 percent Napa cabbage, 15 percent red cabbage, 5 percent radicchio and 10 percent carrots. This fresh blend can be used as a salad, sauté, slaw, topping or garnish, and is ready to use right out of the bag.

• Created by Markon’s member chefs, the proprietary RSS Urban Blend salad is a unique, versatile and nutrient-dense combination of baby red chard, wild arugula and baby kale. This healthful salad can be used on its own, sautéed, stir-fried or added to smoothies, and is ready to use right out of the bag. This new salad blend is available only through Markon’s member distributors (Ben E. Keith Foods, Gordon Food Service, Maines Paper & Food Service, Nicholas & Company, Reinhart Foodservice, and Shamrock Foods Company). Learn more about the RSS Urban Blend salad and get additional serving ideas from Markon's product video.

“In the foodservice environment, the kitchen continues to move at an increasingly fast pace,” said Tim York, Markon’s president. “Our new Ready-Set-Serve salad combinations not only offer 100 percent usable product, but also eliminate the need for buying and prepping numerous ingredients without sacrificing quality, taste or safety.”

According to Technomics, kale’s menu use continues to grow year over year by 37 percent and remains a popular foodservice item. With its Kale Color Crunch, Markon sought to create a unique product to meet this demand in a new way. Since this salad uses rainbow kale, chefs are easily able to add color beyond green to their dishes, while the crunch of the salad’s six ingredients ups the interest factor.

“We are excited to launch this great new Markon product to our customers.  Operators will love the versatility of RSS Kale Color Crunch across their menu, be it in hot or cold applications, as the star of an entrée salad or a finishing touch to a burger or slaw on a fish taco. On-trend flavors, labor savings, another great Markon Ready-Set-Serve first,” stated Rob Ondrus, Reinhart Foodservice’s director of category management/produce.

The new RSS Urban Blend salad was created specifically for Markon by its foodservice member chefs at its first annual Chef’s Summit held in August 2015. For the first time, member chefs partnered to create a healthful, flavorful and on-trend ready-to-serve salad option that meets the increased demand for such products in foodservice establishments.

“This product is the trifecta of salad blends. It combines colorful, nutrient-dense baby red chard and baby kale along with a peppery punch of wild arugula – perfect for salads, smoothies, and sautéed side dishes,” said Jason Beecher, product development specialist for Gordon Food Service. 

According to member chef Bud Andersen with Ben E. Keith Foods, the name Urban Blend is designed to convey its fit for sophisticated menus. “We see it as a nutritious, practical, yet flavorful addition to any menu,” he added.

Markon’s RSS Kale Color Crunch and RSS Urban Blend are backed by Markon’s unparalleled 5-Star Food Safety® program which tracks products at five key points: fields, facilities, transportation, distributor warehouses and operators’ kitchen, along with providing full traceability back to the field. For more information, visit Markon.com.

About Markon

From its headquarters in Salinas, California, Markon Cooperative, Inc. provides fresh produce purchasing, logistics, information, and marketing services exclusively to its member distributors (Ben E. Keith Foods, Gordon Food Service, Maines Paper & Food Service, Nicholas & Company, Reinhart Foodservice, and Shamrock Foods Company) and their foodservice customers. A leader in food safety, quality control, and innovation, Markon is also mindful of the produce industry's impact on people – from field workers to consumers. Read more about Markon at Markon.com.

Source: Markon Cooperative, Inc.