Page 48 - Deli Business June/July 2020
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FEATURE
“The recent COVID-19 outbreak has people centered on pre-packaged prod- ucts even more,” she says. “They’re able to reduce their time in-store, while also lim- iting the number of people touching that product before it hits their cart.”
Furthermore, demand for organic and low sodium products have encouraged delis to expand the variety of products offered. Non-GMO, organic and gluten free prod- ucts have all become widely available in
delis. In general, health-conscious consum- ers have increased demand for high-quality deli products, indicated by a 3.2 percent increase in shopper trips to the deli in 2018, according to the IDDBA.
Flavor is King
In response to the recent increase in consumption of poultry, companies have begun increasing the variety of flavors available to consumers. Varieties such as
spicy chipotle chicken, tomato and basil turkey and pineapple turkey have become available to improve the taste of somewhat bland poultry meats.
Megan Dorsch, marketing manager of Nueske’s Hillcrest Farm’s Meats, head- quartered in Wittenberg, WI, says the company’s focus has largely been on classic smoke, Applewood and newer smoke vari- etal, Wild Cherrywood Smoked Bacon, offering both traditionally cured and uncured options for consumers.
“Nueske’s has increased our sales of sliced bacon and slab bacon for slicing to custom thicknesses over the past sev- eral years,” she says. “We’ve also added to our line-up of traditional, pre-cooked deli meats, which included Applewood Smoked Turkey Breast and Applewood Smoked Ham, by offering a ham with a new flavor profile earlier this spring. Our newest bone- less ham is hand-rubbed with black pepper before going into our smokehouse and is a stand-out on sandwiches.”
Cibao Meat Products, based in Rockaway, NJ, has been seeing a high demand for meats that include turkey, ham, roast beef and salami.
“Many people don’t know this, but we actually have many non-traditional salami brands,” says Jaline Isidor Horta, Cibao Meat’s digital marketing director. “We have our Pavolami Salami, which is our 100 percent turkey salami. We also have a brand named after our founder, Don Filo. In his honor we have a salami, Don Filo Arenquelami, that contains herring. Being of German descent, this was something he would do during the holidays to give as a gift to family and friends.”
The company first offered this as a holi- day only item, but due to high demand, it is now available all year.
“We also have our Don Filo Chicken, which is one of our products that is more lean, as well as Don Filo Turkey Ham, which is our smoked turkey salami,” she says.
Trending Up
Simone Bocchini, president of Mount Olive, NJ-based Fratelli Beretta, is one of the biggest players in the salami game and has seen a big uplift trend in the consumer who is looking for artisanal and old style formula salamis.
“The trend is to mix old with new, more than in the formula than in the consumer usage method, meaning small, portable
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