More Ready-to-Zap Foods Showing Up in the Freezer Case

Frozen food, enjoying a prolonged sales boom, is branching out. Many grocers are making more space for gourmet and specialized foods from companies like Boston Market Corp. and ConAgra Foods Inc. that are expanding their offerings. Moreover, better freezing techniques allow foods to stay fresher and retain more nutrients. And new types of packaging, such as microwave "crisping trays" that keep panini from getting soggy, help make taste and texture more like freshly prepared food.

As a result, sales of frozen entrées and side dishes are booming. In a year when supermarkets aggressively cut prices and battled with deflation, frozen-food sales grew 3.1% to $40.5 billion for the 52 weeks ended Jan. 23, according to Nielsen Co. That was more than four times the 0.7% rate of growth for total food sales.

Wall Street Journal

ConAgra campaign instills pride in employees

Since ConAgra completed an image makeover in June, it has targeted employees, not customers or investors, with the highest volume of marketing. The goal is to build a network of informed employees who will advocate for company brands, supermarket staples such as Healthy Choice, Hunt’s, Chef Boyardee and Peter Pan peanut butter.

“I think it helps, just in terms of employee familiarity with what we’re working on,” said Teresa Paulsen, a company spokeswoman. “Even if somebody doesn’t work in a (research and design) lab, they can talk about our innovation and products with friends and family.”

Omaha.com

Pumped-Up Marketing Boosts ConAgra

"Significantly improved" and increased marketing contributed to strong double-digit growth for Healthy Choice, Marie Callender's, Banquet and other consumer brands during ConAgra's fiscal 2009 fourth quarter, the company reported.

The Consumer Foods segment posted 13.8% sales growth (including 7% unit growth and 8% growth from pricing/mix), to reach $2.14 million during the quarter, which ended May 31. The division's operating profit increased 53%, to $271 million.

MediaPost

ConAgra Foods Reveals A New Brand Identity

The new identity has been created after research with multiple stakeholder groups, including customers. The logo features a new, more contemporary color palette along with a ‘spoon in plate’ icon designed to reinforce the company’s position. The tagline, “Food you love” reinforces the company brands that consumers love, Con Agra said.

Gary Rodkin, CEO of ConAgra Foods, said: “Our new brand identity is an articulation of the essence of ConAgra Foods–making great food. We’ve changed the company fairly dramatically over the past several years to get these strong brands and products at the core of everything we do."

Food Business Review
BrandWeek

Cans Are Hot!

Back to basics with an increased focus on center-store innovation:

“Center store is back,” said Tom Vierhile, a research director who tracks new products at Datamonitor in New York. “People got away from it in the first place because it lacked the pizzazz and sex appeal” that’s present in categories such as the frozen and fresh produce units, he said.

BrandWeek

ConAgra's Chow Talks Innovation, Insights

Joan Chow: It’s definitely “fewer, bigger and better.” We call it sticky innovation, meaning that when you launch it, it sticks around. It’s not just a flash in a pan and then it’s gone. Steaming is one of our major platforms. You see it with the Healthy Choice Asian Inspired Café Steamers; the technology has been expanded to Healthy Choice Fresh Mixers and now with Marie Callender’s Pasta Al Dente, which uses that same platform.

BrandWeek

Food Firms Cook Up Ways to Combat Rare Sales Slump

Fast moving consumer goods? Now not moving so fast:

In the last quarter of 2008, consumer spending on food fell by an inflation-adjusted 3.7% from the previous quarter -- its steepest drop in 62 years, the Commerce Department said. So, food giants are racing to adapt to what they believe is a lasting shift in eating and shopping habits.

Kraft Foods Inc. recently launched an application for Apple's iPhone. Called the iFood Assistant, it allows people to search for recipes and manage their shopping lists. Nestle SA is pushing hard its popular Lean Cuisine frozen entrees, offering five for $10 in some stores. Campbell Soup Co. is creating more sophisticated recipes that mimic restaurant offerings, such as Braised Beef with Shallots made with the company's Swanson beef stock.

Wall Street Journal

Healthy Choice Just Got Healthier and a Makeover!!!

"Twenty years after Healthy Choice first launched, manufacturer ConAgra Foods is rolling out a revitalized brand that it says isn’t just lower in fat, calories and sodium, but also now offers more proactive nutrition, contemporary flavors and an updated look."- Progressive Grocer

Healthy Choice Website

Sugar Is Back on Food Labels, This Time as a Selling Point

Kraft, Pepsi, ConAgra and others now touting the presence of real sugar in foods as a positive.

The turnaround comes after three decades during which high-fructose corn syrup had been gaining on sugar in the American diet. Consumption of the two finally drew even in 2003, according to the Department of Agriculture. Recently, though, the trend has reversed. Per capita, American adults ate about 44 pounds of sugar in 2007, compared with about 40 pounds of high-fructose corn syrup.

“Sugar was the old devil, and high-fructose corn syrup is the new devil,” said Marcia Mogelonsky, a senior analyst at Mintel International, a market-research company.

New York Times

Food Marketers Take Safer Course in Recession

As economy contracts, marketers increasingly rely on the safe and familiar:

Whereas previous years were marked by ambitious launches and re-branded lines, this meeting was mainly about line extensions or re-branding. Campbell emphasized it is reducing the sodium content across its soup portfolio, with 50% of its soups expected to have less salt than the original versions by fiscal 2010. General Mills is building on its success in the cereal category by offering new versions of its most popular brands, such as Banana Nut Cheerios. Kellogg Co. is launching savory cracker products tied to its Special K brand (a line extension), and a number of new Eggo waffles with flax and blueberries (also a line extension).

Ad Age

General Mills, ConAgra Report Good Quarters

While factors such as the lingering effects of recent high commodities prices and consumer resistance to value-priced brands had some impact, both General Mills and ConAgra reported solid financial performance for their latest quarters on Wednesday.

Marketing Daily

Foodmakers come up with 'Smart Choice' label to denote healthier fare

The label, dubbed "Smart Choices," will be featured on products made by General Mills, Unilever, Coca-Cola, Pepsico, Kellogg and Con-Agra, as well as Kraft. Wal-Mart, the nation's leading grocery retailer, also played a role in developing the program, though the label will be carried on products sold at all grocery stores.

Chicago Tribune

ConAgra Cuts 1Q Earnings Forecast; Consumer Foods Sales Down

The maker of Chef Boyardee pasta and other products said profit in its largest segment was lower than a year earlier, with high-single-digit sales growth on essentially flat volume, but ingredient costs were higher than planned. Key areas of underperformance were cooking oils, tablespreads, Banquet frozen foods and popcorn.

The company said its supply chain and savings initiatives are on track toward full-year targets.

CNN Money