Conagra Brands, one of North America’s leading branded food companies, introduced a diverse range of new meals, vegetable side dishes and snacks at Natural Products Expo West 2024 in Anaheim, California, which ran from March 14-16. Drawing inspiration from top culinary trends and popular restaurant offerings, its latest arrivals combine quality ingredients, flavor to savor and convenience.
“Expo West is the perfect time for us to unveil an exciting collection of new foods,” said Burke Raine, president of the Chicago, Illinois-headquartered company’s frozen and refrigerated division. “Our team has worked hard to ensure a fantastic culinary experience, and we’re excited to give visitors to Expo West a first taste of these great offerings.”
Visitors to the Conagra booth at the show sampled several new items scheduled to debut in stores this May. The line-up includes the following:
evol
Celebrating flavorful ingredients presented with style, evol’s frozen meals deliver modern American recipes that are elevated yet approachable. Four new frozen meals take their cue from restaurant menus and offer a complementary protein, starch and vegetable.
• Hot Honey Chicken: A hot honey glaze turns up the heat on fried white meat chicken, sweet potatoes, and seasoned Brussels sprouts
• Garlic Herb Steak: A savory yet tender combination, garlic herb flavors the steak. Roasted potatoes and seasoned broccoli accompany the meal
• Chicken Adobo: This flavorful take on Mexican cuisine features juicy white meat chicken with a red chili Adobo sauce, and sides of elote-style corn and cilantro rice
• Meatballs and Orzo: Savory meatballs are covered in a creamy tomato sauce and paired with fluffy orzo and seasoned green beans
In addition to the new single-serve meals, evol’s collection of bowls welcome an innovative seafood dish: Garlic Shrimp Cavatappi. It features pasta, grilled shrimp and roasted red peppers in a creamy garlic sauce.
Blake’s
Within the growing $5 billion-dollar frozen comfort meals category, Blake’s is the leader in better-for-you pot pie sales. Now the brand’s farm-to-table philosophy is extending to four new all-natural comfort food meals. Each includes a protein, starch and side.
• Country Fried Chicken: This classic American white meat chicken dish is covered in creamy gravy and paired with roasted potatoes and seasoned green beans
• Homestyle Meatloaf: Another comfort food icon, savory meatloaf is topped with gravy, with sides of roasted potatoes and sweet corn
• Roasted Chicken: A creamy cheese sauce pairs perfectly with juicy chicken, accompanied by seasoned broccoli and cheesy rice
• BBQ Seasoned Pork: Braised pork with a tangy sauce, the meal is complemented with cheesy pasta and sweet corn
Frontera
The popularity of Mexican cuisine shows no signs of slowing in the USA. Among the popular menu items, frozen enchiladas have seen 6% sales growth over the past year with $278 million in sales.
The heritage of Frontera is rooted in the restaurants created by chef Rick Bayless. Two new enchiladas reflect his passion for authentic, quality ingredients: Chicken Enchiladas with Chile Verde Sauce and Cheese Enchiladas with Red Enchilada Sauce. Both are made with corn tortillas and filled with delicious ingredients.
Gardein
The Ultimate Plant-Based collection from Gardein continues to accentuate the taste experience in plant-based food products, giving vegans, vegetarians and flexitarians numerous ways to enjoy their favorite dishes meat free.
• Ultimate Plant-Based Meatballs: These hearty faux meatballs contain 19 grams of protein per serving
• Ultimate Plant-Based F’sh: A plant-based way to enjoy alternative fish and chips, each filet 3 oz. fillet is covered in a crispy panko breading
• Ultimate Plant-Based Bowls – Chick’n Fried Rice: The latest addition to Gardein’s range of single-serve bowls features one of the category’s fastest-growing flavors. Ingredients include plant-based Chick’n, rice, peas, carrots and a savory sauce
Purple Carrot
While top-trending Asian flavors are leading overall frozen single-serve meal growth, the plant-based category is underrepresented. Purple Carrot’s two debuts are designed to satisfy the need.
• Vegetable Tikka Masala: A classic Indian dish featuring roasted sweet potatoes, chickpeas, red bell peppers and sweet peas over farro and brown rice with a tikka masala sauce
• Sweet & Sour Cauliflower: A quintessential Asian-style sauce made with pineapple ginger topping cauliflower, edamame, red bell peppers and carrots over farro and brown rice
Alexia
This brand continues to address the vegetable side dish experience, drawing on its chef-founded roots and a commitment to quality ingredients. Within the value-added vegetables category, sauced and seasoned is the fastest growing behavior, setting the stage for two new skillet sides and two new oven-roasted sides from Alexia.
• Brown Butter Green Beans: A stasty take on the No. 1 skillet prepared vegetable, green beans
• Hot Honey Carrots: With 40% menu penetration growth over the past year3, hot honey is a flavorful accompaniment for the No. 2 skillet prep vegetable, carrots
• Parmesan Truffle Broccoli: The No. 1 oven prep vegetable, broccoli, meets an elevated parmesan truffle sauce
• Balsamic Brussels Sprouts & Carrots: A maple balsamic sauce offers a nice finishing touch for this colorful blend of oven-roasted vegetables
