AUSTIN, Texas — As fresh-cut continues to be a focus for produce companies, so do vegetable noodles.
Del Monte Fresh Produce, Renaissance Food Group and Veggie Noodle Co. were among those featuring them at the Viva Fresh Produce Expo April 22 in Austin, Texas.
Chris Elmer, vice president of sales for the southern region for Coral Gables, Fla.-based Del Monte, calls vegetable noodles “the new craze in the industry,” and Del Monte has been offering them for about two months.
Rancho Cordova, Calif.-based Renaissance Food Group has had its version of the noodles available for about six months. They are in some retailers in California currently, and the company is looking to get them in more places nationwide this year.
“They’re perfect to sauté up in the pan, they can kind of take on the flavors of whatever sauce you decide to pair them with, or even to kind of add a little something to a salad,” said Rachelle Schulken, marketing event manager for Renaissance. “Very versatile — it can be breakfast, lunch or dinner.
“We developed a clear label to try and really show off the product and not have it be covered up at all by a label, and it’s in a tamper-evident clamshell package,” Schulken said.
The response has been positive both from retailers already carrying the product and from people walking by the booth, she said.
“A lot of people are now seeing this as a trend and using it themselves,” Schulken said. “Everyone’s excited that it’s out there for them to purchase.”
Austin-based Veggie Noodle Co. was founded in 2015. At Viva Fresh, it featured a new type of noodle — veggiccine — that debuted with Austin-based retailer Whole Foods about two months ago.
“It’s a flatter, wider noodle,” said Anish Sheth, vice president of sales and marketing for Veggie Noodle Co. “It kind of holds sauces better, and so it’s a little bit better for making a pasta, whereas this, we can do a cold and warm preparation.
“On the fork it’s a little bit different, and so when you’re wanting a different type of pasta feel, this gives you that,” Sheth said. “Some people like a fettuccine and some people like a spaghetti, and so we just decided to offer both.”
Salinas, Calif.-based Mann Packing Co., Salinas-based Growers Express and Los Angeles-based World Variety Produce/Melissa’s are among other companies that offer vegetables cut as an alternative to pasta noodles.