Salad kits targeting millennial, Gen Z consumers

Dole Fresh Vegetables/Bud Antle, manufacturer of DOLE-branded packaged salads, has refreshed its DOLE Salad Kit packaging line with new colors and photography aimed at a growing millennial and Generation Z consumer base.

The new look is being unveiled this month on the company’s 31 Chopped, Premium and Classic salad kits at supermarkets throughout North America, according to a news release.

The company is also releasing three new varieties next month: Caprese and Pesto Ranch chopped kits and Apple Harvest premium kit. The new kits bring the total number of DOLE Salad offerings to 70, including 31 separate salad kit SKUs.

“The new packaging is meant to better communicate specific brand and product benefits to make it easier for occasional and frequent salad users to choose DOLE Brand while reinforcing our identify as the premier provider of fresh foods,” David Austin, Dole Fresh Vegetables/Bud Antle vice president of marketing and innovation, said in the release.

“Because they tend to shop differently, Millennials and Gen Z are often motivated more by visuals, transparency and specific flavor, nutrient and ingredient claims than other consumers.”

The company said it conducted qualitative and quantitative research with millennial, Gen Z and older packaged salad users to measure packaging appeal, believability clarity and impact on purchase intent.

“Ultimately, we want more people to experience the flavors, freshness and convenience of a DOLE Salad as part of our larger goal to increase Americans’ nutritional health through a diet rich in fresh fruits and vegetables,” Austin said.

Dole Fresh Vegetables introduced its first packaged salad in 1993.