Salads become fast-food anchors
from The Packer, July 26, 2004
By Todd Foltz, Western Editor

SALINAS, Calif. -- The fast-food salad bonanza may have caught grower-shippers and consumers alike by surprise last summer, but what could have been just a seasonal fad has become a fact of life in foodservice.
   No more are fast-food salads an afterthought dumped into a container a few minutes ahead of their best-if-used-by date to shut up the random vegetarian in a family of fast-food carnivores. In the past year they've become not only an advertising-supported fixture on the menu, but a way of offering previously high-end items to the masses.
   Supply meets demand: And the produce industry, which may have been caught off guard by the surge in demand last year, has caught up in production, which, combined with homegrown lettuce, is helping keep prices down this summer.
   "Last year everybody did a salad push but didn't really tell the growers ahead of time," said Tom Russell, president of Pacific International Marketing. "There was a surge in demand without a surge in output. This year the demand is still there, but everyone put in a little more. We're looking at tougher times and lower prices for the next few months."
   But many restaurants are wanting to do their own leaf and lettuce chopping, which is good news for growers who don't supply processors.
   "We do a lot of foodservice, and people think it's all chopped up, but it's not," said Pete Romero, commodity manager for mixed lettuce and cauliflower for Steinbeck Country Produce Inc. "A lot of people take whole heads."
   Last year the restaurants took salads, but the good news is they're continuing to do so, said Michael Boggiatto, president of Boggiatto Produce Inc.
   "Last year was such a change from the year before," Boggiatto said. "There seems to be more interest in fresh fruits and vegetables in general at foodservice now."
   Boggiatto said he's had more luck with romaine than red leaf or green leaf at foodservice this year.
   Quick-serve restaurants have delved past traditional iceberg garden salad to offer spring mix, romaine and spinach salads. Unlike the low-fat taco from Taco Bell or McDonald's McDLT, the salads are showing the possibility of sticking around.
   "Quick-serve restaurants have brought spring mix salad to the mainstream," said Joe Feldman, vice president of sales for San Juan Bautista-based Pride of San Juan. "And that's good for producers who aim at retail, too. The theory is, people eat a spring mix salad at lunch and then pick up a bag at retail for dinner."
   Dave Eldredge, president and chief executive officer of NewStar, said the exposure of salads at foodservice is having a decided impact on demand for fresh lettuce and leaf lettuce. "Look at the quality of the salads offered by fast food," he said. "It's really high quality. They're wanting to maintain their customers, and now that baby boomers are more interested in nutrition, part of that means offering high-end salads, not cheap salads."
   Foodservice also is looking to sidestep criticism that restaurants don't offer healthful fare, given the increased focus on obesity in the media, Eldredge said.
   "And they're using salads as a way of differentiating themselves," he said. "Every one of them is looking at different salads to see what they can offer different from their competitors." But what effect is that having on regular old iceberg?
   "Americans always want something new," said Chris Bunn, president of Crown Packing Co. Inc. "They like color and variety. They've forgotten how wonderful iceberg is for the system. It's good roughage."
   But that doesn't mean iceberg is off the menus.