Tenderloin Fritters, Nugget Fritters, Chicken Breast Patties

Chicago-based Best Chicago Meat Co., LLC launched four new chicken products to its Moo & Oink family of chicken products—Breaded Chicken Tenderloin Fritters, Spicy Breaded Chicken Tenderloin Fritters, Breaded Chicken Breast Nugget Fritters and Breaded Chicken Breast Patties. The breaded tenders, nuggets and patties are made with premium, all-white meat and can be deep fried or oven-cooked. They are available in Chicagoland grocery retail outlets in 80-ounce packages for a suggested retail price of $6.99-7.99. Best Chicago Meat also brought back Chitterlings under its Moo & Oink brand. They can be found in Chicagoland grocery retailers in a 5-pound bag for a suggested retail price of $6.99-7.99.

40% Lower Sodium Franks

The John Morrell Food Group, the Cincinatti-based owner of Smithfield Foods and the Eckrich brand, developed Armour and John Morrell franks with 40% lower sodium for foodservice operators. Utilizing a patented, all-natural sodium replacer, the new franks deliver the same taste as the original kind, but with 40% fewer sodium. These lower-sodium franks are CN labeled for school lunch menus. Each 2-ounce frank provides a 2-ounce equivalent of beef/pork blends to match flavor profiles.

Lean Hot Dogs

The Ball Park brand, owned by Hillshire Brands, Chicago, added two new lean hot dogs to its product portfolio. Ball Park Lean Pork Franks and Lean Beef Franks meet USDA Lean requirements, are made with 100% beef and 100% pork and contain no artificial colors, flavors or by-products. The Lean Beef Franks contain 80 calories, 5 grams of fat and 6 grams of protein with a suggested retail price of $5.49, while the Lean Pork Franks contain 70 calories, 5 grams of fat and 6 grams of protein and a suggested retail price of $4.99. They are available in grocery stores nationwide.

Gluten-Free Burgers

Denver-based QRUNCH Foods introduced gluten-free QRUNCH burgers, made exclusively from whole, certified gluten-free, organic and non-GMO ingredients, including spinach, broccoli, carrots, garlic, onion, millet and quinoa. The ideal alternative to soy-based vegetarian patties, QRUNCH burgers contain no wheat, eggs, corn, dairy, nuts, soy or sweeteners and are low in sodium. They come in Original, Spicy Italian, Sweet Curry and Green Chile varieties, boast a suggested retail price of $5.99-6.99 per 12.8-ounce box of four, and can be found in the natural or gluten-free section of the frozen foods aisle.

Smoked Sausage

Chicago-based Hillshire Brands Co. developed Hillshire Farm Angus Smoked Sausage, which consists of high-quality, premium cuts of beef. They come in Smoked, Polska Kielbasa and Italian Style varieties.

Also new to the Hillshire Farm brand is Chicken Basil Pesto with Parmesan Gourmet Creations. This line of premium, pre-cooked smoke sausage is slow-cooked with high-quality ingredients and premium cuts of meat, and offers 10 grams of protein per serving. Both new products boast a suggested retail price of $4.99, and can be found in the refrigerated meat section of supermarkets nationwide.

Foodservice Fixin’s

Cincinnati-based AdvancePierre Foods offers three new sandwich meat options for their Fast Fixin’ Sandwich Bar. New to convenience store retailers are Grilled Chicken with Teriyaki Glaze, Angus Meatloaf with Ketchup and Spicy Buffalo Style Breaded Chicken.

Utilizing patent-pending products and equipment, consumers can create their own sandwiches by choosing from a wide variety of meats and fresh toppings. The Fast Fixin’ Sandwich Bar program also offers Angus beef burgers, breaded chicken and barbeque pork rib patties, as well as bakery-fresh buns.