DELI HEALTH

Matthew Enis

From the low-carb craze to Subway's "Jared" ads, a number of unrelated developments have conspired in recent years to give deli departments a healthy diet seal of approval. Now, supermarkets are building on that reputation, highlighting their selections of low-sodium, low-fat and additive-free meats, and creating new prepared foods for health-conscious customers.

"You're always going to have people who really aren't concerned about their diets, but at some point in most people's lives, something happens that makes them more aware -- such as being diagnosed with high blood pressure," said Julie Bishop, manager of wellness products and services, Ukrop's Super Markets, Richmond, Va. "People want to take better care of themselves, so they're looking for lower fat, lower sodium, cleaner products."

According to an annual compilation of trends and statistics by the International Deli-Dairy-Bakery Association, 75% of surveyed consumers said they were "concerned" or "very concerned" about the nutritional content of foods they buy from supermarket delis. Top worries, according to the report, are fat content (mentioned by 48% of survey respondents), salt content (22%) and freshness/purity (11%).

Suppliers are noticing, and have responded by introducing lower-fat and lower-sodium alternatives to items in their regular lineup, cutting out fillers and monosodium glutamate, and by simply updating labels for products already low in fat and sodium. Supermarkets, in turn, have the opportunity to enhance the healthy perception of their deli departments by highlighting that information.

"Manufacturers have made an effort to meet -- if not exceed -- consumer expectations as people endeavor to have healthier lifestyles," said Mona Golub, director of public relations and consumer affairs for Price Chopper, Schenectady, N.Y. "[Better-for-you] products tout their healthy attributes on their labels, and we transfer that information to our customers in our ads and with in-store signage and brochures."

For example, a recent Price Chopper circular featured descriptions such as 98% fat-free turkey; zero-carb bologna; extra-lean, 95% fat-free pastrami; and preservative-free macaroni salad. Golub said that during the past two years, the chain's deli departments have been gradually pruning and adding new products based on healthy attributes, such as meats by Philadelphia-based Dietz and Watson, which supplies items free of artificial flavors, colors, fillers and MSG.

The search for "cleaner" products has even helped niche categories such as organic, nitrite-free and all-natural meats establish a foothold in the deli department, although several questions remain for conventional supermarkets looking to offer products from these small but growing categories. Are the customers who are willing to pay a steep premium for an all-natural or organic deli meat concerned about their own health or about the humane treatment of farm animals? Do they want to support independent farmers or are they trying to feed their kids hormone-free foods?

One upscale grocer advised retailers to stay focused on flavor.

"These are complicated questions, and there's not a simple, one-sentence answer," said Andy Arons, president and chief executive officer of Gourmet Garage, whose chain of five metro New York stores sells a variety of all-natural, organic and premium deli products.

"At our stores, I would say that any of those claims are ancillary claims that we'd love to make because they're always a plus. But people buy because they like flavor and quality. If someone's coming to you because they love a delicious blood-red, juicy roast beef, you might not be able to provide that with a health claim."

The "better for you" trend is evident in prepared foods departments as well, with many delis creating healthier recipes, or reformulating existing recipes.

At Price Chopper, for example, a proactive decision was made to reformulate the chain's fried foods as soon as negative health information began to surface about heart-clogging trans fats, noted Golub. The company now advertises several of its foods as trans fat-free.

Other chains have created alternatives to fried foods. One popular better-for-you product developed by Kirkland, Wash.-based Larry's Markets is a buttermilk-dipped chicken, which is breaded and baked, rather than fried.

"It was originally developed as a healthier alternative to fried chicken that still delivered the crunch, crispiness, bold flavor and texture our customers were looking for," explained Chad Gaines, the chain's food-service buyer. Gaines added that during product development, Larry's Markets tries to create natural and organic alternatives to conventional prepared foods, and find ways to make new menu options as healthy as possible.

Similarly, Ukrop's created its "Delicious by Design" prepared foods line with a goal of using "cleaner" products and establishing sodium and fat cutoffs, Bishop said. "The trend is toward more natural foods," she explained. "We keep seeing that segment of the business growing, so we're pushing it over to food service as well."

Natural and organic comfort foods have become a big trend in natural food stores, including all-natural options for vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free diets, noted Steve Rosen, a Cooper City, Fla.-based foodservice consultant. He creates recipes to help clients respond to the trend, such as an all-natural turkey basil meatloaf, non-dairy mashed potatoes, and gluten-free rice and corn-based pastas. These options simplify shopping for small groups, he said.

"You have a father coming in at a quarter after five, and you want to be sure that he can answer the question: What's for dinner in this deli case for my wife and son and my vegetarian daughter?"

Good Advice

- Make sure deli associates understand that fat and salt content are the top two concerns of customers shopping for healthy deli products.

- Price points need to be carefully considered in adding healthful deli items with natural, organic and humane-treatment claims. Flavor remains the primary deciding factor.

- As retailers discovered with the low-carb craze, emphasizing pre-existing health claims on products already offered is the simplest way to boost customer perception of the entire deli department.

- Consistently offering vegetarian and "better for you" selections in your prepared foods department can simplify shopping for families and other small groups.

Accepting Substitutes

Long a staple of vegetarian and vegan diets, products such as tofu, veggie dogs and soy-based cheese substitutes are typically found in the produce or natural food departments of most supermarkets. If a customer is trying to avoid meat or cheese, it doesn't make much sense to put those items in the meat or dairy case, the logic goes.

Vegetarians are certainly loyal and frequent buyers of all things meatless, but conventional supermarkets will find it a challenge to build meat substitute sales on the backs of such a small base. Fewer than 3% of Americans define themselves as vegetarians, according to the Vegetarian Resource Group, Baltimore. One expert argues that merchandising meat substitutes closer to their conventional counterparts will convert more mainstream customers.

"It makes sense to merchandise tofu in the produce department, since it is often blended with produce in stir fry recipes," said Nancy Chapman, executive director of the Soyfoods Association of North America, Washington. "But meat alternatives should be in sections closer to where people are buying meat. Give people an alternative at the point of selection."

With total retail sales of more than $4 billion, soyfoods appeal to a variety of consumers for a number of reasons. Notably, Chapman pointed to the 15% spike in total soyfood sales after the Food and Drug Administration approved an anti-heart disease claim for soy in 1999. Category growth has since eased out of the double digits, but is still strong and still due to the mainstreaming process.

"The category is growing, even though not that many more people are becoming vegetarian," she said, pointing out that the mainstreaming of categories, including soymilk, frozen meat substitutes and frozen vegetarian meals, was helped significantly by their placement near similar, conventional items.

Chapman also suggested that when ongoing media coverage about soy's health benefits brings new customers to the table, cooking demonstrations, sampling and cross merchandising help them understand how to use products such as tofu and meat substitutes.

SANA clearly hopes that retailers will position its members' products as favorably as possible. But Chapman's advice could be worth a merchandising experiment or two. In a 2004 SPINS/IRI study, entitled "The Progression of the Natural Products Consumer," meat alternatives were one of three top products consumed by shoppers beginning to experiment with natural foods. Their purchases were made due to a diet or a food allergy, a promotion -- or simply by accident. -- MATTHEW ENIS