LIGHT DRESSINGS WEIGH IN

RICHARD TURCSIK

"Light" dressings are quickly becoming heavyweights in the shelf-stable bottled salad dressing category.

Spurred by trends toward healthier eating in general, the rise of packaged salads and news reports stressing the importance of fresh vegetables in the diet, Americans are eating more salads, and zipping them up with lighter salad dressings.

"Light dressings comprise about 40% of our total salad dressing sales. In fact, in some brands, the light dressings outsell the regular variety," said Kara Kimbrough, a spokeswoman for Jitney Jungle Stores of America, Jackson, Miss.

According to

retailers, sales of light dressings have also been aided by improved flavors and formulations. The new Food and Drug Administration labeling regulations may increase light sales even further by clearly defining the term and showing how much fat is in traditional bottled dressings, several noted.

And based on the popularity of the light dressings, manufacturers continue to introduce new light and fat-free varieties, and several retailers are planning to add light private-label lines.

Information Resources Inc., Chicago, reported that for the 52-week period ended March 27, supermarket sales of all salad dressings reached $1.1 billion, a 4.5% increase over the preceding year. IRI does not break down dressing sales by segment.

Major manufacturers include Kraft General Foods, Glenview, Ill., with its Kraft and Seven Seas brands; Clorox Co., Oakland, Calif., with Hidden Valley Ranch; Thomas J. Lipton Co., Englewood Cliffs, N.J., with Wish Bone brand; Ken's Foods, Marlborough, Mass., with its Ken's Steak House line, and T. Marzetti Co., Columbus, Ohio, with its Marzetti and Pfeiffer brands.

"We attribute the strong sales performance of the light salad dressings to the fact that more consumers than ever are health-conscious today," said Kimbrough.

"Also, the improved taste and texture of the light dressings has helped boost sales. In many cases, consumers tell us there is no discernible difference between the light dressings and those containing more fat and calories," she said.

"Light salad dressings are gaining in popularity. Everything seems to be going that way," said Jim Lefebvre, purchasing director at Stanley Stores, Bay City, Texas.

"I would say fat-free and light dressings are about 30% to 35% of our total dressings sales, and we find that the light dressings attract a good cross section of consumers," said Mark Polsky, senior vice president at the Rockville, Md.-based Magruder chain.

"In our warehouse we are seeing more movement of the light dressings," said Brent Buttolph, category sales manager at Fleming Cos., Oklahoma City.

He said Fleming surveys show typically older, upper-middle-class, college-educated, health-conscious and store-loyal consumers are attracted to what Fleming labels the "better-for-you-type category."

"Retail sales on an average have increased in pourables by 1.4%, largely because of the light dressings," Buttolph said. "In 1986, the better-for-you-type items, which includes the fat-free and reduced-calorie, represented roughly 20% of our total pourable salad dressing volume at Fleming. In 1988, it grew to 26%, in 1990 it grew to 36%, and in 1992, which is the last year that we have figures available, it is at 38%. It started to level off a little bit, but it is still a pretty substantial increase," he said.

"On the Kraft Free Thousand Island we are moving 96 cases a week and on the regular 8-ounce Thousand Island we're moving 132 cases a week. It is only about a 40-cases-a-week difference, so the movement is excellent on these," said Jimmy Jones, a buyer with Ingles Markets, Black Mountain, N.C.

Harland Polk, senior vice president at Hughes Family Markets, Irwindale, Calif., said, "Our sales of light salad dressings have been very good. Our total salad dressing movement is up 11.7% cases and 12.7% in dollars.

"We carry roughly 55 different light items. We have seen more new salad dressings in the light category recently and we expect sales to continue to increase," he said, noting that the dressings are merchandised in-line according to brand.

Lee Salo, a buyer with Raley's, West Sacramento, Calif., also found the light dressings to be increasing, comprising 15% to 20% of total bottled dressing sales.

"Kraft Free is our best seller, but any popular flavor of dressing that is fat-free and cholesterol-free sells well," he said.

"We think that sales of the light and reduced-calorie dressings are being driven by improved flavors and the fact that the nation wants to live and eat healthier," he said.

Retailers and manufacturers were divided as to whether light dressings were eating into the sales of their traditional counterparts, or generating new department sales.

"I think the light dressings cannibalize the section somewhat, but according to the manufacturers, they do not. We don't have a massive increase in sales in that section, but we are selling a lot more of the fat-free and low-fat," said Lefebvre of Stanley Stores.

"The margins that salad dressings offer us depend on the pricing format. We have some warehouse stores where we run very low margins, but at least it is not a situation where it is a zero gross like with some items," he said.

"We do not feel light dressings are cannibalizing regular dressing sales," said Kimbrough of Jitney Jungle. "It appears that consumers are simply consuming more dressing, purchasing regular dressing along with light dressing. We also think that consumers may be using a greater quantity of light dressing on their salads due to its low fat content."

"We recently did a study that indicates the average consumer has several flavors or varieties of salad dressing in their refrigerator," said Patricia Shafer, a spokeswoman for Kraft General Foods.

"Initially there was some sign of cannibalization with the introduction of the fat-free dressings, but that has significantly slowed and is now nominal at most," Shafer added. Buttolph of Fleming said fat-free salad dressings are cannibalizing the reduced-calorie, while the regulars are holding constant.

"From 1992 vs. 1991, reduced-calorie lost about 5% share of that category and fat-free picked up 5%. The regular dressings are 62% of the category and the better-for-you-type segment is at 38%, with the reduced-calorie being 17% and fat-free 21%. So the fat-free has basically taken over where at one time reduced-calorie was basically the only one that was offered six years ago," he said.

He noted Fleming is looking at entering the better-for-you dressings "in a more aggressive way" with private label, but at this time the wholesaler has a limited offering of private-label light dressings.

"Light salad dressings are probably 28% to 30% of our total dressing sales, and they are increasing at the expense of the regular dressings," said Rick Vanklaveren, director of advertising at Harding's Market West, Plainwell, Mich.

"Our experience is that the fat-free salad dressings are growing, and that is definitely where the growth is in that category. Light dressings are not gaining, and if anything are slowing down," said Sue Kunstmann, a spokeswoman for Schnuck Markets, St. Louis.

To capitalize on the popularity of the fat-free dressings, Kunstmann said Schnuck recently introduced private-label fat-free dressings in French, Thousand Island, Ranch and Catalina French varieties. It does not offer private-label light dressings.

Don Burke, vice president of marketing at T. Marzetti, said light dressings are undergoing a resurgence, and should be aided by the new labeling requirements that took effect this month.

"The new labeling regulations have tightened up what 'light' means. Before they used 'light' for all sorts of reasons, but now it has to be 50% less fat and 50% fewer calories. 'Light' will now have some teeth in it and that may well help light sales. You're seeing a lot more lights coming out now," he said.

David Digeronimo, vice president of Victory Supermarkets, Leominster, Mass., said that when it comes to light dressings, there can be too much of a good thing.

"There are so many stockkeeping units of dressings out there that the sales are just dwindling because there are so many varieties out there and everybody is expanding. Now everything is fat-free and you're seeing everybody coming out with fat-free," he said, noting they now make up 35% to 40% of his dressing category.

"Fitting them in is a real problem. Mostly we are discontinuing the traditional dressings and eliminating duplication, some of the real mongrel brands -- the oddballs -- but you like to have a good cross variety. Basically when we bring in a line of fat-frees, I go through the computer and get all of the scan information and the guy with the low movement goes," he said.

Retailers said dressing sales spike during the summer months, although they remain strong year-round.

"The key months are March, April and May, where about 28% of the salad dressings are consumed. June, July and August are close with 27%. It starts to fall off in September, October and November with 22%, and December, January and February have 23%," said Buttolph of Fleming.

Retailers said they use a variety of tactics to advertise and merchandise the light dressings.

"We do advertise the dressings more heavily in the summer. The only time we really don't advertise them is during the fall and winter," said Vanklaveren of Harding's Market West.

Layne Lieberman-Anapol, director of nutrition at King Kullen Grocery Co., Westbury, N.Y., said light dressings now comprise roughly half of all dressing sales. King Kullen merchandises most of its light dressings with the regular dressings, although some are merchandised in the health and diet foods aisle.

"In our newer stores we're seeing more of the trend towards the health section, but they would still also be sold with the regular dressings. If there is a brand out there, like Blanchard & Blanchard, that has a regular and a Spa dressing, typically you'll see that in the same area as all of the regular dressings, but a Pritikin would be with the health foods," she said.

Lieberman-Anapol cautioned that just because a dressing is labeled as "light" doesn't mean it is necessarily healthier for the consumer because many are high in sodium.