New Pasta Delivers Healthy, Tasty Experience Consumers Demand
CHICAGO (October 9, 2008) – With recent national and state legislation enforcing availability of nutrition information as well as consumer demand for healthy choices while dining out, foodservice operators are feeling the pressure to deliver nutritious menu items. In response, Barilla introduces Barilla Whole Grain, a new solution for adding the important nutrients of whole grains and fiber without sacrificing the great flavor and taste consumers have come to expect from pasta. Made with 51 percent whole wheat, Barilla Whole Grain is all natural and an excellent source of fiber, delivering three times the fiber of traditional pasta.
Nutrition experts and policy makers are lining up to recommend more whole grains for American diets as the U.S. government now recommends that at least half of consumer’s daily grain servings should be whole grains, due to the strong research supporting their health benefits.
Barilla, Italy’s number one brand of pasta, provides an answer to foodservice professionals searching for ways to increase customer’s consumption of whole grains.
“A recent study conducted by IFIC found that two-thirds of consumers are looking to increase their intake of whole grains[1],” said Michele Malo, senior brand manager for foodservice at Barilla America, Inc. “and from a taste perspective, three out of four people agree that Barilla Whole Grain exceeds their expectations of whole wheat pasta.”[2]
In the current environment, health concerns continue to be top of mind, with fewer than one-third of consumers (31 percent) eating purely what they want, without thinking first about health[3]. Now foodservice operators can use better-for-you meal components such as whole grain pasta to help diners eat better and maintain healthier eating habits at every meal occasion. The added benefit of the Whole Grain Stamp on the new pasta line makes it easier for operators to confidently satisfy customer interest in healthier eating.
Barilla Whole Grain is now available nationwide in four shapes – Spaghetti, Penne, Rotini and Thin Spaghetti. Ask a Barilla representative for nutritious menu bundling options, and for more information and recipe ideas, visit www.barillaus.com/home/Pages/barilla_foodservice.aspx.
[1] 2006 International Food Information Council survey
2 Product test executed by Synovate in 2006
3 Technomic March 2008 American Express MarketBrief
About Barilla
Since 1877, Barilla has been producing pasta and other grain-based foods for consumers around the world. The company’s basic animating principle has been to make these healthy products affordable to all, no matter where they might be. Barilla has remained true to its entrepreneurial roots over the past four generations, by combining ancient Italian traditions with cutting-edge technological advances. The result is a globally successful company, built on a foundation of principles that allow for continuous growth to reach ever-expanding goals.
The Barilla Group – whose brands include Barilla, Mulino Bianco, Alixir, Pavesi, Voiello, Wasa, Misko (Greece), Filiz (Turkey), Yemina and Vesta
(Mexico) and Academia Barilla – is the first Italian food group, headed by the Barilla family for over 130 years. The Group has 26 factories (13 in Italy and 13 abroad). It realizes 35% of sales in volume in more than 125 countries.
