Kroger Launches Grilling Promotion

The Kroger Co.'s family of stores will be firing up grills in supermarket parking lots across the country to reignite customers' passion for summer grilling during the first-of-its-kind Kroger Red, White and Barbecue event.

What Kroger is billing as the "ultimate food event" will bring recipes from across the country to each local store, with cooking demonstrations and samples that will bring those recipes to life over the two-week event that starts later this week.

Consumers can visit Kroger online for recipes and grilling tips, and enter to win one of several "Ultimate Grill Packages" by sharing a photo of their summertime celebration on Twitter or Instagram and tagging their Kroger family of stores banner or on Facebook using #redwhitebbq.

"With regionally-inspired flavors and recipes from across the country, our stores hope to help answer the question 'what's for dinner?' This is a great way to start the grilling season across America," said Mike Donnelly, Kroger's SVP of merchandising. "We'll introduce our customers in the Pacific Northwest to some of the regional recipes from the Deep South, like Memphis-style Grilled Ribs, and our customers here in the Mid-West to grilling Pacific Northwest Salmon topped with fresh mango salsa. We'll even demonstrate how to grill a pizza Southern California-style."

Kroger will also be partnering with the USO to take a summer barbecue experience to troops stationed throughout the United States and beyond. As a thank you for their service, Kroger will be serving a gourmet burger and brat bar as well as Coca-Cola products to troops and their families stationed at nearly a dozen bases in the U.S. Kroger will also send barbecue fixins to three international bases for deployed troops to enjoy overseas.

Cincinnati-based Kroger operates 2,625 supermarkets and multidepartment stores in 34 states and the District of Columbia under two dozen local banner names including Kroger, City Market, Dillons, Food 4 Less, Fred Meyer, Fry's, Harris Teeter, Jay C, King Soopers, QFC, Ralphs and Smith's.