SpartanNash Introduces Clean Ingredient Initiative for Private Label

SpartanNash has introduced a Clean Ingredient Initiative for the wholesaler’s Our Family and Open Acres private label brands. The initiative is focused on simpler products with reduced ingredient lists and clean, easy-to-read labels.  

In 2018, more than 425 private label products underwent packaging redesigns or reformulations to remove synthetic colors, MSG and other ingredients. This year, another 175 products will be added to the Clean Ingredient Initiative. For example, Our Family ice cream now has four SKUs that contain only four or five ingredients, including milk, sugar, cream and the appropriate flavoring. SpartanNash has also successfully partnered with its manufacturers to remove added MSG from a number of Our Family soups, and Our Family fruit and grain bars have been reformulated to remove synthetic colors.

To further promote the Clean Ingredient Initiative in 2019, Our Family spokeswoman Molly Yeh – award-winning cookbook author and star of Food Network’s "Girl Meets Farm" – will highlight products that have undergone reformulations, such as yogurt, mac and cheese, and ice cream, tying into in-store and online promotions.

“Consumer preferences are changing, and our store guests are looking for healthier food options, clean labels and ‘free from’ formats when shopping at their local grocery store or putting food on the table,” SpartanNash VP, Private Brands John Paul said. “Our Clean Ingredient Initiative provides them with exactly that, all while giving them the quality, budget-friendly savings and great taste they’re used to with Our Family and Open Acres products.”

The initiative’s package redesign includes front-of-package labeling that lists the product’s key clean attributes. Our Family uses a leaf icon to demonstrate the products’ reformulation while Open Acres uses circular swoosh.

“The icon system on Our Family and Open Acres packaging is designed to draw our store guests’ attention to the highlights of each product, calling out fat-free, gluten-free, non-GMO and other key product attributes,” Paul said. “Through the Clean Ingredient Initiative, we’ve made it easier than ever to identify the private-brand products that fit our customers’ healthier lifestyles, so they can make quick, informed decisions at the shelf.”

Progressive Grocer mentioned the company's Clean Ingredient Initiative in a recent article on private label.

One of the country's top grocery wholesalers and distributors, SpartanNash provides products to various independent grocers and chain retailers, its corporate-owned retail stores, and U.S. military commissaries and exchanges, along with fresh produce distribution and fresh food processing. SpartanNash operates more than 155 supermarkets, mainly under the Family Fare Supermarkets, Martin's Super Markets, D&W Fresh Market, VG’s Grocery, Dan’s Supermarket, and Family Fresh Market banners. The company is No. 35 on Progressive Grocer’s 2018 Super 50 list of the top grocers in the United States.