Ranch flavour is the Swiss Army knife of salad dressings according to market researcher NPD Group.
Ranch holds double the share of dollars and units shipped compared with blue cheese dressing, which holds the number two spot in the ready-to-use salad dressing category.
Besides holding the number one spot, ranch dressing sales are growing in an otherwise flat category, the company said. Dollar sales volume of ranch flavour salad dressing shipped through broadline foodservice distributors to total foodservice outlets was up 3% while total salad dressing dollar sales were flat in the year ending December 2013 compared to year ago, according to NPD’s SupplyTrack, a monthly tracking service that codes, aggregates, and tracks every product shipped from a critical mass of leading broadline distributors to each of their foodservice operators.
Ranch chipotle salad dressing, a blending of two popular flavours, netted double-digit gains in dollars and units shipped.
Other double-digit dressing flavour gainers in terms of dollar volume shipped to eating and drinking establishments, lodging and other foodservice outlets, were honey Dijon, Asian peanut, and several vinaigrette flavours. Green Goddess dressing, a creamy flavour that has been around since the 1920s but recently became more available at foodservice, tripled in unit and dollar volumes shipped last year, reports NPD’s SupplyTrack.
Eating and drinking establishments represent the largest dollar and unit share of ready-to-use salad dressing and lodging follows in share. Flavoured salad dressing mix, which holds a single-digit share of the category’s dollars and units shipped, increased by 4% and is primarily used at recreation foodservice outlets.
“Salad dressing is a good example of how a staple item can extend beyond its traditional use. Ranch dressing has become a mainstay not just for salads but also for wings and other dishes as well,” said Annie Roberts, vice president, NPD SupplyTrack. “Understanding the salad dressing flavours that are growing or declining will provide distributors, manufacturers, and operators with the detail and insights needed to build a more profitable category.”
