Kroger adds more store brands

The Kroger Co. said it has expanded its Our Brands product lines to offer its customers greater value, variety and quality. The Cincinnati retailer currently offers more than 30,000 Our Brands items, including food, beauty, personal care, pet and household essentials, many of which are made at one of the company's 38 U.S. production plants that employ 8,600 manufacturing associates. It has introduced 1,000 new food and household items in the past 18 months.

"Our Brands sold a record-setting 8.2 billion units in 2016, which equates to customers choosing to add 1.25 million of our exclusive products to their shopping carts every hour that our stores are open," said Gil Phipps, Kroger's vice president of Our Brands. "Through innovation, we are committed to introducing new items monthly that give our customers a wide selection of choices and price points, and always guaranteed quality." 

The foods in Our Brands, such as Kroger, Private Selection, Simple Truth, Simple Truth Organic and HemisFares, are specifically designed, rigorously tested and consistently evaluated to ensure that they continue to satisfy and delight, according to Kroger. The retailer said its team of chefs, food scientists and culinary experts are constantly exploring, testing and inventing to enhance its offerings of organic, natural, premium, fusion, value and conventional eats. 

In third-party blind taste tests, Our Brands has routinely outperformed competitive national brands and other private brand foods, according to Kroger. New specialty products that Our Brands has introduced this year include HemisFares Japanese Dry-Aged Red Miso; HemisFares Double Brewed Soy Sauce; Kroger Simply Baked French Fries with Olive Oil & Sea Salt;  Kroger Deluxe Funnel Cake Ice Cream; Private Selection Moroccan BBQ & Basting Sauce; Simple Truth® Dairy-Free Paletas (fruit bars); Simple Truth Organic Blueberry Ginger Kombucha; and Simple Truth Organic® Cold Brew Coffee.

This month, Our Brands is introducing Simple Truth Low Cow Lite Ice Cream, which is low calorie (240-280 calories per pint) and high protein (24 grams per pint). Flavors include birthday cake, chocolate, lemon cake, mint chocolate chip, sea salt caramel and vanilla bean.