Fresh Gourmet and Tajín Team Up to Debut New Chile Lime Croutons, Pepitas, and Masa Strips; Brad Pinkerton Details

WESTLAKE, VILLAGE, CA - Bold flavor and multicultural appeal is elevating the produce department in the form of a strategic new alliance. Giving consumers an exciting new way to enjoy salads, soups, and other fresh-forward dishes, Fresh Gourmet and Tajín have unleashed a lineup of ready-to-use Chile Lime Croutons, Pepitas, and Masa Strips, all seasoned to perfection with Tajín® Clásico, the top-selling chile lime seasoning.

“At Fresh Gourmet, our innovation pipeline is rooted in two pillars: emerging culinary trends and consumer data. The collaboration with Tajín was sparked by both,” shares Brad Pinkerton, Senior Marketing Director. “We saw a compelling overlap in consumer behavior—59 percent of Tajín households are also purchasing salad toppings. That signaled a clear opportunity: these flavor-seeking shoppers were already bundling Tajín’s signature bold seasonings with crunchy toppings like croutons, strips, and seeds. By creating Fresh Gourmet Toppings seasoned with Tajín, we captured an existing cross-category habit and brought it together right where it matters most—in the produce section.”

With Tajín already a household name in flavor, and Fresh Gourmet ranking as the No. 1 brand in salad toppings, the two brands are a natural fit.

“In fact, Fresh Gourmet is already the leading topping brand among Tajín shoppers, making us their ‘crunch partner of choice,’” Brad adds. “That synergy brings real power to the shelf.”

This advantageous crossover signals some compelling opportunities for retailers, as Tajín shoppers typically spend 17 percent more on salad toppings and 30 percent more on croutons when purchasing Fresh Gourmet products.

“The collaboration helps drive trade-up behavior, lifting the dollar value of the basket,” Brad explains. “Even a small shelf placement of Fresh Gourmet Tajín Toppings has delivered outsized dollar returns thanks to high brand awareness and natural category affinity. And importantly, this partnership provides retailers with an exclusive alliance competitors can’t replicate. It’s a unique differentiator that brings incremental dollars to the produce department, while surprising and delighting shoppers with a flavor-forward twist on salad toppings.”

Recently hitting shelves nationwide, the new Fresh Gourmet toppings seasoned with Tajín were designed with the modern, flavor-seeking shopper in mind, tapping into several intersecting trends reshaping how consumers approach meals and snacks. For retailers, this presents a clear opportunity to:

• Drive basket expansion by encouraging add-on purchases that enhance home cooking
• Attract younger and more multicultural shoppers with relevant flavor profiles and formats
• Capture incremental sales through impulse-driven toppings that feel exciting and fresh

“At Fresh Gourmet Company, our mission is simple: turn fresh produce into craveable meals. Shoppers are more likely to purchase fruits and vegetables when they know what to do with them—and that’s where our toppings come in,” says Brad. “The new Tajín-seasoned croutons, pepitas, and masa strips make it easy for consumers to build exciting meals with fresh ingredients. Whether it’s a salad, grain bowl, lettuce wrap, or veggie-forward snack, these toppings bring taste, texture, and inspiration—which in turn drives more frequent produce purchases. By giving shoppers a flavorful reason to use more produce, we’re not just selling toppings—we’re elevating the entire perimeter of the store.”

By harnessing Fresh Gourmet and Tajin’s collaborative innovation, retailers can not only transform the salad set but also encourage experimentation with fresh produce by pairing it with exciting, trusted flavors. The cross-merchandising opportunities are endless!

Keep reading AndNowUKnow as we cover the latest produce launches spicing up the fresh produce sector.