GUADALUPE, CA - Apio, Inc. is introducing three new single-serve products to meet the demand for alternative protein options.

The company’s new Plant-Powered Protein™ Salad Kits contain 40 percent or more of the recommended daily value of fiber, contains at least 13 grams of protein per serving, and is powered by produce.

“Dieticians and chefs are leading the trend toward additive nutrition – the practice of powering up meals with more nutritious choices,” Anne Byerly, Apio’s Vice President of Marketing, said in a press release. “Eat Smart’s new Plant Powered Protein™ salad kits are the perfect solution for consumers looking for innovative, convenient, and healthy eating options that are easy to integrate into their busy lives.”

The salad kits are available in three flavors:

BBQ Ranch

The BBQ Ranch reportedly combines julienned cauliflower, red cabbage, savoy cabbage, kale, and carrots with chia seeds, roasted soy nuts, slivered almonds, and crunchy freeze-dried corn. It contains no preservatives, no meat, and is gluten-free, with a tangy BBQ Ranch dressing on top.

Super Caesar

This offers what the company calls a non-traditional take one of the top selling packaged salad kit flavors at retail. It blends nutritionally packed collard greens, Italian kale, red chard, broccoli stalk, and savoy cabbage with chia seeds, sunflower seeds, dried roasted edamame, parmesan cheese, and a classic Caesar dressing.

Yogurt Curry

According to the release, this flavor infuses a popular trend in ethnic-inspired cuisine with the nutritional benefits of hearty vegetables and plant proteins. The kit features julienned cauliflower, kale, carrots, multicolor kale, and green cabbage along with chia seeds, roasted chickpeas, slivered almonds, golden raisins, and a deliciously unique Yogurt Curry dressing.

According to the company, single-serve, ready-to-eat salads kit sales have jumped 22 percent from a year ago. With new federal dietary guidelines that recommend less meat, as well as the ongoing consumer quest for healthy meal options driving retail sales of alternative protein sources, Apio offers this as a solution to meet this demand.

The Plant Powered Protein™ salad kits join Eat Smart’s line of chef-inspired Gourmet Vegetable Salad Kits single serve salad kits, and are reportedly the first to offer a range of highly nutritious and complex vegetable blends with plant protein toppings.  

Eat Smart’s salad kits offer blends of superfoods like the Sweet Kale Vegetable Salad Kit, the Wild Greens & Quinoa Vegetable Salad Kit, and the Beets & Greens.

Apio, Inc.’s Plant Powered Protein™ salad kits will be available in June from Eat Smart®