Ready to Serve Beef Products with Flexible Retort Pouch Processing

Retort processing is an established technology reinvented through exible pouch package improvements providing a signicant opportunity to add value to beef and strengthen beefs position in the Ready to Serve market.

CUBES

STRIPS

WHOLE

Flexible Retort Pouch Processing Adds Value and Convenience to Beef

Packaging Advantages

Flexible pouches have an improved quality perception over canned products. The thin package prole reduces the heating time for better product colour, avour and texture while requiring less energy leading to lower cost of production. Extended shelf life, up to 5 years when compared to current product offerings, means no waste due to over code date and reduces inventory management issues. The exible pouch is ideal for enhanced graphics for greater shelf appeal. Shelf stable, eliminating the need for expensive refrigerated distribution, product loss due to temperature abuse and costly in-store refrigerated merchandising. Package size can be adjusted to accommodate retail and food service applications.

Product Advantages

Process is suitable for any beef cut, resulting in restaurant quality beef whether it is presented as whole muscle, beef strips, crumble or cubes. The process improves product consistency especially for hip and chuck cuts, producing fork tender beef without requiring aging, mechanical tenderization, moisture enhancement or marinating. Allows for incorporation of unique avour proles for greater variety and usage options. Format allows for greater market access as a ready to serve item for use at home, in the restaurant / institutional kitchen, at the cottage or camping. The high temperature, high pressure process creates a sterile environment reducing the likelihood of all major food borne diseases without the use of preservatives. This is ideal for sodium reduced or no sodium diets.

Flexible Packaging Goes Mainstream

The exible retort pouch has brought retort technology into the 21st century resulting in greater opportunities for value added beef products and enhanced inventory management.

North Americas adoption of retort pouch packaging technology has been inuenced by the extensive use in Asia and Europe, resulting in a projected vefold increase from just under 1 billion saleable units to over a projected 5 billion saleable units within a decade.1 Recent sample development conducted by the Beef Information Centre showed that beef hip and chuck cuts have increased tenderness and consistency when retorted in exible retort pouch packaging resulting in increased value through improved carcass utilization. Moisture released from beef during the retort process creates a natural au jus that can be combined with unique avours, increasing the usage options for both the retail and foodservice sectors.

Flexible Retort Pouches are Ready to Serve

Retorted products help to fulll consumer demand for premium, prepared meals that incorporate high quality ingredients at affordable prices. Fuelled by demand for quick meal solutions, the Ready to Serve category is projected to reach over $3.9 billion in Canada by 2012.2 The Canadian Ready to Serve meal market is catering to consumer demand for more exotic avour offerings.3

Retort Process Adds Value to Beef

Retorting is a process that uses heat and pressure to cook vacuum sealed pre-packaged meat. Since the meat is cooked in the package, the package must be strong enough to withstand relatively high temperatures (100 - 130C) and pressure. Traditionally, glass and metal have been the most popular packaging materials for retort processing. Today, the application has been broadened with technological advancements to include exible pouches. Initial product testing done by the Beef Information Centre has shown that the process produces fork tender, moist beef in under one hour of processing. This result was consistent when applied to a variety of cuts including small roasts, steaks, diced, restructured and ground beef.

Recent events have heightened food safety concerns. Retort processing is an ideal solution as the process creates a sterile environment within a sealed package requiring no preservatives or additional costly interventions. The fully cooked meat category is experiencing decline. Fully cooked beef in a exible retort pouch is a quality product that is minimally processed and carries with it market access versatility and shelf life advantages unique to the retort process.
1 2 3

The Flexible Packaging Offers Greater Market Access Opportunities s

Retort Packaging Magazine: Consumer Changes Create Growth, Flexo Articles Online, October 2007. Euromonitor International, 2008. Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, July 2008.

Hitting the Mark with Consumers

The Beef Information Centre conducted focus groups to gather direct consumer feedback on retort processed beef prepared in a exible pouch. Very favourable feedback was gathered from consumers identifying that the product:

Is convenient and easy to use. Has a higher perceived value than other retorted package formats (i.e. cans and glass jars). Is in a natural au jus that can be quickly heated and added to any variety of accompaniments to complete a meal. Has a very favourable appearance and taste with over 85% identifying that they like or extremely like the product. Tenderness was rated favourable by 73% of the respondents when hip/chuck cuts were sampled. Is a healthy convenient choice, and consumers were pleased to nd out that the beef was prepared using no preservatives. Shows a clean ingredient declaration with no preservatives, thereby enhancing product perception. Regarding health, consumers were pleased to understand that the product maintains all the nutritional benets of eating lean beef.

The retort process results in products that are suitable to many existing and unique markets. The high temperature and high pressure process results in a pristine, sterile environment that not only reduces food safety concerns and extends shelf life stability but also addresses religious ritualistic preparation techniques required for foods approved as Halal or Kosher. The sealed package allows for the ability to completely segregate Halal and Kosher products in production and at point of purchase. Retort processing provides opportunities for operations that at one time could not cater to this growing segment of the population or for those consumers that prefer Halal and Kosher products. Specically, opportunities exist in hotels, campuses, correctional facilities, institutions, cruise line, rail and airline catering.

Retort Processing Offers Merchandising Opportunities at Retail

Retorted beef packaging allows for exible product merchandising. Studies show 70% of the consumer shopping decision is made in-store. Consequently, sales performance of this new product would be enhanced where the consumer is making their protein purchase decisions. Ideal merchandising applications would include:

Shelf space above low-prole meat cases. Free standing merchandising units.

* BIC consumer focus group results.

The positive feedback was strengthened by the opportunity for consumers to sample this new format for beef. Recognizing this, the Beef Information Centre has the Partners Program available to interested Retailers, Processors and Foodservice companies. The Partners Program may be used to support new product development, consumer demos at retail, package and POS creation, including other marketing initiatives to enhance the success of new product development & introductions.

The retort pouch offers additional exibility and sales opportunity through ease in cross-merchandising within other in-store departments, such as produce, deli, grocery or wherever meal kitting takes place, without the need for skilled labour.

Flexible Retort Pouches Provide Advantages to Food Service

A study4 commissioned by the Beef Information Centre in July 2007, among Canadas foodservice market indicated that retort products represent an opportunity for the foodservice sector. Although there is considerable diversity in operations within the foodservice sector, exible retort pouch processed products were identied as providing the following benets to foodservice operators:

Retort processed beef does not have to be stored in expensive refrigerator and freezer space compared to other beef items. Extended shelf life allows for expanded shipping regions and reduces inventory management challenges of perishable products. Retort processed products have reduced food safety risks. The exible retort pouch allows for portion control and preparation convenience, which is especially important to the ease of use when faced with a shrinking labour market and access to skilled labour.

Incorporating retort beef into the menu provides consumers with a consistent, fork tender product made from affordable hip and chuck cuts.
4

CircleHill Marketing (Div. of Fraiche Fine Foods Ltd.), Kelowna, B.C., June 2007.

BIC Partners Program

BICs mandate is to increase demand and maximize the value of Canadian beef. We work with industry partners to facilitate development and marketing of innovative beef products and beef promotion activities under our Partners Program, one of our most important and well-recognized industry initiatives. The Beef Information Centre has introduced the new Canadian beef brand that will help consumers identify products that use Canadian beef. Consumer research5 identied that 96% of Canadians prefer to purchase beef produced in Canada instead of imported. When the logo was placed on a exible pouch package, consumers indicated that the Canadian Beef brand suggests the product is: Established in consultation with industry, the Partners Program has helped to play a major role in the promotion of Canadian beef, enabling businesses to develop and strengthen their beef offerings whether at retail, foodservice, processing or manufacturing in both Canada and the U.S. By leveraging dollars and working closely to promote and expand the selection of beef products in the marketplace, the result is a win-win situation for the Canadian beef industry and for our partners. These programs are industry-driven and, because they originate with the individual business, each program is unique catering to the specic goals, values and directives of each organization. Once a company has decided on a specic initiative, they can apply to BIC for nancial support on a cost share basis. There is no minimum budget or outlay, which ensures that many businesses, from the very small to the very large, can be eligible for the program. BIC supports a wide range of Canadian beef projects including product development programs from research and development through to packaging and market launch of beef products. For more information about the Partners Program, please contact your regional BIC ofce.

Better tasting with an improved quality perception. Has a high food safety standard. Relates an overall sense of trust consumers have for Canadian products. Represents an opportunity to support Canadian agriculture, the economy and beef producers.

The Beef Information Centre invites you to incorporate the Canadian Beef Logo into your packaging to promote Canadian beef products. Benets include an extensive promotional campaign including media, print and promotional events designed to create awareness among consumers of the Canadian Beef Brand.

BIC Canadian Preference study surveying 1,000 consumers, May 2008.

Ontario Office

2000 Argentia Rd., Plaza 4, Suite 101 Mississauga, Ontario L5N 1W1 Phone: (905) 821-4900 Fax: (905) 821-4915

Alberta Office
310-6715 8 Street N.E., Calgary, Alberta T2E 7H7 Phone: (403) 275-5890 Fax: (403) 275-9288

Email Contact Info

retail@beenfo.org foodservice@beenfo.org processing@beenfo.org

Disclaimer: This information has been compiled from sources and documents believed to be reliable. The accuracy of the information presented is not guaranteed, nor is any responsibility assumed or implied by the Beef Information Centre and their partners for any damages or loss resulting from inaccuracies or omissions.

www.CanadianBeef.info