Food Industry Promotes Healthy, Simple Comfort Foods

Fosterfarms.com shares healthier version of favorite comfort foods – trading out pasta for “zoodles” and baked chicken for fried. There are many ways to “healthify” the foods we eat and that trend increases as seen on many social media platforms. Even regular favorites like Fettuccine Alfredo can be lighted up by adding in a host of fresh veggies, fewer noodles, and less sauce. Sometimes it is about making revisions to the products used in dishes, and sometimes it’s about balancing them with more vegetables or lean proteins. Replacing fats with other options – some still fatty, but healthier fats like avocado, olive oil, and Greek Yogurt in place of part of the mayo or sour cream in dressings or sauces is also helpful.

Ira Brill, Foster Farms’ Director of Communications, said: “People look to food for comfort, and we just got interested in the notion of how consumers are changing.” Many companies have joined this approach, some taking it to the level of delivering fresh foods in just the right portion sizes with a recipe to follow, offering two or three meals a week. These options not only give consumers healthy options, they also give people who haven’t cooked much the chance to gain some culinary skills in a simple fashion.

Golden Gate University’s professor emerita of consumer psychology, Kit Yarrow, said: “Today’s new comfort food is about variety, impact, and high-quality ingredients rather than simply taste indulgence.” She also noted that many are learning about cooking and alternatives on their social media accounts.

Along with their simple and healthy recipes, Foster Farms now offers various lines of poultry, including their antibiotic-free chickens raised with things like herbs included in their water and feed. Of course, it’s a great idea, but if consumers didn’t like the idea, it wouldn’t last long. Consumers, however, seem to love the more natural foods, as well as the options of meals made including the right amount of fresh ingredients.

Fineman PR, a San Francisco-headquartered agency, is behind the new marketing campaign for Foster Farms. Fineman has worked with Foster Farms on various PR campaigns representing them for nearly 20 years. The firm was founded in 1988 by Michael Fineman, the current agency president and creative director. Some of their other clients include Fresh Express, Hanzell Vineyards, Clif Bar, Trex, and Health Right 360.