Verdino Green Foods strengthens its leading position in the plant-based market, by launching a new category – breaded products and ready-to-eat snacks, with the taste and consistency similar to chicken.
The €4 million investment is aimed at developing the breaded category, investing in the production line and also developing the brands in the portfolio: Verdino®, Unfished® and Green Course®.
“Crispy Burger”, “Schnitzel” and “Nuggets” are just some of the novelties that the Verdino brand is betting on, to attract as many consumers as possible and to change preconceptions about the taste of plant-based products.
Refined, wrapped in a crispy golden breading, the new Verdino products are created with sustainable ingredients, based on wheat, pea and fava beans protein, that respect the environment through reduced resource consumption and care for animals.
“With the takeover of the Unfished (canned plant-based tuna, salads and spreads, alternatives to tuna and salmon) and Green Course (ready to eat plant-based meals), we focused this year on accelerated portfolio development, aiming to cover market segments where we see long-term potential for expansion, both in Romania and internationally. Investments in innovation and production lines have allowed us to launch this autumn a diversified plant-based range, breaded and fillets such as chicken and fish, fresh but also frozen, and specialties – products that represent an absolute novelty for the Romanian market (salmon smoked slices, canned tuna, tuna and salmon sashimi type, all plant-based).
We have assumed the role of pioneers in the field and in educating the market, we are constantly innovating and, through the variety of products, we offer consumers the opportunity to try and assimilate as many types of plant-based products as possible,” said Raul Ciurtin, Founder of Verdino Green Foods.
The launch of the new Verdino range is supported by a 360 communication campaign, which will run nationwide, on TV, digital and in-store.
Unusually, the product names have been mistranslated – Cripsy Bruger, Schnaitzel and Nuggest, precisely to claim that the main factor in choosing the product is its intrinsic taste and not the terminologies on the menu. The new range is crunchy, delicious and just good to enjoy, whatever you want to call it.
“The insight of the campaign started from a simple thing. We know that plant-based product names have always generated controversy – “why are they called “sausages” if they are not “sausages” “, and the examples can go on. Thus, Verdino invites everyone to the table with a campaign that has a simple and honest message: “Doesn’t matter how you name them, more important is you LOVE them!”, which emphasizes the taste of the products, promotes the joy of delicious meals, regardless of preferred eating style.
The campaign’s characters are Diana Enciu and Vladimir Drăghia, as representatives of the new generation of consumers, who are actively and constantly reducing their meat consumption and for whom Verdino represents an evolved option to eat, not only something nutritious and good, but also sustainable,” said Celina Condorovici, Verdino Green Foods Marketing Director.
Verdino Green Foods products are internationally awarded, receiving trophies in the «Plant – Based Taste Awards» and «V-Label International Awards» in 2021, «Men’s Health Good Food Awards» and «PETA Deutschland’s Vegan Food Awards» in 2022.
Verdino Green Foods also continues to build on the brands acquired this summer and expands the Unfished® portfolio in new market categories in the plant-based segment, with breaded fish sticks and fillets, salmon and white fish fillets, specialties such as sliced smoked salmon and tuna flakes in jar – innovative sustainably sourced products that reflect the company’s commitment to protecting the Planet.
The new Verdino breaded products are available in the hypermarket and supermarket chains in both fresh and frozen versions.
More details about the new range of Verdino plant-based products can be found on www.verdinofoods.ro and on the Social Media pages: Instagram and Facebook.
About Verdino Green Foods
Verdino Green Foods is a regional leader that offers sustainable alternatives to meat, fish and cheese products, with over one hundred varieties under the Verdino, Unfished and Green Course brands. Verdino is a Romanian brand, founded in Alba county, a pioneer in Romania in the plant-based category. The product range includes burgers, cevapcici, mince, deli slices, sausages, salami, hot dogs, coconut oil cheese, pizza and specialties such as mortadella with pistachios, pepperoni and bacon.
