Dive Brief:

• McLane Company has launched McLane Fresh, an expanded retail foodservice program specifically designed for convenience stores, according to a Wednesday announcement.
• McLane Fresh features the distributor’s new proprietary pizza and grab-and-go offerings, as well as its reimagined beverage program. It also offers c-store retailers marketing support, merchandising, equipment bundles and other foodservice expertise.
• The program was designed to meet consumers' growing expectations for healthy, quality food at convenience stores, which it hopes to position “as hubs for culinary excellence on the go,” said Vito Maurici, customer experience officer at McLane.

Dive Insight:

McLane unveiled its new foodservice program during its national trade show, McLane Engage, which is taking place this week in Dallas. Retailers of all sizes can take advantage of the program’s full suite of offerings, Chris Smith, president of McLane Retail, said in the announcement.

During the trade show, McLane offered customers and suppliers a peek at the new McLane Fresh products. These included CupZa!, the distributor’s new beverage program, which features artisan coffees, cold brews, teas and lemonades with new flavors and drink styles; its new fresh-baked pizza; and healthy grab-and-go options from its hot foods platform, Central Eats.

Menu innovation for McLane Fresh will be led by Farley Kaiser, McLane’s senior director of culinary innovation, who previously served as senior director of fresh food and beverage at GetGo Café+Market. Back in June, McLane hired Jon Cox as its first-ever vice president of retail foodservice, noting at the time that he would lead McLane Fresh.

Program members can also use McLane's commissary kitchen network to get shorter-shelf-life products delivered more often, which ensures quality and freshness, according to the announcement.

Temple, Texas-based McLane, which was founded in 1895, serves over 110,000 c-stores, mass merchants and restaurants, with more than 50,000 items delivered. It has more than 80 distribution centers across the U.S. and employs more than 25,000 people.