Rupari Food Services, a culinary supplier of ready-to-eat pork ribs and BBQ meat entrees, is offering a new item in the pre-cooked refrigerated meat category with the launch of Tony Roma’s All Natural Ribs and Pulled Pork. Catering to consumer demand for convenient meal solutions that meet clean label criteria, Rupari participates in the segment in terms of innovation and growth, contributing $1.5 MM in overall category growth.

In addition to removing high fructose corn syrup and gluten, Tony Roma’s has added new flavor profiles. Developed in celebration of regional barbeque favorites, sauces include Kansas Style Sweet Hickory BBQ, Kansas City Style Kickin’ Sweet & Spicy BBQ and Blue Ridge Sweet & Smoky BBQ. Rupari is also introducing a new packaging design for the expanded line.

“Consumers are demanding higher-quality refrigerated meal solutions, and they deserve them,” says Kristin Kroepfl, vice president of marketing for Rupari Food Services. She notes that since 2010, the gap between consumers who have and have not purchased natural and organic meats has closed dramatically. “Where frozen options once dominated, refrigerated convenience is now driving growth, and we know from both our own and secondary research that premium quality meats paired with clean labeling is fueling consumer demand more than anything else.”

Hand-trimmed and slow-smoked in natural hardwoods, Tony Roma's ready-to-eat meats are an easy way to enjoy delicious, quality barbecue at home without the extensive prep time. Each heat-and-serve meat is filled with rich and robust flavors, bringing that fresh-off-the-barbecue taste to the kitchen in just 20 minutes.

"We pride ourselves in our passion for authentic barbeque. We have found a way to cater to all of our customers by combining all-natural ingredients with the delicious taste and tender profile people expect from our products,” said Jack Vogt, Resident Pit Master and Research and Development Lead for Rupari Food Services. “We’ve invested behind a simple manufacturing process that enables us to make BBQ the same way we do from scratch in competition – we season, slow smoke and sauce high quality meat. That’s it in a nutshell.”