Straight out of Pork Magazine comes news that Cargill Meat Solutions has launched an antibiotic-free pork brand, sourced from hogs grown in the Midwest free from antibiotics, growth stimulants, and hormones. The brand, Good Nature, was introduced this month to retail and foodservice operators, along with a snazzy website. The identity itself is a friendly but generic-looking eco-style logo that could just as easily lend itself to any natural or green product.
Good Nature is good news for pig meat lovers looking for a minimally processed, natural choice when it comes to pork. Competitors in the growing natural swine market include Berkshire, Applegate Farms, and other small organic farms.
Food Karma Alert notes that the new line of pork products are better for the pigs, those that raise and eat them, and the environment (less greenhouse gases due to lack of industrial production, distribution, etc of the antibiotics and less antibiotics into the earth).
The Good Nature website offers recipes, Frequently Asked Questions about pork, and a contact form to find a location near you (we hope a map is on the way). You bet your bacon that they also throw in a healthy dose of piggy puns.
Pig Progress has the following quote by Joe Linot, Cargill’s pork marketing manager:
Consumer demand for quality pork that not only tastes good but also contains only healthy, natural ingredients is a growing trend. We want to collaborate with our customers to help them answer market demand by offering Good Nature pork.
Cargill is wise to jump on the natural food bandwagon. The company notes in their press release (wordsmiths take notice) a prediction by Packaged Facts that the natural and organic food industry is expected to surpass $46 billion by 2010, a 63% increase.
Cargill launched a branding program back in May, labeled “Beef Up Your Menu,” to rename lesser-known cuts of beef (flank steak is now Maranada Steak, and so on) in response to a cutback on beef purchases by as many as 30% of shoppers.
It’s clear Cargill is versed about meat and branding, so we wish them well with this new line.