Store brands are stepping up – and shoppers are noticing. Once seen as the budget pick, private label food products are now earning serious shelf respect across North America, where they make up over 19% of total grocery sales (PLMA, 2024). Today’s consumers expect store brands to deliver just as much flavor and quality as national names. And fortunately, that’s where custom sauces really shine. When added to home meal replacement (HMR) and ready-to-eat (RTE) products, they boost flavor credibility, visual appeal, and consumer trust – without creating any operational headaches. By helping private label foods look and taste more premium, custom sauces have become a secret weapon for brands that want to stand out and sell more.
Why Sauce Is the Star of Crave-able HMR and RTE Products
Sauces don’t just complement a meal – they define it. When it comes to HMRs, custom sauces are a key driver of differentiation, ensuring products stand out by delivering unique flavor experiences and value propositions. A thoughtfully crafted sauce can instantly elevate a meal and shape how consumers perceive its quality, freshness, and worth. This is especially true in the refrigerated aisle, where shoppers tend to make quick decisions based on appearance and flavor cues. Here, sauces play a starring role. Their color, texture, and placement can signal bold flavors and premium appeal, turning an ordinary product into a standout choice. So, when you’re devising an exciting new HMR, why not make sauce your secret weapon?
Stirring Up Success for Private Label Food Manufacturers
Want to stand out without starting from scratch? Custom sauces let you create meaningful distinctions without changing your core SKU structure, so you can easily refresh and elevate your menu offerings. With the right sauce, private label food products can match or even surpass the taste experience of national brands. In fact, one in three shoppers say private label products are just as good – or better – than national brands (McKinsey Private Label Report, 2024).
That said, flavor matters. You can’t skimp on concept or ingredients if you want to attract new customers. When asked what would compel them to buy more private label products, 66% of shoppers said they wanted more flavor and variety (FMI Private Brands Report, 2023). If you can deliver the compelling, crave-able flavors consumers expect from high-quality manufacturers, you may garner a league of new fans.
Custom sauces also give private label food manufacturers the opportunity to build signature flavor platforms that span across salads, bowls, mains, and more, creating a unified brand experience. Prepared foods and HMR are the fastest-growing categories within grocery private label portfolios (Technomic, 2024), and if you want to expand your HMR and RTE offerings quickly, sauces provide the perfect avenue. By getting a little saucy, you can leave a lasting impression on every shelf and solidify your brand identity.
A Look at Leading Packaging Formats for HMR & RTE
At Giraffe Foods, we offer a wide range of retail-ready sauce solutions that strike the perfect balance between operational efficiency and shopper appeal. Whether you’re enhancing a premium meal kit, a convenient grab-and-go item, or a heat-and-eat family dinner, our packaging formats are designed to deliver flavor impact and ease of use across every type of HMR and RTE product. The following are some of our most popular formats for these product types:
- Small Sachets: Ideal for single-serve sauces in lunch kits, ready meals, and on-the-go combos, these compact packets ensure convenience and precise portions.
- Lidded Cups: A go-to pick for high-end meal kits and family-size meals, lidded cups offer a clean, premium presentation that’s easy for consumers to open and enjoy.
- Bulk: Bulk packaging is perfect for sous vide or bake-in-bag applications, as it allows the sauce to infuse during heating. This format also ensures restaurant-quality flavor delivery.
- Pouches: Designed for family-style meal kits or cooking kits, pourable sauce pouches provide flexibility and freshness in an easy-to-use format.
Giraffe Foods: Where Convenience Meets Culinary Impact
In 2023, $236 billion in private label sales were recorded in the U.S. – an 8.3% increase year-over-year (Circana, 2024). If you want a piece of that pie, Giraffe Foods can help you discover a world of delicious possibilities.
Our agile development process is built for retail timelines, giving you the speed to market needed to stay competitive. We also offer dedicated support for private label branding and flavor ideation, working closely with you to develop on-trend, crave-worthy sauces that seamlessly align with your brand’s identity. With proven success across a wide range of retail sauce solutions – from single-serve cups to multi-compartment packaging – we’re equipped to deliver innovation and efficiency at every step.
Let’s build the next big private label success together. Are you ready to learn how custom sauces from Giraffe Foods can help your brand stand out?
