For regular folks, the holiday season is months away. But for those of us in the food business, holiday planning is in full swing. The 2025 holiday season is one of the biggest opportunities for grocery retailers and ready meal manufacturers to capture consumer interest, delighting and intriguing newcomers with festive offerings. One way to create memorable holiday meals? Using custom sauces to inject signature flavors into deli and ready meal products.
Read on for holiday 2025 insights from Giraffe Foods, your strategic partner in flavor, presentation, and marketability.
Custom Sauces for Holiday Deli and Ready Meals
First, let’s dig into the case for deli and ready meals during the busy holiday season. It all comes down to that word: busy. We generally see a 25 to 30% spike in deli and prepared meal sales during the holiday season (National Grocers Association), thanks to the consumer desire for convenient, premium-quality meals that also offer a festive dining experience. With friends and family gathering at every opportunity, no one has the time for cooking completely from scratch.
That said, consumers are still prioritizing quality and innovation in the grocery space. Demand for elevated and global flavors in holiday meals has grown by 35% over the past five years (Datassential, 2024). What does that mean for you? It’s time to expand your premium ready meal offerings to prepare for the holidays. The holidays might be months away, but now is the time to elevate your sauce game.
How a One-Stop-Shop Sauce Supplier Sets You Apart
Working with a custom sauce formulator like Giraffe Foods isn’t just about the flavor. It’s about setting yourself apart from the competition – especially when everyone is working to innovate in the holiday space at the exact same time. We offer the following to help you prep for the frantic holiday season:
- Versatility: As a custom sauce formulator, we have the innovation and manpower to develop sauces that can be used across multiple SKUs. From premium private label condiments to signature flavors, we’ll work with you to develop exclusive, branded holiday sauces that encourage repeat purchases, long after the mistletoe is taken down.
- Convenience: If there is one thing today’s consumers want during the holidays, it’s convenience. We offer packaging and formulation guidance to set you apart – for example, pre-packaged sauces designed for easy application on heat-and-eat meals.
- An eye for regulatory compliance: With the increased desire for sustainable and clean-label sauces, we’re able to prioritize natural ingredients, reduced sugar, and eco-friendly packaging.
- Planning and development: We generally advise that brands start developing their holiday sauce formulations by the beginning of Q2. This helps ensure production and distribution readiness for Q4 sales. Feel like you’re behind? We can help you catch up.
Holiday Sauce Inspiration
We keep a close eye on trending flavors to help you get ahead of seasonal demands. Check out a few of our favorite holiday sauce ideas:
- Classic with a Twist: The holidays are a great time to lean into nostalgia. That said, today’s consumers are looking for a bit more innovation in their sauces, particularly younger consumers influenced by social media trends. This is where we’d use a Truffle Honey Mustard Glaze to elevate traditional ham with a touch of earthy truffle and sweetness. We’re also loving Cranberry Chimichurri, which offers a fresh, tangy take on cranberry sauce for a variety of proteins.
- Global Holiday Flavors: The demand for global flavors just keeps growing. Invite consumers to experiment and broaden their horizons with a Pomegranate Molasses Glaze, featuring a sweet, rich, Middle Eastern-inspired tang. Pulling from traditional Mexican flavors, we’re also intrigued by a Spicy Mexican Chocolate Mole on the holiday table. This deep, rich, and slightly sweet sauce works beautifully with braised meats.
- Healthy Picks: Plant-based holiday meals continue to grow in popularity. Even if your consumers aren’t prioritizing veggies for themselves, chances are that most holiday tables will have at least one veggie-forward eater. Crowd-pleasers like complex Miso Maple Glaze and light Tahini Citrus Dressing both complement veggies and plant-based proteins.
- Premium Dessert Sauces: Holiday hosts might love the ritual of baking from scratch, but an elevated, store-bought sauce can really take things to the next level. Try a Salted Caramel Bourbon Drizzle for bread pudding, ice cream, or holiday cookies, or a sophisticated Spiced Cranberry Coulis atop cheesecakes. These options make holiday guests feel pampered without adding to the hosts’ kitchen time.
Remember: It’s never too early to start planning ahead for the holiday season. Custom sauces are one of the best ways to elevate your deli and ready meal holiday offerings, and we’re here to help. We’re not just flavor experts; we also specialize in creating tailored holiday sauce solutions to meet retail and manufacturing needs, including sauce bottle packaging and scalability for private-label or branded offerings. What’s more festive than that?
Contact us today to explore custom sauces for the holidays
