Two new chopped salad kits anchored Fresh Express's presence at the 2026 International Fresh Produce Association (IFPA) Global Produce & Floral Show in Orlando, as the value-added salad leader made a direct pitch to retail buyers hungry for differentiated fresh options. The Roasted Poblano Caesar Chopped Kit and Fire-Roasted Queso Crunch Chopped Kit are designed to translate trending restaurant flavor profiles — smoky chiles, fire-roasted vegetables, bold cheese — into the convenience of a ready-to-eat retail format.
The New Products
Both kits expand Fresh Express's portfolio of more than 100 salad varieties and reflect a wider push in the packaged salad segment toward globally inspired, heat-forward profiles that move beyond legacy Caesar and ranch formats. For grocery and foodservice operators, the products represent a direct response to consumer demand for convenience that does not sacrifice the sensory experience of a restaurant meal. Fabian Pereira, Vice President of Marketing and Innovation at Fresh Express, framed the launches in category terms: "We believe the future of the salad category is about delivering more flavor, more excitement and more reasons for consumers to enjoy fresh salads. Our newest innovations reflect our commitment to bringing restaurant-inspired experiences into everyday meals."
Celebrity Partners at the Booth
Fresh Express also brought two of its Fresh Expressionists™ ambassador partners to the show floor. Country singer and cookbook author Jessie James Decker and registered dietitian Steph Grasso appeared at Booth #2243, each reinforcing different consumer entry points to the brand — Decker emphasizing flavorful, family-friendly convenience and Grasso making the nutritional case for fresh, ready-to-eat produce. The dual-ambassador approach signals how produce brands are borrowing playbooks from CPG and beverage categories, using credible lifestyle and wellness voices to extend shelf relevance beyond the produce aisle. Retailers and foodservice buyers tracking fresh produce merchandising trends will recognize the tactic as part of a broader effort to reposition bagged salads as a destination purchase rather than a commodity staple.
What It Means for Operators
For restaurant and hospitality operators sourcing retail-adjacent ingredients or tracking competitive flavor trends, the Fresh Express launches are a useful signal: roasted chile and queso profiles are moving from menu boards into packaged goods at scale, which typically reflects a flavor cycle already well established in casual dining and fast-casual segments. The company noted that more than 14 million consumers each week purchase Fresh Express salads, spinach, and vegetables — a distribution footprint that gives new flavor introductions immediate national reach. Buyers interested in how ready-to-eat salad and fresh convenience categories are evolving will want to track how these SKUs perform at retail over the next two quarters, as sell-through data will test whether bold-flavor positioning can sustain velocity beyond initial trial. Food & Beverage Magazine has tracked the broader heat-and-smoke flavor arc across multiple packaged food segments this year, and the Fresh Express kits fit squarely within that movement.
Written by Michael Politz, Author of Guide to Restaurant Success: The Proven Process for Starting Any Restaurant Business From Scratch to Success (ISBN: 978-1-119-66896-1), Founder of Food & Beverage Magazine, the leading online magazine and resource in the industry. Designer of the Bluetooth logo and recognized in Entrepreneur Magazine's "Top 40 Under 40" for founding American Wholesale Floral, Politz is also the Co-founder of the Proof Awards and the CPG Awards and a partner in numerous consumer brands across the food and beverage sector.
