Asda is rolling out a 180-strong children’s food range – with products taste-tested by kids themselves.
Chosen by Kids – an extension of the supermarket’s Chosen by You own-label range – encompasses food from breakfast through to teatime, and includes porridge pots, sandwiches, snacks and microwaveable meals.
Asda put the products through thousands of independent blind taste tests by children aged between four and eight, before the kids’ mums gave their approval. All products comply with HFSS guidelines.
“We know that parents will appreciate the lengths and breadths we have gone to, to seek counsel from kids on the food that they eat day in, day out”
Barry Williams, Asda
“We know that parents will appreciate the lengths and breadths we have gone to, to seek counsel from kids on the food that they eat day in, day out and at the same time, make the range nutritionally balanced,” said Asda’s chief merchandising officer for food Barry Williams.
“If they love it, it means nothing goes to waste, a real plus for mums who might be juggling a tight budget.”
Chosen by Kids will roll into all Asda stores nationwide from today. Prices begin at 32p.
Products in the range include Golden Syrup-flavoured porridge pots (58p); mini tomato wraps (£1); a meatballs and spaghetti microwaveable meal (£1.75), which includes “hidden vegetables”; and fish and vegetable shapes (£1).
Packaging for the range features seven brightly coloured monsters, images of which can be downloaded from an on-pack QR code.
Asda’s product development director Gail Paddy said: “We’ve spent many hours talking and listening to mums’ mealtime woes and it seems that a lack of time and fussy kids refusing to eat their greens cause the biggest teatime troubles. For the first time ever, mums and their kids get to have their say on a range that ticks all the boxes – tasty, affordable, convenient and packed full of goodness – something that appeals to both mums and kids alike.”
In its most recent income tracker, Asda reported that the average UK household had £160 a week of disposable income in July 2013, down from £165 a week at its peak in February 2010.
‘Chosen by me’
In a separate initiative, Asda is encouraging its customers to give feedback on which own-label Asda products are their favourite. Shoppers will be urged to use the hashtag #chosenbyme on social media. Selected comments will then be used on in-store labels. A #chosenbyme hub will also appear on the Asda website from tomorrow.
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