No Name Steaks, Minneapolis, MN, is rolling out new packaging after 12 years on the Midwest market in hopes of attracting new fans while continuing to entice existing loyal customers.

Product photography drives this new package, says Mitch Lindgren, creative director at Compass, the Minneapolis package design firm that created the new No Name packages.

“The meat has to be the hero,” he says of the new graphics. “We aren’t selling side dishes, we’re selling great steak.”

Using existing images. Compass focused on the meat, blurred out the side dishes, and instantly made the center of the plate more appealing. Giving a face-lift to the old logo proved relatively easy. Compass re-organized the elements and arrived at two distinct blocks of type. The type face of the logo remained the same.

The color black now outlines the entire box and heralds the brand name. Color is used at the bottom to cue customers on product specifics.

No Name Steaks originated in a South St. Paul neighborhood butcher shop in 1971. The brand was acquired in 1993 by J&B Group, a leading, privately-held perishable food processor and distributor, serving the retail and foodservice industries. Established in 1979, the company is based in St. Michael, MN.

Applegate Farms, the leading producer of organic and all-natural meats, has launched its new Organic Beef Burgers in time for the summer grilling season.

“There is an increasing demand for organic meats, and we are doing everything we can to meet it,” says Stephen McDonnell, co-founder and chief executive officer of Applegate Farms. “Our new burgers are definitely the anti-fast food. They’re easy to prepare, but that’s the only thing fast about them. We make our burgers with one-hundred percent certified organic grass-fed beef, raised humanely with strict adherence to national organic standards that include feeding our animals only one-hundred percent  certified organic grass or grains with absolutely no animal byproducts. We can also trace our products from the farm to the table. That extra level of detail gives people a great-tasting burger and real peace of mind.”

Applegate Farms’ new Organic Beef Burgers are 85 percent lean with 195 calories, 21 grams protein, and 12 grams of fat (5 grams saturated) per quarter-pound burger. They are packed four to a box (net weight 16 ounces) and are sold frozen. Suggested retail price is $6.99 a box. Product is available nationwide at leading supermarkets, natural food stores, and online at www.applegatefarms.com

Ruiz Foods, Dinuba, CA, introduces El Monterey® Authentic Burritos — a new frozen line offering c-store consumers the great authentic and homemade flavor profiles of Mexican food.

The new product is available in three flavors: Ground Beef and Spicy Potatoes, Shredded Steak and Spicy Potatoes, and Bean and Cheese. Flavor profiles selected for final development were directed by a number of strong trend indicators:

• C-store meal purchases continue to increase

• Lunch (11 a.m. to 1 p.m.) remains the most preferred purchase time

• C-store consumers demonstrate a strong demand for Mexican food, and they enjoy a more ‘homemade’ Mexican flavor profile experience

Each 5-ounce burrito is available in a convenient 1-minute heat-and-go package.

“As with all of our products, each El Monterey® Authentic Burrito is made with tortillas fresh from our own bakery,” says Kim Ruiz, vice chairman, Ruiz Foods. “They are then filled with robust and flavorful ingredients perfect for the hand-held or dashboard dining consumers’ desire for a meal that is quick and saves time yet offers variety and innovation.”

Unified, bi-lingual packaging with a distinctive homemade design grabs the consumer’s attention, Ruiz adds. The MSRP is $1.49 each. The company relays it is dedicated to selling premium quality, authentically prepared frozen Mexican foods to all channels of distribution. Ruiz has been the No. 1 brand of frozen Mexican food in the United States since the early 1990s. NP