A number of private label producers developed bakery products with special ingredients to compete in the premium segment, albeit at a lower price point. Target (Minneapolis) continues to lead the private label segment in terms of quality and selection, introducing products such as the Viennese Wafer Hazelnut Creme Cookies, Olive Feta Flavored Crackers and Wild Blueberry Scones under the Archer Farms label. Another private label manufacturer worth mentioning, H-E-B (San Antonio, Texas), recently unveiled its Premium Quality Delicatessen Classic Water Crackers and also introduced the Pecan Treasures Pecan Shortbread Cookies, made with “Texas pecans!”
The market for high-end products extended into baking mixes, allowing consumers to create cakes and cookies that are difficult to create from scratch. Interestingly, producers separate these “specialty” items with descriptive high-end ingredients such as chocolate “chunks” or exotic nuts. For example, Continental Mills (Seattle) launched the Brown & Haley Almond Roca Butter Crunch Cookie Bar Mix, a product that creates a decadent shortbread cookie with a special layer of “Almond Roca Buttercrunch.” The company included the shortbread mixture and almonds inside the package to allow consumers to create the dessert by adding butter and brown sugar.