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A season of change for Progresso soups
As fall approaches, so does soup season. And Progresso has rejuvenated soups to celebrate.
Progresso is now using only 100 percent antibiotic- and hormone-free chicken breasts in all of its 36 chicken soup varieties.
The Progresso team is always at work, responding to changing consumers tastes. It took less than a year to make the antibiotic-free chicken soup idea a reality.
While Progresso is constantly looking for ways to improve its products, Karly White, senior associate marketing manager, says it was feedback from soup lovers that fueled the rapid change.
“We’ve been listening to our consumers,” says Karly. “They’ve told us that having soups with antibiotic and hormone-free chicken was important to them. So we’re happy that we’re be able to give them just that this fall.
The new and improved chicken soups are on store shelves now. The Progresso team is understandably excited.
Hear from some of the people who helped make the changes possible, in this video.
Ray Joncas, director of marketing, Progresso, says, “When we talked to people about what they love about soup, we heard one thing over and over – the chicken makes the soup. So, we knew it was important to raise the bar on the chicken we put into every can of Progresso soup. We set a very ambitious goal to bring antibiotic and hormone-free chicken to market this fall. It’s exciting to see it on store shelves.”
Antibiotic-free chicken isn’t the first major change the brand has made in recent years.
“Progresso has always stood for quality ingredients, and when we look at the label on our cans we know we still have work to do. Although we’ve never had artificial flavors, we do have some colors from artificial sources. We are now working to remove them,” says Ray.
Progresso has removed colors from artificial sources from more than 60 percent of its soups with a goal of 100 percent by 2019.
“Over the last five years, we’ve also reduced the sodium levels in more than 40 of our soups, have certified seven more soups as gluten free, and expanded our vegetarian options. We’re always striving to be better,” Ray says.
The antibiotic-free chicken update will impact all chicken soups across Progresso’s Traditional, Light, Reduced Sodium, and Rich & Hearty lines, including its most popular varieties, Chicken Noodle, Chicken Wild Rice and Chicken Dumpling.
While there are a lot of changes inside each can of Progresso soup, soup lovers might also notice a few changes to the outside of each can.
Karly says, “We wanted the outside of the can to reflect the quality ingredients and delicious taste inside the can. To convey the modern, progressive brand that Progresso stands for, we simplified the design to make it easier for people to shop, used brighter colors and emphasized the delicious soup you’ll find inside.”
To help get the word out about all of its changes, Progresso enlisted actor John Lithgow, best known for his witty personality and recognizable voice.
