News Feature | April 8, 2014

Hormel Makes The Incredible, Edible Egg Even More Incredible

By Karla Paris

Hormal Unrefrigerated Eggs

After five years of R and D, Hormel has created an egg dish needing no refrigeration

Austin, MN-based, Hormel Foods is launching the food industry’s first egg dish that's both appealing to consumers and requires no refrigeration.  Hormel created its first industry buzz nearly a century ago with its canned ham product, SPAM.

The new Hormel Compleats breakfast features four single-serve varieties, including two with real eggs — Bacon Breakfast Scramble and Sausage Breakfast Scramble — as well as Roasted Potatoes & Sausage Gravy, and Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal, that are ready to eat after cooking just 60 seconds in the microwave.

The egg dishes are prepared in large pressure cookers called retorts, then sealed under pressure to preserve them, just as home-preserved vegetables are. Sealing the product under pressure makes it last longer on grocers’ shelves, while maintaining flavor, says Jason Baskin, Hormel’s senior product manager of microwave meals.

“We know that consumers are looking for a substantial breakfast option, but need a product that also fits in with their fast-paced lifestyle – and we saw an opportunity to deliver on both,” says Luis Marconi, VP of grocery products marketing at Hormel Foods. “It took five years to innovate the technology necessary to have a great-tasting shelf-stable egg. The process dramatically shortens the cooking time to make it possible to produce items with eggs and dairy that taste great.”

Hormel isn’t alone in its efforts to alter the egg.  Hampton Creek Foods has created plant-based alternatives to eggs in hopes of bringing healthy and affordable food to everyone.

While consumers are increasingly more concerned about health, the entire packaged food industry, has been driving a protein proliferation. Hormel is no exception to that, as the new line is the first in the shelf-stable microwavable breakfast meals category to include real eggs, utilizing innovative new technology to create a breakfast packed with protein.