For pickle fans, this is a big dill.
Pickle producer Vlasic is developing chips made entirely of pickles, the brand's parent company, Conagra Brands, confirmed during a recent event.
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"Pickles themselves are a great snack, essentially no calories or carbs," said Tom McGough, Conagra co-chief operating officer, during the April 10 Investor Day event. "But eating pickles out of a conventional jar is inconvenient and messy."
McGough announced two new pickle products – Vlasic single-serve pickle slices and also a Vlasic vacuum-fried pickle chips – that he said "taste absolutely fantastic."
Pantry and refrigerated pickles are a $1.1 billion category, growing 6% over the past year, McGough said.
Consumers craving pickle-flavored snacks isn't new.
"Pickles has always been a flavor that people have loved in snacks," McGough said. "Whether it's in potato chips or even in our Bigs Vlasic Dill Sunflower Seeds."
But unlike Lay's pickle-flavored chips that were re-released this year, these pickle chips aren't made with potato.
A Conagra Brands spokesperson confirmed to USA TODAY Wednesday that the "pickle chips are in our innovation pipeline, but still in development." A release date isn't yet known.
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