Approximately 8 in 10 American consumers say they would rather buy an American-made product than an imported one, according to a recent Consumer Reports survey. Furthermore, 60 percent say they’re willing to pay 10 percent more for American-made products. Consumers are looking for American-made ingredients, and appreciate when restaurants offer them.

Of course, ensuring menu items are consistently excellent at full-service restaurants is important. Red Gold, a family-owned, 80-year-old American food provider, takes extensive measures to make each batch of their tomato products just as great as the last. Red Gold leads the tomato processing industry by implementing vertical integration and following its mission “to produce the freshest, best-tasting tomato products in the world.”

From Seed to Sauce

To create the best quality tomato products, Red Gold starts with their own special tomato seed. “Red Gold is the epitome of vertical integration. We have our own seed-breeding program, we grow those seeds into seedlings in greenhouses, and for over 20 years, our agricultural department has developed hybrid seeds,” says David Halt, senior director of business development for Red Gold Foodservice. After that, Red Gold entrusts the tomato to one of 40 family farms across the Midwest to grow the Roma-style tomatoes.

“Red Gold controls all aspects of quality. We process the tomatoes, we can them, we cook them, we cool them, we label them, we put them in our own distribution center, and if a customer wishes, we can deliver them on our own Red Gold trucks,” Halt says. The care Red Gold takes to deliver the best tomatoes and tomato products speaks for itself. “So, you think about the concept of vertical integration, we start from breeding the tomato seeds to delivering the finished products on Red Gold trucks.”

Consistency is Key

Red Gold takes its charge of consistency seriously and uses the best harvesting and processing technology so restaurants can serve their customers the same quality product every time. “When they are harvested, our tomatoes are only a few hours from our processing facilities, ensuring quality and freshness. Even our method for removing the skin from our tomatoes results in beautiful products that you will be proud to serve,” Halt says.

By employing the best harvesting technology and maintaining fast-paced procedures, Red Gold can send the highest quality tomato products to restaurants around the country. “The scale of tomato products and packaging options that we offer to foodservice is significant. Whether a restaurant is in search of fresh pack tomatoes to build their own sauce, or a fully prepared sauce that saves time and labor, our selection is what operators can count on,” Halt says.

The Secret in the Sauce

Many restaurants rely on their signature sauces to stand out—and ketchup’s distinct flavor is irreplaceable in many recipes. In large part, this is why it is so important to trust the quality and consistency of the ketchup brand a restaurant is using. “For example, ketchup is the base for signature sweet and sour sauce, or comeback sauce, fry sauce, or a great signature barbecue sauce. We consistently find operators who are using our sauces and ketchup as an ingredient for something that the restaurant can call its own,” Halt says.

Flavor, consistency, and quality are all important, but it is always good for consumer and full-service restaurants to know they are supporting a business that shares their values. Red Gold is not only well-known for its top-quality tomato products but also for its philanthropic efforts. “We partner with Folds of Honor to help support educational scholarships for the families of fallen or disabled military heroes, police, firefighters, and first responders. Red Gold has the Folds of Honor Logo on a line of ketchup products, and a portion of the sales from any Folds of Honor Ketchup product goes back to support Folds of Honor,” Halt says.

Redpack® and Red Gold Sauces

Red Gold offers numerous different tomato products from ketchup to Bloody Mary Mix. Whether a restaurant needs quality tomatoes as the base of its own recipe or if full-service restaurants need the consistency of ready-to-eat sauces, Red Gold can provide it. Redpack® allows full-service restaurants to provide dependable high-quality menu items to their customers.

“Beyond our Red Gold and Redpack products, our Sacramento® brand tomato juice is the gold standard for bartenders at great restaurants for their Bloody Marys,” Halt says. Red Gold continues to strive to provide the highest-quality and reliable tomato products in the U.S. “Our Tuttorosso® Fresh Pack tomato sauces are made from freshly picked tomatoes and are the top-selling Italian-inspired tomato brand among retail customers. Our plan is to have Tuttorosso become the preferred tomato brand for foodservice operators offering Italian-inspired menus,” Halt says.

To learn more, visit the Red Gold website.