Jamie Oliver’s brand to launch dry pasta

Food brand Jamie Oliver’s Cupboard Stuff is extending into dry pasta. It will be launched by Fresh Retail Ventures, which makes the Oliver’s food products, next month.

The range, which is made in Verona in Italy, includes spaghetti, penne and fusilli and free-range egg lasagne, which the company claims is a first for the branded category. The pasta is made using bronze die, which give the pasta a rough surface and helps the sauce “stick” to it.

David Page, managing director of Fresh Retail Ventures, says: “Own label pasta accounts for 70% of the category, whilst 70% of the past sauce category is branded. This presents a great opportunity for a brand that spans both categories and offers the potential for link promotions.”

The Jamie Oliver Cupboard Stuff range also includes antipasti, oils, vinegars, herbs and spices, and “posh bread spreads”.

The pasta will launch in Tesco stores next month.