Minerva Dairy, Minerva, Ohio, launched a version of its hand-rolled butter in a smaller, “more-appealing” size. One unexpected bonus of the resizing, Minerva Dairy said, is optimized shelf space at the retail level — an advantage that is already opening doors to greater distribution opportunities, including a major rollout in Target stores.
Developed over five years, the 1-pound version of Minerva’s flagship 2-pound roll of premium butter remains in the familiar oblong shape that has helped set the brand apart for decades. The new size will give the brand added visibility in the dairy case, while providing shoppers an ideal product size for their refrigerator doors. The availability of the 1-pound roll of Minerva butter in certain Target regions gives the brand greatly increased exposure across a wide geographic swath, the company said.
“We’re so thrilled that Target shoppers can now experience our hand-rolled better butter and rediscover what real butter tastes like,” said Venae Watts, part of the fifth generation of Minerva ownership. “We’ll be introducing the 1-pound roll of Minerva Sea Salt Butter as part of Target’s premium butter set in the Midwest.”
Known for its distinctive 85% butterfat slow-churned Amish butter, Minerva Dairy has been making hand-rolled butter for more than 125 years. The company said it uses only farm-fresh milk from pasture-raised cows to turn out its products, all of which are GMO-free, antibiotic-free, gluten-free, vegetarian and free of the synthetic hormone rBST. Passed down through five generations, the company’s trademark slow-churning process creates a creamier, richer, more-flavorful product than butter produced using a high-speed churn.
“We produce the type of premium butter that consumers are looking for right now, and our butter fanatics have been waiting patiently for us to come out with this smaller size of their favorite product,” said Watts.
Minerva said its 1-pound roll can also be found in a handful of other retail chains, including Jewel-Osco, Piggly Wiggly, Meijer and Lowes Foods.
