Independent Marketing Alliance

08/18/2026

We are excited to welcome Joel Kaunisto to the IMA team as our newest Category Manager for the Bakery, Dairy, and Frozen categories. Joel brings over 12 years of experience in sourcing and procurement is ready to enhance product strategy in the in the Bakery, Dairy, and Frozen categories! We look forward to all that he brings to IMA! 🌟

Please join us as we welcome Joel to the IMA team!

08/14/2026

🎒 82% of school meal programs report challenges meeting nutrition standards. Source: School Nutrition Association 2025-26 Trends Report

School nutrition teams are being asked to do more with fewer resources. Products like Riverhill All White-Meat Turkey Patties, Bountiful Harvest Broccoli Florets, and Brickfire Bakery Sweet Yeast Rolls can help support balanced menus while simplifying preparation and ex*****on.

08/11/2026

Consumers are increasingly discovering restaurants through social media. And sometimes, the difference between a menu item getting ordered and getting shared comes down to its name. We're seeing more operators transform everyday menu items into memorable experiences with names inspired by gaming, fantasy, travel, and pop culture.

Consider the difference:
🥥 Tropical Coconut Lime Cooler made with Rejuv Lime Juice → 🌴 Island Escape
🌮 Quesabirria featuring Vista Verde Birria and Tortillas → 👑 Birria Royale
🍯 Honey Mustard Wings made with Riverhill Chicken Wings→ 🐉 Dragon Gold Wings

The goal is to create curiosity, spark conversation, and give consumers something worth posting about.
💬 What's the best menu item name you've seen recently?

08/06/2026

Looking for ways to reduce prep, maintain consistency, and keep your kitchen moving? Labor-saving products can help operators simplify back-of-house operations while delivering the quality guests expect.

Choose a path, follow the line, and reveal a labor-saving solution for your operation.
🍳 Intros Battered Cauliflower: A crowd-pleasing appetizer that's ready for the fryer
🔥 Prairie Creek Originals Pulled Pork with Sauce: Authentic BBQ that's fully cooked and ready to serve
🥣 Katy's Kitchen Nashville Originals Hot Sauce: Serve a trending flavor without the sauce prep
🧀 Villa Frizzoni Originals Grated Parmesan Add premium finishing flavor without the grating

Tell us where you landed. 👇

08/04/2026

Last week, we were proud to host our Sales & Marketing Council (SAMC) in Houston for two days of collaboration, discussion, and planning for the future.

The two-day meeting provided an opportunity to share insights, exchange ideas, and help shape priorities for 2027 and beyond.

We're grateful to all who participated, contributed to the conversation, and joined us throughout the event. Thank you for helping make another SAMC meeting a success.

07/29/2026

07/23/2026

🍪 With ’s indulgent cookies, operators can deliver premium desserts with minimal labor while tapping into one of the most effective drivers of menu engagement: nostalgia. As an American classic, chocolate chip cookies bring familiar flavors guests already love, making them a strong foundation for both limited time offers and everyday dessert innovation.

The opportunity:
✅ Leverage nostalgia
✅ Introduce engaging formats
✅ Build easy, high-impact LTOs

Here’s how operators can bring it to life: interactive formats like cookie cups and milk shots create a more engaging, shareable dessert experience, while flights and mini formats offer variety and align with lighter indulgence trends. Pairing cookies with ice cream or toppings is an easy way to increase perceived value using existing ingredients, and warm formats like skillets support higher checks and dine in appeal.

07/20/2026

Beverages are becoming one of the most important growth drivers on the menu. Consumers are choosing drinks that feel worth the order, and that often comes down to customization and visual appeal. The opportunity is to build formats that offer variety and give guests more control. With Rejuv, that looks like:

🍓 Custom refreshers
Base: Rejuv Raspberry Lemonade (Bag‑in‑Box)
Customize with: adjustable sweetness, fresh fruit, ice level

🥤 Citrus-forward dirty sodas
Base: Rejuv Lemonade (Frozen Concentrate) + soda water
Customize with: whipped topping, citrus garnish, Tajín or sugar rim

🧊 Frozen juice beverages
Base: Rejuv Punch (Bag‑in‑Box)
Customize with: layered fruit, garnish upgrades, sweetness level

07/17/2026

Rising beef costs are driving a shift in how protein is used across the menu.

The focus is no longer on reducing beef but using it more intelligently to protect margins and maintain menu appeal.

Operators can take a more strategic approach by:
• Reducing portion sizes to manage plate cost
• Introducing shareables to deliver value with less protein per serving
• Shifting to format-driven builds like tacos, bowls, and handhelds that rely on flavor, toppings, and presentation
• Cross-utilizing proteins across multiple menu applications to improve efficiency and reduce waste

These shifts create flexibility, improve efficiency, and allow operators to deliver the experience guests expect without relying on high-cost center-of-plate portions.

07/15/2026

A great New York style bagel starts long before it reaches the menu, and with
Bagels, that story begins with the people behind the process.

Our Brickfire Bakery bagels are made by experienced bakers who bring the authentic New York bagel tradition to life just. With over 11 hours of fermentation, kettle boiling, and hearth baking, each step is guided by more than 30 years of expertise and a commitment to high-quality ingredients like high protein Midwest wheat, with no high fructose corn syrup.

When people take pride in the process, the product delivers.