For the first time, Hispanic flavors are outpacing Italian in the U.S., a trend driven by Gen Z and millennials, says Jason Parasco, CEO of Denver-based Insignia International, supplier of Yucatan Guacamole and other Hispanic and Southwestern food brands.
Insignia acquired the Yucatan brand in early 2023, and Parasco joined the company as chief sales officer in 2024, transforming its commercial operations and securing retail wins including expanding its craft salsa into 1,400 Walmart stores and driving its Yucatan Guacamole to the No. 1 position at the Lakeland, Fla.-based Publix.
The Packer recently sat down with Parasco, who was named CEO in July 2025, to discuss Hispanic flavors, shopper trends and the company's innovations in fresh, which he says are seeing huge growth.
“Hispanic flavors have overtaken Italian for the first time ever, and it's a really interesting trend,” says Parasco. “We're seeing the next generations, the millennials and Gen Z, looking for that authentic flavor and they're unwilling to compromise on lesser ingredients in their products.”
Parasco says clean ingredients are a source of pride at Insignia, which last year gave its Yucatan guacamole a complete reformulation, including taking out Xanthan gum used for thickening and upgrading its cilantro. The reformulation was driven by consumer feedback on the colors and flavors they most associated with authentic guacamole.
“We fixed it and retailers fell in love with it,” says Parasco of the new Yucatan Guacamole that launched in July.
Innovations in Eating
Insignia seeks to be a one-stop shop for Hispanic flavors, says Parasco, who points to the company's portfolio of organic frozen burritos, craft salsa, tortillas and more. But it's the innovation behind its Yucatan Guacamole Squeeze, a portable squeezable pouch of fresh guac, and its Lilly B's Organic Frozen Burritos that is helping drive nearly triple-digit growth, he says.
“The Squeeze is gaining a lot of traction because consumers have changed their behaviors and purchasing intent, and they're looking for things on the go,” he says. “That's one of the reasons why in produce or deli, you're seeing a lot of trays coming into the market. What we call ‘meal solutions,' whether it's a veggie tray or a party tray — that's what consumers are looking for.”
Parasco says the company is continuing to gain more distribution around those SKUs as well, while also having innovations in the pipeline.
Another trend he sees influencing innovation and soaring demand for protein is the rise of GLP-1 users.
“People are looking for protein and new ways of consuming smaller meals to give their body what it needs as they're potentially losing weight,” he says. “We've gotten a lot of feedback over the last six months on protein. It's the buzzword now in the industry, and we have some great innovation coming out that involves protein with some of our items.”
Growing the Customer Base
But with food affordability top of mind for many, Parasco says Insignia sees a threshold on what consumers are willing to pay.
“One thing that we're noticing in the produce section, or particularly the guacamole category, is consumers are very price conscious, and they may not have the loyalty we have in other categories, but they are still looking for the best quality and the best deal at the store,” he says. “I think those younger generations are not as brand loyal as the older ones.”
To reach this essential group, Insignia has begun to focus on social media designed to build brand awareness as well as developing flavor profiles geared to younger generations.
“We have made investments in people in the organization, particularly around social media, to continue to grow brand awareness, because we believe once you try that new product, you will be loyal, and you will come back,” he says.
Parasco sees social media playing a key role in attracting new users to the category.
“The days of stealing share, but the category isn't growing, no longer exist,” he says. “Retailers are unwilling to take a bet on new brands if they could just source it from another brand versus bringing in new users and growing the overall category.”
As part of its social strategy, Insignia plans to dial into key guacamole consumption times of year like January and February football, Cinco de Mayo and Fourth of July, with campaigns that showcase products like Yucatan Squeezable Guacamole on hot dogs or other handheld food popular on game days, gatherings and backyard barbecues.
Promotion is another important tool, he says.
“As we grow, the No. 1 thing is to drive trial when you're on shelf,” he says. “A new item hitting the shelf can't just sit there. You're going to have to double down.
“What we've done with a lot of strategic retailers within the produce or deli set is to reinvest in promotion to drive that category awareness and to drive trial for our products,” he continues. “Maybe you give a 20% to a BOGO discount, which is a little bit more significant, but if you get that multiple purchase intent, and they're buying more than one, that's when you really start to see the category grow, and that's been our successful recipe over the last 52 weeks.”
Parasco says guacamole hits a hard barrier when the price point goes over $8 or $9.
“We constantly look at price elasticity — where's the cliff to where you're losing shoppers because you're just far too high? And that's not just in produce; that's down every aisle. There are certain price points that tend to scare consumers,” says Parasco, who adds that consumer price sensitivity is even higher when it comes to new products.
The Value Prop
While Parasco sees innovation as critical to success, so too is a compelling value proposition. For Insignia that means offering a full slate of today's hottest Hispanic flavors and products.
“I want to grow Yucatan bigger than just guacamole,” he says. “All the things that are in our pipeline are very exciting and what we see growing in the marketplace in the next two years. Refrigerated salsas and dips are growing single digits, and so is guacamole. So, how do we use that tailwind behind both those categories but bring in new users, new formats and new flavor profiles that the consumer is looking for?”
