Expanding its Picnic Roasts line, Farmland Foods, Kansas City, Mo., is adding a short shank half roast.

Farmland offers Picnic Roasts in Extra Tender and All Natural varieties. The Extra Tender variety is subject to the company’s deep basting process to ensure products are moist and easy to cook while the All Natural variety features pork raised without antibiotic growth promoters or artificial ingredients. Originally rolled out in whole roasts, the Picnic line now includes the half roasts to fit more budgets and to suit more occasions. The All Natural fits the trend of better-for-you eating, said Bert Lawson, manager of the Farmland Foods Test Kitchen, and both varieties are suitable for grilling, as consumer segments concerned about convenience and wellness advantages are looking for barbecue alternatives.

Farmland ships its Picnic Roasts vacuum packaged to preserve color and freshness in the cooler. Whole roasts come 7 or 8 to a case, and the individual packages each weigh approximately 7.3 pounds in the All Natural or 8.6 pounds in the Extra Tender variety.  The half roasts come eight to a case, and each weighs approximately 4.5 pounds in either variety.