The successful test of Uncle Ben’s International Marinade in b.c. will see Effem Foods roll out the new product to the rest of Canada this year.

The Uncle Ben’s brand is expected to have a wider distribution than its competitors.

Other ethnic-style meat marinades are limited to specialty food and butcher stores, while the President’s Choice Memories of…. series of marinades are found only in Loblaws and affiliated stores.

Effem launched eight varieties of International Marinade in b.c. last May.

The brand has also received some limited distribution in Quebec through Provigo supermarkets.

The product line includes Cantonese Orange Ginger, Chinese Black Bean, Thai Peanut Satay, Indian Tandoori, Jamaican Island, Japanese Roasted Garlic, Mexican Fajita and French Four Peppercorn.

A 340-millilitre bottle is enough for three to four uses, and has a shelf price of $3.99.

Andrew Robinson, franchise director of Uncle Ben’s at Effem Foods, says the company wants to study the b.c. test market for another season before releasing it nationally later in the year.

Robinson says marinade products are a natural extension of Uncle Ben’s flavored rices, adding, its cooking sauces that were first launched in b.c. in 1990.

‘We’re taking the equity and quality of Uncle Ben’s brand, and spreading it across a broader range of food products,’ he says.

‘We’re expanding from our roots in carbohydrates to sauces because we have a lot of expertise in blending herbs and spices, and going from a dry pouch mix of our seasoned rice products to a wet form in cooking sauce and marinade.’

International Marinade was developed in Canada, but has been picked up by the u.s. company, which is now testing it in St. Louis.