Why Glacial Treasure Products Don’t Come with a Long List of Preservatives

Look at the ingredient list on most frozen chicken products in an Ontario grocery store and you’ll find preservatives — sodium nitrite, sodium erythorbate, potassium lactate, sodium diacetate, and others. These ingredients exist to extend shelf life and prevent bacterial growth in products that would otherwise spoil quickly.

Our Glacial Treasure products don’t contain any of these. Here’s why we don’t need them.

IQF Freezing Is the Preservative

Individually Quick Frozen products are flash-frozen at temperatures well below the range where any bacterial growth is possible. Once frozen, our chicken products are shelf-stable in a freezer for months without any chemical intervention. The freezing itself is the preservation method. Adding chemical preservatives on top of proper freezing is redundant — it’s typically done to compensate for compromised cold-chain handling somewhere in the supply chain, or to allow the product to sit at slightly warmer temperatures during distribution.

Our Cold Chain Doesn’t Get Compromised

From our HACCP-certified Toronto facility to Fortinos coolers and freezers, the cold chain for Glacial Treasure is documented and controlled at every step. We ship in temperature-controlled trucks. Fortinos receives and stocks in controlled environments. The product stays frozen from our facility to your freezer. When the cold chain is intact, preservatives aren’t necessary.

Marinades Are the Flavour, Not the Shelf Life

Our marinades — Anastasia’s souvlaki recipe, our shawarma seasoning blend, the lemon pepper formulation — exist to flavour the chicken. They don’t need to double as preservatives. Some manufacturers use marinades that are essentially salt and phosphate baths with flavour added, because the salt and phosphate extend shelf life and improve water retention (which increases weight and reduces cost). We don’t. Our marinades are flavour. That’s it.

The Family Standard

Three generations of the Dikeos family have made chicken products they’d eat themselves. Kostas and Anastasia — who came from Greece and built this business — didn’t want additives they couldn’t pronounce in the food they made. Their four children, who run the business today, hold the same standard. Their five grandchildren, who work across the operation, are growing up with it.

When you buy Glacial Treasure at Fortinos, you’re buying chicken with a short ingredient list because the family behind it decided a short ingredient list was worth committing to. It’s not a marketing choice. It’s who we are.

Try clean-label chicken at Fortinos —  ddpoultry.ca/glacial-treasures/