CINCINNATI — The Kroger Co. and Home Chef are making their retail meal kits available to a broader audience with the announcement that the weekly rotating meal solution will be expanding to 500 additional Kroger stores across the United States. In addition to the meal kit expansion, the companies said homechef.com has launched a customizable meal kit feature for online orders. The new feature will allow customers to change and upgrade recipe ingredients.

"Kroger continues to redefine the customer experience and provide new ways to shop for, prep and cook meals through exciting brick-and-mortar and digital experiences," said Robert W. Clark, senior vice-president of merchandising at Kroger. "Last October, Kroger introduced Home Chef retail meal kits, and we're now expanding to add the easy-to-prepare recipes to hundreds of new locations, providing convenient access to the meal solution at more than 700 stores. We look forward to the continued growth of Home Chef in 2019 through expansion and new products."

Patrick Vihtelic, founder and chief executive officer of Home Chef, said the customizable meal kit feature is part of the company’s evolution.

"With continued innovation and personalization, we are providing customers with more ways to enjoy fresh, delicious meals that align with their individual tastes," Mr. Vihtelic said.

The latest expansion will put Home Chef retail meal kits in Kroger family stores in Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Indiana, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Washington and Wyoming. The meal kits currently are available in select stores in Illinois, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and Wisconsin.

As part of the new customization feature, consumers may use homechef.com to swap, double or upgrade ingredients. The “customize it” feature expands on Home Chef's commitment to provide customers increased variety through options like Home Chef's no-cook five-minute meals and add-ons like fresh smoothies.

"Our customers asked for more ways to customize their Home Chef meals, and we listened," Mr. Vihtelic said. "We are excited to be the first leading meal kit company to introduce these new ‘Customize It’ choices for everyone seeking the same great Home Chef meals with even more variety and choices."