• by Todd Wasserman , July 7, 2023

Subway is adding meat slicers in its 20,000 U.S. locations, a move it is calling “one of the most complex changes the brand has ever made.”

Meats at the chain were previously pre-sliced and delivered to its stores.

The move is part of the chain’s Eat Fresh Refresh, a program started in July 2021 that included free sub giveaways, six new sandwiches, four revamped sandwiches and two new breads, Artisan Italian and Hearty Multigrain.

That program has helped to drive Subway’s ninth consecutive quarter of positive sales.

"Over the past two years, we overhauled our expansive pantry of ingredients and debuted a whole new way to Subway with chef-crafted signature sandwiches," Subway's president of North American operations, Trevor Haynes, in a news release. "This year’s changes are even bigger and more transformational."

Subway has spent more than $80 million on the deli meat slicers and “gifted” them to all its franchised restaurants in the U.S.

Subway will offer more than 1 million free 6-inch Deli Heroes subs at some locations nationwide on July 11 between 10 AM and noon, local time.

Do the slicers make a difference? The Takeout sampled Subway sandwiches with the sliced meat and reported: “My takeaway is that it was fine, but I’m not sure I would have noticed the difference between freshly sliced and pre-sliced meat if I hadn’t seen the deli slicer in action myself.”