As part of a cooperative marketing campaign, Sargento Artisan Blends Parmesan shredded natural cheese and Bertolli Pasta Sauce are touting themselves as two key ingredients in a recipe for Tuscan Sausage and Three Peppers Lasagna. The brands’ joint FSI, which features coupons for both products, dropped yesterday.

In addition to the FSI, which targets 30 million households, the brands are offering cross-couponing, with Sargento shredded natural cheeses carrying $1 off Bertolli Pasta Sauces, and jars of Bertolli carrying coupons for 55 cents off Sargento cheese. Sargento and Bertolli are also including recipes using both brands’ products on their respective Web sites.

“We have heard from numerous accounts that this kind of collaboration is a great way to promote usage of both products,” noted Rob Krause, marketing manager at Plymouth, Wis.-based Sargento. “This is a wonderful opportunity for Sargento Natural Cheese to align with a premium quality pasta sauce brand like Bertolli to do just that, while providing consumers with a great recipe and our customers with incremental sales.”

“The reputation Sargento has with food enthusiasts is a great fit for the Bertolli brand,” added Craig Rudner, who oversees Bertolli brand building at Englewood Cliffs, N.J.-based Unilever USA. “Our positioning is ‘restaurant-quality sauces’ for home cooks, so Sargento matches up well and is a great partner to enhance the menu of dishes for our consumers.”

Atlanta-based Langston Communications, Inc. helped develop the Sargento-Bertolli partnership.