Supermarket Perimeter - May 2019 - 78

Produce: Apples and pears

"We are also proud to be offering a new retail dietician kit containing great information about the nutritional value of New York apples,"
she adds.

Pears: marketers push lesser-known varieties
As of late March, the weather has been favorable with no major freeze
issues and sufficient chill and dormancy needed for a quality pear crop,
says Kevin Moffitt, president and CEO of the Milwaukie, Oregon-based
Pear Bureau Northwest.
Pears grown in Washington and Oregon account for 88% of the U.S.
commercial fresh pear crop.
Moffitt says this year, retailers should consider promoting lesser-known varieties such as red anjou, starkrimson, comice, concorde,
forelle and seckel alongside better known varieties such as bartlett,
anjou and bosc.
There also may be limited availability of a new pear variety called
Gem in the upcoming season, he adds.
Shales of Stemilt says the company offers nine varieties of pears with
bartlett, red pears, bosc and anjou making up the majority of volume.
"Stemilt has an early pear, called Tosca, that has a short seasonality
and incredible ﬂavors," she says. "It's a great pear to promote for backto-school timing in our Lil Snappers brand of 3-pound kid-size fruits.
Kids really love Tosca."
Chelan Fresh Marketing has a good crop of organic anjou and bosc

THE TIME
IS RIPE

pears this season, Riggan says, but he worries weather could delay
promotions.
"It's a good quality crop but I feel like promotions might not happen
until after the Fourth of July, which could be a challenge," he says.
Pears ﬁt perfectly with consumers who are interested in where their
food comes from and generally try to be more health conscious when
shopping, says Moffitt of the Pear Bureau Northwest.
"We believe consumers are increasingly interested in eating more
fresh produce that tastes delicious and offers nutritional beneﬁts," he
says. "With six grams of ﬁber (24% of daily value) per medium-size pear,
they are one of the highest-ﬁber fruits among the top 20 items in the
produce section."
Snacking also is a huge trend in food right now as today's young
shoppers are eating smaller meals, snacks and doing so on-the-go versus cooking at home, says Shales of Stemilt.
"Apples and pears are great snacking fruits and we've played off on
this trend through some of our recent display work," she adds.
Moffitt recommends retailers carry conditioned pears when possible
because 51% of consumers will eat their pears within one to two days
of purchasing, and research shows that retailers carrying conditioned
pears average a 19.5% purchase increase.
Tudor of Rainier Fruit Co. agrees, saying Northwest pear growers
carefully set conditions to best ripen pears, but he adds that other pears
in the market aren't always as stringently conditioned.

MERCHANDISING
CONDITIONED PEARS
CAN INCREASE SALES

19.5%!

by satisfying consumer
demand for ripe
and ready

FOR INCREASED
PEAR PROFITS

Trade.USApears.org/Conditioning
CONTACT PEAR BUREAU NORTHWEST TO GET STARTED.
800.547.4610

78 - MAY 2019

www.supermarketperimeter.com

* Source: 2014 Fresh Pears Usage and Attitude Study shows over 50% of consumers
want to eat their pear within two days of purchase. Retailer sales data showing sales
increase with conditioned pears was for 9 weeks period ending April 2012.

http://Trade.USApears.org/Conditioning

Supermarket Perimeter - May 2019

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