That blueberries do not become market bananas
Unexpectedly, bananas became a common theme during the first day of the annual summit of the International Blueberry Organization (IBO), an event that is taking place in the town of Coffs Harbor, in northern New South Wales, Australia. . This, because the tropical fruit served as a warning to the dangers of the traps of the products.
"How do you like the fruit? With adjectives please "asked Dr. David Hughes, Emeritus Professor of Food Marketing at Imperial College London.
Before 330 participants -which in one way or another represent 90% of the blueberry producers of the world-, Hughes warned suppliers about the need to be more descriptive in the commercialization of blueberries, taking advantage of terms such as "freshly harvested", "Friendly with the environment", "premium", "organic", and many more.
"People will pay more. There is a margin in the adjectives. If your only description is now 'blueberries', then it is in the commodities, and then you will pay the price for it. "Pointed.
Hughes discussed the idea of "known value items" (KVI), which follows the notion that buyers can only store about 30 product prices in their heads at any given time.
Following this idea, it is important that the marketing of blueberries stand out against other products, to gain an important space in the market and not become a devalued product.
"You have to be very competitive with the 'value items', and what has happened in the UK is that in the 2000 the bananas had a value share of the 22% in retail and an average selling price of £ 1,40 (USD) 2.14) ".
"15 years later, the value share has been reduced to 11% and the average sale price of bananas in the United Kingdom is 0,89 (USD 1.36) per kilo in supermarkets. Do not put blueberries in that position ", he stressed.
"The per capita consumption of bananas has risen from 13kg to 17kg. It's great for consumers, but banana retail sales in terms of money have not gone anywhere. The lack of variety of products has contributed to the commercialization of bananas ", Agregó.
Hughes suggested that the blueberry industry should go much further in terms of marketing and ensure that this fruit is part of the food offerings and is in snack packages.
“Put them where people are looking for snacks, lunches… put them in containers of sizes that respond to their needs; they will have to pay more for less, and that is our chance ".
He also urged the sector to continue publishing good news about blueberries, based on solid scientific knowledge, and offer a differentiated offer through the idea of 'good, better, superior'.
"You'll see that in most supermarkets around the world there will be a cheap, regular and premium. We want to see that range in blueberries ", Dijo.
Despite the warnings, Hughes was quite positive about the future of the fruit.
"Blueberries are going through a period of gold in terms of demand, even in the most mature markets, where there is still room for growth".
"Why? Because it is intuitive - the long-term trends of consumers and global markets are far from maturity ".
After a talk by the president of African Blue, Avi Weizman, who mentioned that the strawberries had become 'Moroccan bananas', the president of STT Royal, José Gandia, argued that choosing the right varieties is key to avoiding deterioration in the prices of the category.
"We are seeing varieties appear in the market that have very little flavor, and one of the main problems I see in the future is the presence of varieties that have the appearance, but do not have the flavor".
"The challenge is - which may happen in the near future - that some of the varieties that are being produced are not as good as we have had so far, and there will be a destruction of consumer appreciation with the fruit that does not have good taste, or it's too acidic or too soft ".
For its part, the representative of the Union of Fruit Producers and Exporters of Uruguay (UPEFRUY), Marta Bentancur, mentioned that in order not to become a market like that of bananas, the country is working on diversification.
"We are a small country, with small volumes, but the traceability, quality, safety and care of our people and the environment are our main values and opportunities to grow in the international market", Dijo.
On the other hand, Very Berry Korea's Chaesup Rim warned that the Korean market no longer consumes as much rice as it used to and that it is necessary for producers of this product to find a substitute that is beneficial, and blueberry may become a good option.
Source: Fruit Portal
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