The consumption of fresh apples is falling in Europe. We are losing consumers every single year. Revitalising the apple section and the range of apples offered is becoming essential.
And so Blue Whale® has aimed to understand consumers around the world, as well as their expectations in terms of both products and the buying experience. ‘This understanding is key to revitalising consumption’, says Christelle Bertin, Director of Marketing & Communication at Blue Whale®. ‘We are the recommended apple partner’, she adds. ‘In order to develop our knowledge of consumers and understand their expectations, we’ve been carrying out large-scale studies since 2022 in France and in several other countries around the world with MarketSense.’
Blue Whale® has taken its learnings head on — there are 3 main reasons why consumers have moved away from eating apples:
- Disappointing experiences in terms of taste and texture.
- The trivialisation of apples and a desire to turn to other types of fruit.
- Diverse consumer profiles with different expectations that need to be met.
‘There are around a hundred varieties on the world apple market and over 70 varieties branded through clubs,’ explains Christelle Bertin. ‘Not all these varieties will be successful. However, a wide range on the shelf can strengthen the department if a consumer approach is prioritised.’
Drawing on what it has learnt and its consumer-centred approach after studying and gaining an understanding of what consumers want, Blue Whale® has reworked how it offers assortments to customers.
‘Our offer, which is relevant from a taste and organoleptic perspective, goes hand in hand with activation work both inside and outside the point of sale. It’s a winning combination for reaching the hearts of consumers!’ explains Pauline Planté, Head of Marketing France at Blue Whale®. ‘Five major consumer profiles have been updated in France with special expectations regarding apples: from diet addicts to gourmet foodies looking for sensory pleasure, as well as no-nonsense families. Cross-referencing certain consumption data from the Kantar panel has led to some truly interesting findings. For example, our all-new CANDINE is a sweet, crunchy and juicy variety, which is very well suited to the expectations of young consumers who are looking for a tasty apple that’s ideal for snacking’, she points out.
The categorical approach suggested by Blue Whale® has been test-implemented at Leclerc for two months at some of its locations. The assortment recommended by the chain has been set up according to taste, with clear and attractive shelf markings to encourage shoppers to browse the range and discover new varieties. The average department shopping basket has increased, with the most popular innovations outperforming the rest. ‘We’ve got proof it works! A 46 % jump in revenue in the apple category!’ Christelle Bertin further explains, ‘The different varieties bring additional benefits to the department and meet different consumer expectations.’
Pauline Planté adds, ‘We’ve developed APPLE management expertise and are offering a 12-month global assortment to our French medium-to-large-sized supermarket customers to get their entire departments to perform better by satisfying consumers and boosting sales. We don’t just offer our varieties to push our volumes. We’re concerned about the entire department and include our competitors’ offers in our recommendations.’
To better highlight the offer, Blue Whale® has developed and deployed POS advertising in the department to guide consumers’ buying choices. ‘We’ve updated the main consumer choice criteria: 1) taste 2) uses and expectations for apples,’ she says.
The World Citrus Organisation (WCO) Secretariat, together with its partner Fruitnet Media International, is finalising preparations for the first edition of the Global Citrus Congress, which will take place on 5 November 2020. The Global Citrus Congress will bring together the citrus community to discuss the current trends, challenges and opportunities for the citrus sector. More than 300 participants from across the globe have already registered to attend the virtual congress.
The programme of the first edition of the Global Citrus Congress 2020 will highlight the key areas of interest for the sector. This will include production and marketing trends, facilitating cooperation between suppliers and retailers to add value to the citrus category, new technologies and supply chain innovation helping citrus producers and marketers to respond to consumer demands towards increased sustainability, and harnessing the nutritional power of citrus to develop more effective marketing campaigns. Confirmed speakers include top representatives from the global citrus community, including Ms Naomi Pendleton from AM FRESH Group, Mr Jose Luis Molina from Hispatec, Mr John Chamberlain from Limoneira and Stephan Wesit from Rewe.
WCO Co-Chair and Director of AILIMPO Jose Antonio Garcia affirmed, “There is no doubt that this first edition of the Global Citrus Congress will provide an excellent opportunity to discuss the challenges of the future and consolidate the role of the World Citrus Organisation as a meeting point for the great citrus fruit family. Cooperation, communication and constructive debate are the key to tomorrow’s success as these are the objectives of the Global Citrus Congress”. WCO Co-Chair and CEO of the Citrus Growers’ Association of Southern Africa Justin Chadwick added “As the World Citrus Organisation goes from strength to strength in terms of membership, this Congress will share important global citrus information and the views of leading actors in the sector. It is an event not to be missed”.
The Global Citrus Congress will be available live in both English and Spanish, and is free to join online and open to anyone with a smartphone or laptop and a high-speed internet connection. Registrations are still open at www.citruscongress.com.
Most decisions to buy are made directly at the point of sale: the significance of product presentation is growing, with an attractive visual appearance becoming ever more important. KHS is therefore now also offering its successful Innoket Neo labeling series for cans to manufacturers of small batches and producers with a high brand variety. The machine opens up new avenues in product marketing and flexibility in production. Warehouse capacities are reduced and energy is saved.
Images of production shops filled with pallets of differently printed empty cans will soon be a thing of the past. Says Cornelius Adolf, labeling product manager for KHS, “We’ve expanded our existing portfolio to include can labeling to give the customer more design options and enable these designs to be implemented faster with smaller warehouse capacities.” This is because minimum order quantities and long delivery times for empty cans limit flexibility. It is now possible to order unprinted cans within a much shorter period and to label them using the KHS Innoket Neo, thus simplifying logistics processes.
Wrap-around labels with optical alignment
The Innoket Neo can be used to apply self-adhesive film or paper labels. Here, the container can be either partly or fully wrapped with a label – including optical alignment. “The look and feel are unique”, is how Adolf explains the results of the self-adhesive labeling method. With this technology beverage producers can also respond much more rapidly and flexibly to the steadily growing variety of products and labels on the market. With this system the design or logo can be changed within a few hours and the cans dressed with suitable motifs. “Customers can even print their own labels. This considerably shortens the time to market. An attractive product is a clear distinguishing criterion at the point of sale,” says Adolf. As no cans with varying motifs have to be ordered, costs are also cut as higher numbers of unprinted containers can be purchased.
The space-saving machine with its 14 can plates driven by servomotors comes from the established Innoket Neo module system and gives manufacturers of small batches and producers with a great variety of brands many benefits. At high machine availability up to 35,000 full or empty cans in all standard sizes can be labeled per hour. The machine can be positioned upstream or downstream of the filler. Format changeovers are quick and do not require any additional tools. The labeler also has a high level of energy efficiency, with a power consumption of just five kilowatts per hour.
