Gala, Honeycrisp Top Growth In Supermarkets
January 7, 2014 The volume of varieties such as Gala and Honeycrisp experienced large gains in supermarkets. Gala increased by 3% in volume over a four-week period in 2012. Honeycrisp was the second-highest apple variety and experienced an increase of 14% from 2012. Volume numbers of Red and Golden Delicious are on the decline.
Apple volume in supermarkets increased by 2.5% more than 2012. Gains in volume were met with falling retail prices, which experienced a 6.5% decline.
“More consumers are selecting newer variety apples like Gala, Honeycrisp, and Fuji at the expense of some traditional favorites,” said Steve Lutz, vice president of marketing for Columbia Marketing International. “This is beginning to impact performance of legacy varieties like Red Delicious and Golden Delicious and even established varieties like Braeburn. For the four week period, Red (Delicious) volume dropped by almost 12% while Golden (Delicious) volume declined by about 8%.”
Lutz says consumers are seeking out apples believed to be high in flavor.
“Consumers are more willing to pay high prices for apples like Fuji and Honeycrisp. But we’re seeing even stronger gains in high-flavor varieties like Pink Lady and Ambrosia. For the period, among the top 10 apple varieties nationally, Pink Lady and Ambrosia had the strongest percentage gains in volume. Pink Lady volume jumped by 44% while Ambrosia volume increased by 22%, despite supermarket shelf prices substantially higher than the category average.”
“The apple category continues to become more complex,” said Lutz. “Increasingly, for retailers success hinges not only on knowing which apple varieties to put on the shelf, but also knowing which apples to emphasize in merchandising and which varieties should be dropped.”
Source: CMI news release
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