OAKDALE, MN - Today’s consumers have shifted their buying habits toward high-value produce, focusing on quality and convenience. To meet the demands of these consumers, Maglio Companies created its readyripe® pouch, a gusseted pouch concept for fresh quartered watermelon.
According to Sam Maglio, President and CEO of Maglio Companies, this pouch benefits both consumer and retailer: “The development of the patented pouch took several years and significant field testing in order to perfect it. We wanted to get the technology just right.”
The specially formulated pouch regulates oxygen and water vapor transmission rates. This natural respiration process creates an enhanced atmospheric environment, resulting in the quartered watermelon staying fresh for a longer period of time. According to a press release, the pouch preserves the taste and flavor of quarter-sliced watermelon and increases convenience for both the consumer and for the retail grocer.
Time and motion studies with leading grocers have shown that the pouch reduces watermelon production time. The overwrap method can take up to three times longer than the pouch to wrap quarter slices of watermelon for display in the store, and during busy watermelon season, retailers are looking for solutions to their labor challenges.
By using the pouch, grocers can stop cutting the tips off the melon quarters to prevent tearing of the overwrap film. This improves weight, yield, and reduces labor while increasing profit. Additionally, fewer quarter watermelons will be discarded as the pouched melon enhances shelf-life and appearance. This further improves sales and profits.
“There is also an additional benefit,” said Joe Delgadillo, Product Innovation Manager at Maglio. “When you cut your production time in half or more, you can use the extra time to produce more quarter watermelon and satisfy peak season demand, or use the extra time for other produce offerings that yields an additional stream of revenue and profit.”
He noted that this strategy gives grocers a way to dynamically adjust their production capacity without adding more labor and expense.
“In 2017, we delivered millions of pouches to the market enabling retail grocers to fulfill in-store quarter watermelon programs with this innovative approach to packaging. With this solution, category sales have increased,” added Delgadillo.
In-store pilot programs have shown consumers prefer the readyripe solution pouched quarter watermelon and are willing to pay more per pound. The grocer can maintain the same price per pound, thus providing more value for the customer.
When Maglio representatives surveyed consumers in-store about their experience, they noted the three things the loved most about the readyripe solution: convenience, freshness, and no mess. With the convenience of the pouch, consumers take the sliced watermelon out and cut the portion they are going to use and place the remainder back in the pouch and reseal it for later use.
The company noted that the pouched quarter watermelon gives customers a superior product and retailers options for increasing productivity and profits. The shopping experience is more enjoyable for the consumer who can more easily carry, handle and store the quarter watermelon and the retailer can increase productivity and meet consumer demand for convenient produce options.
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