WENATCHEE, WA - It is peak season for Piñata® Apples from Stemilt, and as we move through February, this signature variety is bringing flavor, differentiation, and a tropical twist to produce departments. Known for a unique flavor profile that presents a high-brix and high-acid eating experience with note of pineapple, the Piñata apple is making waves in the consumer basket and already creating excitement in 2017.
Brianna Shales, Communications Manager, joins me as Stemilt ramps up its Piñata program to share the latest and greatest about this exclusive and distinctive apple variety.
”Demand has been incredible for this apple, and also having a significant presence in both the conventional and organic segments has really helped the Piñata variety grow,” she tells me. “Last year, the variety was in over 6,000 supermarkets in the U.S alone, with a huge presence in Canada as well. Between display contests at retail and demos across produce departments, the Piñata is truly raising the bar on flavor and presentation.”
Presentation you ask? Yes, presentation. With growth across both conventional and organic Piñata apples, Brianna shares with me that Stemilt is offering retailers a host of merchandising solutions while segmenting the category into more opportunities to offer a range of buying options for different consumer groups.
“Stemilt offers our retail partners a bulk conventional apple display option to cater to those shoppers who want to buy just two Piñata apples or many. Bulk has remained a mainstay of the category with 66% of apples sold bulk,” Brianna says. “In addition we have a high-graphic display for our organic Piñata apples offered under Stemilt’s Artisan Organics program to differentiate between the options and create multiple destinations across the department.”
In addition this year, Stemilt is also offering its 3 lb. Lil Snappers® Piñata pouch bag program for kids in both organic and conventional – bringing smaller sized fruit for grab-and-go convenience. This program continues to sell very well due to the apple’s sweet and tart flavor profile which really gets kids and parents excited about the category.
And new this year is the 5 lb. Apple Lover standup vertical pouch bag for Piñata apples which also comes with its own high-graphic, display-ready carton. Retailers can put this carton on display separate from the bulk Piñatas as well, to create their own destination in the produce department and help drive those impulse sales.
“The Piñata is really unique since it is cultivated from a trio of heirloom apples – Golden Delicious, Cox’s Orange Pippin and Duchess of Oldenburg,” Brianna adds. “This parentage creates an apple that blends the right balance of sugars and acids, with a hint of pineapple flavor on the backend that brings that tropical taste we love to share with our customer and consumer base.”
With a crisp and juicy texture, as well as a perfectly thin skin for eating out-of-hand or cooking with– this apple is looking to bring versatility and value to the competitive apple category.
