WENATCHEE, WA - Conventional and organic new-crop opportunities are booming more than ever, with a record Kanzi® apple harvest. The projected increase as expressed by CMI Orchards, which is one of the two U.S. growers licensed to grow the variety, is reportedly 120 percent, including a 400 percent increase seen in organic.
News of the bountiful harvest is music to supermarkets’ ears, with scan data from Nielsen Supermarket showing a 66 percent dollar gain for the popular variety in the 9,000 U.S. grocers that are offering it to consumers.
“We’re so excited to be launching the 2017 Kanzi season,” said George Harter, Vice President of Marketing for CMI Orchards. “U.S. consumers are fast discovering why Kanzi is one of the hottest apples in Europe. With our big crop, we’ll be running aggressive promotions with retail partners throughout the season.”
This apple variety is the gift that keeps on giving to supermarkets, as it has proven to be an apple that consumers return to for more of its intense flavor. Harter also expressed that CMI’s Daisy Girl Organics program is also a huge opportunity to leverage the apple variety’s top-selling success for retailers.
“Retailers tell us that once consumers try it they come back to the store time and time again. These repeat purchases really drive category sales throughout the season,” said Harter.
The coveted apple is a driving force in the category for retailers. With so much growth for the apple’s sales, it’s a great thing that the harvest is keeping up with demand.
“Best in Class retailers are now driving up to 15% of category sales with branded apples like Kanzi by changing the varietal mix. The most successful retailers are very strategic in merchandising because they know the value of shifting consumer purchases up to high-flavor, higher-priced branded apples like Kanzi. The net result is they move their mix away from low cost commodity apples into higher cost premium apples. Even small shifts in volume drive strong increases in total dollars,” said Steve Lutz, Senior Strategist for CMI Orchards. “On average, Kanzi delivers a price premium for retailers that is 46% above the apple category average. Every time a consumer discovers Kanzi it drives incremental category dollars.”
CMI Orchards is not the only grower to see the spike in production. While CMI’s crunchy snacks are grown in Washington, Michigan is home to the second Kanzi apple grower, Applewood Orchards, Inc., which is reporting a 150 percent increase in conventional apples. And, U.S. supermarkets are in for a treat because, according to Scott Swindeman of Applewood Orchards, August’s and September’s great weather enhanced the fruit size. He is excited to bring his harvest to grocers.
“Beyond the unique flavor of Kanzi, retailers tell us they love how this apple stands out on supermarket shelves. What we’ve learned is the fire engine red and bright yellow background color of Kanzi really catches the eye of the consumer,” said Swindeman.
For grocers wondering how to market the tasty variety, CMI has done the work for you. To better showcase the popular snack, the company has created in-store merchandising support as a new retail tool for a stronger impact.
“For our 2017/2018 season we have our new “Ship ‘n’ Shop”™ Kanzi retail display bin. We developed this bin to give retailers a quick and easy tool to build powerful, off-shelf displays,” said Harter. “The Ship ‘n’ Shop™ display bin sets up in 10 minutes and ships with 16 euro cases of Kanzi. It eliminates a common problem for supermarket merchandisers by ensuring the fruit and the display materials arrive in the store at the same time. The strong graphics help retailers alert shoppers that new-crop Kanzi is finally back.”
With such a hearty harvest, Kanzi’s success story is just beginning this season. AndNowUKnow will continue to report on where it goes from here and all things fresh produce!
