WOODLAND, CA - A walk through the produce department is a sensory experience every time. Unlike browsing the center-store aisles for a bag of chips or a pack of cookies, consumers harness nearly every one of their senses to ensure they are taking home top-quality produce products. Enter Syngenta Vegetable Seeds, rapidly enhancing the melon category with its IDEAL Melons, presenting an overall experience sure to increase melon consumption.
“The problem we have noticed for consumers is they are seeing inconsistency in the melon market in terms of flavor and appearance, since items have been bred for shipping ability and to last longer on the shelves,” Bernie Hamel, Value Added Chain Lead, told me as we explored a table of delicious melons during Syngenta’s recent Melons Extraordinaire. “We are introducing melons that not only have grower and shipper benefits but consumer benefits as well.”
The list goes on when raving about the impressive qualities of this melon lineup, as it presents a host of benefits to buyers, growers, and consumers. With high Brix levels and an enticing, musky aroma, Syngenta’s IDEAL Melons not only call consumers to purchase but delights them with a satisfying eating experience that keeps them coming back for more. Seeking to ramp up demand for melons, the company is taking a quality-driven approach to expanding and maintaining the category’s consumer base.
“Our goal is consistency year-round—even in the dead of winter. What consumers care about is that the fruit tastes good, looks good, and has the right texture,” Bernie imparted. “For too long, melons haven’t been able to really shine in the consumer market, and we want to offer products that can bring more excitement to the melon consumer segment.”
Not only do these melons boast exceptional quality, flavor, and aromatics, but they also feature a longer shelf-life that lends itself to more efficient logistics, maximum ROI, and reduced waste. What Syngenta has achieved is a collection of first-rate varieties that can be sourced 52 weeks a year regardless of the region or the season, guaranteeing top quality and flavor each time.
Part of Syngenta’s ability to ensure this level of quality relies on its new harvest indicator trait.
With this innovation, these IDEAL Melons varieties’ rind turns color, indicating when the melons should be harvested, shipped, and stocked on store shelves—eliminating the guesswork, giving everyone across the value chain the confidence they are acting at the IDEAL time.
If you’re not already as convinced as I am about these alluring varieties, Syngenta is further demonstrating this value through a study with the University of California–Davis at the Robert Mondavi Sensory Theater, evaluating fruit quality attributes and consumer response.
“Don’t just take our word for it,” Bernie added proudly. “We’ve enlisted a third party to analyze and evaluate fruit quality attributes and consumer response in a focus group study, and, so far, we’re really excited about the preliminary results.”
Syngenta will be showing off its IDEAL Melons during the International Fresh Produce Association's Global Produce & Floral Show in Orlando, Florida.
The supplier also took the time to highlight some of its watermelon offerings, including its Valor variety, which through its Full Count® Plant Program supports the National Watermelon Association in its efforts to support veterans organizations.
There’s so much more to say about Syngenta’s delightful melon varieties, but you’ll have to wait until the next update from AndNowUKnow!
