WENATCHEE, WA - As the year closes, some of us are looking back and wondering just exactly where the time has gone—so many dinners, so many desserts, and so little time. Google has offered some valuable insight into how consumers have been spending mealtime: making apple crisps! The internet titan has released its Top Ten Google Search Trends for 2017, and in one of the top slots for the recipe search list is apple crisps. Coming in at the 2nd most Google searched recipe, the tasty treat has proven to be a must-have after dinner – or maybe for dinner depending on who you ask – for many alike.
Here to speak with me on what this signals for the fresh produce industry and the impact of apples on the consumer shopping list of today, is Brianna Shales, Communications Manager at Stemilt.
“We were just informed, being an apple supplier, that apple crisp recipes were a top searched trend in food. This news relates to Stemilt because one of the things we work really hard on is content development—coming out with recipes or blog posts or material that is centered around what people are searching for. This helps us continue to be an authority on apples,” Brianna shares with me.
Now is the prime time for promoting the apple crisps search trend, with holidays in full swing and parties aplenty. While the company promotes the popular dessert, it also looks to accentuate the quality of its apples with a re-envisioning of the recipe.
“The recipe that we are promoting with the Google Year in Search logo is a lightened up apple crisp recipe, so it doesn’t use as much butter or sugar to allow more of the apples’ sweetness to shine through. That is the unique thing about the recipe that we are going to be sharing,” Brianna tells me.
Well, that sounds incredible, but “Where do I sign up?!” might be a question leaping from customers’ lips. Always ahead of the game, Brianna anticipates this with a ready answer: appleforthat.stemilt.
The website is made to address every consumers’ apple confusion, where they can insert what recipe they want to make before being told what apple works best for their tasty treat. So whether it’s a traditional recipe handed down from grandmas’ grandmas or a lightened-up version to bring out the crispy sweetness of your consumers’ favorite variety, apple crisps are here to stay, and consumers can find the perfect apple for the occasion! Brianna tells me that this is an excitement that can be felt beyond the apple industry.
Folks around the U.S. are looking to fresh produce for their recipe needs, as zucchini and yams join the menu agenda. “I just think its really exciting as a member of the produce industry that different produce items also showed up in the top 10, so you had yams at number nine, zucchini at number five, and apples at number two,” Brianna tells me.
Zucchini also made the Top Ten Google Search Trends for 2017 recipe search as Brianna mentioned, landing at number five, so there certainly seems to be a sparked interest in zoodle mealtime know-how and other creative ways to serve up the squash.
To speak about zucchini sitting high at number five, I tapped Anna Ligon from Southern Valley, who is just as excited to hear about the rise in vegetable-focused recipe trends. “I think it’s great to see that vegetables and fresh produce are continuing to be a trend, and that everyone is trying to be more health-conscious. I think that’s great to see and good for our industry,” she tells me.
Another produce item familiar to holiday spreads is yams, which came in at number nine on the top recipe search list, as well. I took a moment to reach out to Gina Pettit of Country Sweet Produce, who explains the appeal of items like yams and sweet potatoes beyond this specifically cozy and feast-focused time of year.
“Sweet Potatoes are increasingly popular around the holidays, but have recently become an everyday item for consumers as they find more ways to incorporate them in different meals through out the day. And, just to clarify for the sweet potato vs. yams debate, all yams are sweet potatoes but not all sweet potatoes are yams! Healthy eating trends have put sweet potatoes on the map by substituting them in meals like sweet potato chili, sweet potato nachos, sweet potato noodles - and the popular sweet potato toast,” Gina shares with me. “These simple, yet nutrient packed recipes give consumers the opportunity to maintain their healthy eating lifestyle without sacrificing taste. Eat more Sweets!”
So, apple crisps and yams hit the top of the list? It certainly looks like consumers are looking for healthier ways to appease their sweet tooth cravings! What’s more is consumers seem to like a well-rounded healthy plate, balancing out those sweet recipes with their savory zucchini meals.
As consumers race to their favorite supermarkets this holiday season, this is a great reminder that they are looking to the fresh produce aisle for their recipe needs. Side dishes, center-of-the-plate, and dessert dreams are made of fresh produce in our Christmas story, and it appears that consumers are all for it! Here’s to an even more produce-packed Google search next year.
With warm holiday wishes, we at AndNowUKnow wish you and your company every success this jolly season and beyond.
