Italian food retailer Conad has launched a new initiative in collaboration with Bologna-based fresh produce consortium Agribologna in a bid to offer consumers a cheaper means of buying fresh, seasonal vegetables.
The promotion, entitled 'Vegetables and Convenience', will offer shoppers at Conad stores in the north of the country five products which are in season at a set price of €4 for a combined total of 5kg.
The first products to be included in the promotion will be fennel, green courgettes, white cauliflower, chard and carrots, all of them sourced from within Italy. According to the retailer, such items would normally cost around €2 when bought separately.
The products, all of which have been certified under the retailer's Conad Percorso Qualità scheme, are being packed by Agribologna in disposable packaging containing and shipped directly to Conad stores.
An information booklet explaining about the vegetables' seasonality and offering practical suggestions and recommendations on how to buy and store fresh fruit produce will be included in the packs.
'This is a project aimed at helping families with their daily shop and contributing to a proper diet the includes seasonal products that give a real sense of there being a short supply chain,' explained Mauro Lusetti, managing director of NordiConad.
The initiative is set to run for four months and could be repeated should it prove popular.
'Agribologna will supply NordiConad with around 60,000kg of products per month from around 30-40 grower companies,' confirmed Lauro Guidi, the consortium's director. 'We believe this is a project which promotes the right relationship between consumer, distributor and producer, far more so than direct sales or farmers' markets, which involve less than 2 per cent of production.'
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