Digitalisation and the increasingly important role that it plays in the retail trade will be one of the key themes addressed at next year's Fruit Logistica support programme, according to event organiser Messe Berlin, with the topic expected to generate debate among trade show visitors.
E-commerce is on the rise, and according to a recent Nielsen study, 20 per cent of all households have purchased fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) over the Internet at least once.
Online sales in Germany are still low (around 1 per cent), but at a rate of 41 per cent they are growing fast. There is still a lot of potential, as seen in comparisons with the UK and France, where 6 per cent of all FMCG are sold online. But what implications does this have for fruits and vegetables?
The digitalisation of the retail trade offers many opportunities, but it also presents a number of challenges. New packaging solutions are required, and providers need to cooperate as closely as possible – the key phrase being 'urban retail logistics'.
Fruit and vegetable purchases are usually impulse buys that are seldom planned in advance. Consumers are inspired by all of their senses – this is severely curtailed by a screen. How can impulse buying be boosted in the digital world?
The power of fresh produce to draw consumers into stores may mean that fruit and vegetable sections will become more important for bricks-and-mortar retail in the future.
these issues and more will be discussed at Fruit Logistica 2016, which takes place on 3-5 February in Berlin.
