Angus Soft Fruits has launched a new mini version of its exclusive Ava variety, especially targeted at children.
The miniature berries will be sold in single 160g child-friendly punnets, one of which provides children with two of their recommended 5 A DAY portions.
Baby Ava is the same variety as the standard berry introduced last year, but is a way of marketing the smaller sized-fruits during the season.
ASF is in talks with retail customers and hopes to build a good retail presence throughout the school summer holiday period, in preparation for peak volumes of Baby Ava in the autumn.
The company launched the baby berry with the help of Scottish celebrity chef Nick Nairn, who visited Auchterhouse Primary School, near Dundee to perform a cooking demonstration.
John Gray, Angus Soft Fruit’s commercial manager said: “The launch was very successful. Everything [Nick Nairn] puts his name to gets good exposure. The previous week he cooked for the Queen and the next, he was doing a demo in front of 42 primary school children. It’s great.
“Children are fussy and [Nick] says the one strawberry they are guaranteed to eat is Ava, so Baby Ava, here we go!”
