The US and UK fresh produce markets look similar. Both countries’ consumers buy and enjoy berries, tomatoes, pears, avocados and many other wonderful kinds of fruit. Transatlantic differences become apparent in supply chains and consumer behaviour, and we’ll talk about waste in a moment. But let’s start in the grocery aisle.

Some US consumers go to local stores and pick what they need for that day, choosing produce to eat immediately (convenience packs such as bagged grapes have become popular this year). Other folks, eg. suburbanites, shop once a week like the majority of Brits, thus requiring produce that will last longer.

This has brought product quality into focus at US supermarkets. While they use bags, clamshells and loose displays, there is far less pre-packaged produce in US stores. Instead there’s more ‘retail theatre’ featuring bountiful displays of loose items, meaning supermarkets must continually weed out items past their best. Consumers bear the burden of working out what’s edible (there is no Federal requirement for product dating) and thus there’s a “must consume now” imperative that those weekly shoppers, in particular, would prefer to avoid.

UK produce is much more intensively packaged, reflecting UK consumers’ love of ready-to-eat products and indeed the way that stores are set up to handle produce. The packhouse shoulders the burden of quality assurance, plus the supply chain is very much geared around ‘Display Until’ (DU) dates to guide stock management in store. This means DU dates strongly influence purchasing decisions, so sometimes produce is wasted even if it’s edible. UK retailers are always looking for ways to extend the DU date, or provide greater assurance to consumers that produce will keep longer at home.

From our transatlantic viewpoint, based on our experience of working with retailers in the UK and the Americas, reducing waste and improving quality are goals that the US and UK share.

Waste in store is one of the industry’s biggest headaches, but has become a “cost of doing business” that is included in the P&L every year. It affects a retailer’s ability to execute strategy and deliver shareholder value. But more importantly it also affects quality and the in-home eating experience for consumers, which everyone in the industry cares about.

Consumers want fruit to be in good condition when they buy it, and still in good condition when they eat it (plus, they want more freedom to choose when they consume.) Sophisticated packaging and storage technologies have been developed to protect fruit quality during shipping, or in storage, but waste in store, and quality in the home, have remained unaddressed. The opportunity now open to US and UK retailers is adopting innovative technologies, such as It’sFresh!, which can preserve freshness throughout the supply chain, extending quality at all stages.