Olympian Jazmin Sawyers launches British Jazz apple season

Jazz apple ambassador and former Olympian Jazmin Sawyers was on hand to kick-start the British Jazz season at a special launch event in Kent.

Sawyers this week visited apple grower Charlie Dunn of Chandler & Dunn  and helped harvest the latest batch of new season British Jazz apples.

The first new season British Jazz apples are due to hit supermarket shelves in November after harvesting began earlier this month.

Growing conditions have this year been challenging, according to Tony Harding, procurement and technical director at Jazz licencee and produce supplier Worldwide Fruit.

Nevertheless, the crop has progressed well and fruit colouration is outstanding, he says. “We are looking forward to a strong campaign with great quality fruit for the consumers,” he adds.

This season will see increased availability of Jazz in major supermarkets and a longer British season due to increased plantings, strong yields and far-reaching marketing campaigns.

The brand is investing in an extensive commercial campaign throughout the British season, including promotions, digital marketing as well as consumer sampling events.

The Jazz apple brand hit record sales figures in May, making the variety the 4th most popular apple in the UK, Harding adds.

Jazz kicked off its summer tour in May with its new bespoke apple sampling wagon sampling 444,000 pieces of Jazz apples at six Foodies Festivals in Brighton, Cardiff, Oxford, Chelmsford, Glasgow and Cheshire.

Jazz also joined forces with the British Heart Foundation (BHF) again at this year’s Bournemouth Pier-to-Pier swim after being named as the official sponsor for the fourth year.

Alongside its events, Jazz also extended its partnerships with its ambassadors Jazmin Sawyers and Jazz Carlin. The collaborations cements Jazz apple’s association with sport and those inspiring the next generation of young athletes in Britain.

Digitally, the brand continues to drive penetration and awareness through its social media channels, website and monthly newsletter, as well as launching regular Jazz apple recipe books and running campaigns with popular influencers and bloggers.

For the first time ever, Jazz Apple also ran a Video On Demand campaign on the All4 and Sky platforms to amplify its reach and showcase key brand credentials. The 20-second adverts featured throughout the summer across their food and drink programmes such as the Great Celebrity Bake Off, Come Dine with Me and Sunday Brunch.

“It’s been another hugely busy but positive 12 months for the Jazz apple brand with a host of exciting campaigns taking place and existing partnerships renewed but the icing on the cake is our record-breaking sales in May,” says Hannah McIlfatrick, commercial director of Worldwide Fruit Ltd.

”The data proves that the love for Jazz in the UK just gets stronger and stronger each year and with consumer sampling events and increased availability in all major supermarkets, the Jazz name is spreading further and further. We believe this will only increase over the next few years through our targeted campaigns.”

Jazz apples are grown in over ten countries around the world under a closely controlled quality growing programme managed by T&G Global in New Zealand.