Whether they liked it or not, the spotlight was turned on the country’s four major multiples this week both in terms of advanced publicity and the BBC’s Panorama half hour slot itself, which covered the complex and competitive world of bargain pricing.

Whether this seasonal exposé of what actually is taking place behind the veil of the latest price-cutting frenzy - which began in the summer - will affect sales remains to be seen.

Dwelling on the various marketing ploys that have led to TV ads being banned and highlighting the confusion that exists with labelling and shelf barkers, it was not surprising that the majority of claims were denied at a distance by the nation’s largest shopkeepers.

While the majority of the attention was focussed on grocery items, it was perhaps inevitable that fresh fruit and vegetables also came under the microscope.

However, while focusing on bananas, red onions, Gala and Empire apples, and making the point that prepacks that were more expensive did not carry the equivalent “per kg” price to allow comparison against loose, it stayed away from some of the detail that affects price and presentation. The industry would have found that interesting.

Produce’s perishable nature and seasonality means retailers have to be fast on their feet. There are examples all around that have been equally worthy of investigation.

There is the use of varying sizes of soft-fruit punnets through the year, designed to take into account seasonal peaks, or how count sizes can be varied to similarly adjust the retail ticket. A more recent introduction could have been the economics behind carry-home bulk packs of root vegetables.

Similarly, when past programmes have delved into the subject, the real workings of the produce industry seem to be too complex, or too insular, when it comes to explaining a particular aspect and reasoning to the consumer.

Seasonality is understood, but the interdependence each step of the way to the retail shelf - from the pitfalls of production varying from feast to famine through ripening, storage, distribution and in this case retailing - tend to remain a public mystery. Yet all these aspects ultimately affect value.

Staying with the theme of the programme, I would have also liked to have seen and heard more about the relative values of prepared product at a time of economic downturn.

Short-term retailers might be viewed with the same disdain that has cloaked the banking fraternity, but I have a feeling that by the new year, these latest Panorama findings will be a distant consumer memory. -

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