The consequences for retailers and suppliers that focus on price will be increasingly severe, Dr David Bosshart, director of the Gottlieb-Duttweiler Institute, in Switzerland, warned in a hall forum last week.
He said that pushing down prices has devalued fresh produce in the eyes of the consumer.
“People have become used to become used to the fact that they do not have to spend a lot on their daily needs, but for this cheapness there will be a price to pay,” Bosshart said. “Income spent on food has become less and less, and we have got to the bottom of the pit on price.
“Now we have to start positioning fresh produce as a premium product. Quality has the potential to become very sexy.
“Consumers have become increasingly aware of health, so quality will have to be associated with freshness and good health,” he added. “We are going to have to find the tipping point for quality, just as we do for global warming.
“But, as an industry, we have to get a little further ahead before people become of the value of quality.
“Anyone who is only looking at price will see that the consequences of this will be increasingly severe."
The top retail trend for this year will be social responsibility, including food safety, energy, the environment, and sustainability, Bosshart said.
The industry will have to find new ways to engage consumers, he advised. “We have to make trust a priority,” he said. “The majority of consumers have no emotional link with large-scale farms, but if you can engage shoppers on an emotional level, you will get more for your product.”
Bosshart called for more investment to educate the public about the role that fruit and vegetables should play in a healthy diet. “We will have to teach people more about their food, and they will want to know who else is earning money from it and what the profit margins are,” he said. “We do not just want a winner takes it all situation.
“The entire industry will have to work on this.”
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