I’ve lost count of the number of times that once confident newcomers into the fresh produce industry have been left scratching their heads and describing the trade’s internal workings as all smoke and mirrors, as they struggle to come to terms with the supply and demand balance and its lack of relation to profitability.

I don’t generally agree with their description, but when it comes to judging the significance of the latest media messages designed to stimulate sales, I find myself in the same frame of mind.

In the last fortnight, the public have been told that beetroot could be the new superfood, following in the tracks of blueberries and broccoli. I question how many of the public even know what the term superfood is all about, when most only have a very hazy idea about seasons and sources.

Simplistically they buy produce to eat and enjoy, yet taste itself often seems to be low on the agenda when it comes to spreading the message - perhaps because it is so difficult to describe. Even terms like “crisp”, “crunchy” and “sweet” are not subtle enough to provide a full explanation to a consumer community with such a wide range of palates.

Another source has come up with the view that eating apples can protect the brain - which while it endorses the old “An Apple a Day…” adage, veers along the path that the message - even if it is accurate - is boring.

A third believes that there is a breakthrough on the horizon for a new wave of exotics which includes guavas, lychees, and pomelos. I recall a similar experience years ago when several cookery writers became excited over the potential for using more limes in their recipes. Endless column inches of publicity and many glorious recipes had little impact. But years later there was a craze for the fruit as an accompaniment to Mexican beer! Now what does that tell you about the UK consumer psyche?

If there proves to be real substance in any of these views, the tricky part - as the lime example shows - is being able to turn what may at best be a brief fad into a habit.

There have of course been successes, of which Pink Lady, must be one of the most highly rated in recent times. Yet in the initial stages, when the brand was “officially launched” by the Australians in London in the early 1990s it took time to gain retail acceptance, simply because there was already a mass of red, green, golden and bicoloured competitors available.

Simply having a new product, or even something different is no longer a guaranteed passport to success. Retail shelf space is at a premium, and when a newcomer finds its way into the mix, it is usually to the detriment of another, substituted line.

The good news at least is that there is hardly a day when fresh produce is not highlighted in the press - sometimes good, sometimes bad, but often in the public eye. As the FPC no doubt hopes to prove, whatever long-term strategy it eventually emerges with, is that far more can be achieved by spreading an effective and joined-up message.

Topics