A new consumer marketing campaign is on tap for the 2024-25 season from the Pear Bureau Northwest.
“We’re anxious to share a new consumer campaign that is currently in development,” Jim Morris, marketing and communications manager for the Pear Bureau Northwest, said Aug. 21. “It is still in development, but what we’re heading toward is giving just a little more personality to pears, a bit more fun.”
At the same time, the campaign will still be talking about the nutritional attributes of pears, including its status as one of the highest sources of fiber among all fruits. Giving consumers insight on how to check if a pear is ripe also will be a continuing message, he said.
Social media accounts will lead the effort, but the campaign will find its way into all the Pear Bureau Northwest communications, he said.
“[Social] media is how we reach most of our consumers, so that’s where the most consumers will engage with it,” Morris said.
In July, Pear Bureau Northwest named CarrieAnn Arias as the organization’s new president and CEO. Previously, Arias served as founder and CEO of TableSpark, vice president of marketing at Naturipe Farms and vice president of marketing at Dole Food Co.
Arias took over the duties as president and CEO following the departure of Kevin Moffitt, who held the role since 2001.
The Pear Bureau Northwest won’t release any crop estimates until perhaps mid-September, Morris said. The expected shorter crop in 2024 is primarily related to significant cold snaps in the Wenatchee, Wash., growing regions.
“That’s been the primary driver of what we’re experiencing this year,” Morris said.
Beyond the domestic market, the Pear Bureau Northwest also promotes U.S. pears to global markets. In terms of export markets, Morris said Mexico is the No. 1 market.
“Canada was still No. 2, which [is] also still a very healthy market for us,” he said.
Mexico and Canada are likely to be the top two markets for the foreseeable future, he said.
The following are the top export destinations for U.S. pear exports from July 2023 to June 2024, with the percentage change compared with the previous season:
- Mexico — $97.4 million, up 11%.
- Canada — $41.6 million, down 1%.
- Guatemala — $2.6 million, up 81%.
- Costa Rica — $1.9 million, up 55%.
- United Arab Emirates — $1.3 million, up 116%.
- Dominican Republic — $1.3 million, up 50%.
In fiscal year 2024, the Pear Bureau Northwest received money to expand sales to regional markets through the Regional Agricultural Promotion Program. The funds, apart from the Market Access Program funding of just over $3 million in fiscal year 2024, will be used to support marketing efforts beyond Mexico, Canada and China. The RAPP grant of just over $4 million for fiscal 2024 can be used over a period of five years, Morris said.
“Because of the short crop this year, we’re electing not to really tap into that this year and figure we will wait until next year when there’s a bigger crop to work with,” he said.
The USDA launched the $1.2 billion RAPP in 2023. The USDA said the program aims to diversify and expand market opportunities for U.S. food and agricultural products beyond the traditional top customers.
The agency said RAPP will focus on enhancing U.S. exports to new markets in parts of the world — including South and Southeast Asia, Latin America, the Middle East, Africa and others — where the middle class is growing and the desire for high-quality food and farm products is increasing.
