As senior marketing manager for CMI Orchards, Danelle Huber sits at the intersection of storied orchards in Wenatchee, Wash., and the complex algorithms of modern retail. For Huber, data is more than just a sales spreadsheet; it is the key to uncovering the why behind every buy.
And in a year defined by logistical headwinds and market shifts, Huber is proving that understanding the story behind the fruit — and the data behind the person purchasing it — is the ultimate strategy for supply chain resilience and grower survival.
The Packer: CMI Orchards is widely recognized for its data-driven marketing. How has data influenced your approach, and how do consumer insights inform the way CMI communicates the value of premium branded fruit to retailers and consumers?
Huber: Data is the center of pretty much everything we do. We’re constantly looking at point-of-sale data, shopper insights, category trends. It’s not just to understand what’s selling but [also] why things are selling. It allows us to do more than just promote fruit as a commodity, but position it as a branded, value-added experience. We use those insights, especially decision trees, to understand what customers are putting in their baskets. Are they looking for things like convenience and consistency or the story behind the piece of fruit that they’re buying? We then shape and communicate that with both our customers and their customers — the consumer.
Whether it’s on packaging or digital content in-store programs, we’re always asking, “What matters most to today’s shopper, and how can we make that value clear at the shelf level?”
The apple and cherry categories have faced significant climate and logistical headwinds recently. From your seat at the table, what is the most critical pivot CMI has made to maintain supply chain resilience while still hitting those high-quality specs your brand is known for?
I live in the middle of four orchards. There’s a cherry orchard, two apple orchards and a peach orchard. The cherry grower just took out his orchard because he wasn’t making money, and we’re seeing that more and more with smaller growers. It’s been very sad. I was born and raised here in Wenatchee, and the number of orchards that are going out of business because growers aren’t making it financially is astounding.
We’re always focused on the return to the grower, so we do our best to sell high-quality fruit at the highest price. But it’s a competitive market, so we’re also kind of at the mercy of what everybody else is doing and where the market is. Really, the biggest pivot has been around flexibility and diversification. With Mother Nature, labor and logistics, there’s always a constant uncertainty. We’ve really had to become more proactive in making sure that our growers are surviving.
Branded varieties have changed the apple game but also made the category highly competitive. How can retailers balance the excitement of the new with the need to maintain consumer loyalty for core varieties in this increasingly competitive retail environment?
It’s definitely a balancing act, but it’s also a really big opportunity. New and high-flavor varieties bring excitement. They can drive engagement from consumers, especially with the younger, more adventurous shopper. At the same time, the core varieties are what bring people into the store, and they’re a significant part of the total crop volume. Someone might go into the store for a, dare I say, red delicious apple, and maybe come out with a Cosmic Crisp or an Envy. The key is to look at the category holistically, using those new varieties to drive excitement or trade-up opportunities, and then maintaining the strong, consistent support of those core varieties too.
Telling the stories behind the newer apples and getting that information out to shoppers is also important to elevating the entire apple category.
Where is the apple category headed, particularly the premium apple category?
We’re fully expecting to see a reduction in SKU availability and what retailers are offering. Price sensitivity is a big thing. Inflation, and the cost of grocery shopping in general, is astronomically high — higher than it’s ever been. Having volume of those certain branded or high-flavor varieties will really bring that price down to where consumers can afford them. That’s why Cosmic is so great. There’s lots of volume. Everybody carries it, and it’s just a great apple. And volume is growing with Envy. But there are some apples that are just not going to make it. And then we have new, exciting apples, including a couple of yellow varieties, coming to market. I think it’s going to continue to get more and more competitive, and the apples with quality and taste will be the ones that will last.
Learn more about The Packer’s 2026 Women in Produce honorees:
- Beth Atkinson-Keeton — owner, Elephant House PR
- Hilary Craig — director of produce category management, Misfits Market
- Brenda Haught — co-CEO, Creekside Organics
- Gwen Jackimek — senior director of sales, avocados, Fresh Del Monte; chair, Hass Avocado Board
- Bianca Kaprielian — co-CEO, Creekside Organics
- Erin Mittelstaedt — CEO, The FruitGuys
- Dina Newman — founder, KC Black Urban Growers
- Jonna Parker — vice president of fresh foods group, Circana
