Wonderful Citrus will continue to support marketing efforts for its Wonderful Seedless Lemons with a new element this season, says Zak Laffite, president.
“This season we introduced new secondary display bins — perfect for multiple locations throughout any store format,” Laffite said. “These new displays have a small footprint and feature beautiful recipes and cocktails to inspire new usage occasions and demonstrate how Wonderful Seedless Lemons can enhance any dish or beverage and save consumers time in the kitchen.”
In addition, Laffite said Wonderful Citrus has launched a digital campaign on Pinterest with culinary-led creative to generate brand affinity and emphasize the ease that comes with cooking and baking with no seeds.
Wonderful Seedless Lemons, a naturally seedless, non-GMO Project-verified lemon variety, are available nationally in Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s, Kroger and select grocery retailers, he said.
The variety is in its fourth year, with volume available from November through June this year.
Laffite said Wonderful Citrus is the largest single grower and shipper of lemons in North America, with a year-round portfolio and a strong presence in the major California growing districts and Mexico.
Wonderful Citrus has packing facilities in California and Mexico, with forward distribution centers in Florida and New Jersey.
“Our current lemon supply is on a similar pace to last season, and retailers should have confidence to plan their bulk and bagged lemon promotions through June,” he said. “The Mexican crop is also shaping up to be similar to last season, and we are planning for good supply and quality from summer through November.”
Wonderful Citrus also offers a robust import lemon program to supplement any gaps, Laffite said.
Laffite said lemon demand — up 20% from 2019 — remains elevated compared with pre-COVID time periods.
“Consumers continue to cook at home and use lemons on more occasions,” he said.
Growth in the lemon category has come from bagged sales, he said. Household penetration of bagged lemon sales grew from 17% in 2019 to 21% in 2022, which Laffite said means more households are buying bagged lemons.
“Specifically for crop year 2022-23, the lemon category in total is relatively flat, but sales of loose lemons are down about 4%, while bagged lemon sales are up 7%; Wonderful Seedless Lemons are contributing almost all of that growth,” he said.
Limes outlook
Wonderful Citrus runs a comprehensive lime program sourcing from multiple areas that include several thousand owned acres in Mexico, Laffite said.
Wonderful Citrus offers a forward distribution network in the U.S. that services lime customers nationally out of Texas, Florida and California and directly out of Mexico toward customers in the European Union, Asia and the Mexico domestic market, Laffite said.
“Our lime program offers a comprehensive portfolio including conventional Persian limes, organic Persian limes and conventional key limes packed in multiple carton and bag styles,” he said.
In the next few weeks, the supply outlook for limes continues to be relatively low, Laffite said.
“There is a new crop coming in April, but it is forecasted that sizing will be smaller than normal and volume of medium to large sizes will be limited,” he said. “Flexibility in sizing will be key to getting through the next few months.”
Boosting sales
Merchandising plays an essential role in consistently selling incremental lemons and limes, Laffite said.
“We’ve experienced double-digit growth when our Wonderful Seedless Lemons are merchandised in multiple locations throughout the store,” he said. “Point of sale material in locations such as the seafood, beverage and even baking aisles can help drive sales of lemons.”
He said it also makes sense to cross-merchandise limes with avocados and other complementary items during key consumption occasions, like Cinco de Mayo or Super Bowl.
Sustainability progress
Laffite said Wonderful Citrus directs significant resources to technology and environmental research.
“In terms of carbon emissions, we calculate our emissions footprint annually to guide our sustainability effort and to hold us accountable to hitting our goals,” he said. “By 2025, our U.S. operations will be powered by renewable energy, and we are targeting zero waste by developing new uses for byproducts of our operations.”
Laffite said Wonderful Citrus has all its owned acreage certified as fair trade and all packing operations following the same standards in California, including being Global Food Safety Initiative and Sedex Members Ethical Trade Audit compliant.
