Top trends at IFPA Global Produce and Floral Show, part 3

IFPA Global Produce and Floral Show was filled with fresh produce, flowers and excitement.
IFPA Global Produce and Floral Show was filled with fresh produce, flowers and excitement.
(Photo: Kristin Leigh Lore)

ORLANDO, Fla. — The International Fresh Produce Association’s Global Produce and Floral Show in Orlando, Oct. 27-29, was packed with excitement, exhibitors and attendees.

Seen and heard at IFPA Global Produce and Floral Show:

Vidalia Onion Committee

Just how sweet are Vidalia onions? To give attendees a taste, the Vidalia Onion Committee served up samples of cookies made of the iconic onion.

“We’re really hitting on the sweetness and versatility of Vidalia onions,” said Cliff Riner of G&R Farms. “As an industry, we’ve done a lot of research and work on the sweetness and we see that coming forward now.”

The season for Vidalia onions — which are grown in Vidalia, Ga., by some 80 farms, many of which are multi-generational family farms — is mid-April up to Labor Day.

Vidalia onions represent the largest share of total onion dollar sales (35%), according to the Vidalia Onion Committee. Vidalia onions also represent 62% of sweet onion sales and 22% of total onion sales.

Riner is optimistic about next season’s onions, which he said will be planted Nov. 7.  

“The seed beds look good, which is a good indicator,” he said. “You only get one time to get it right, and that goes back to the industry investment in research and varieties that we have made.”

Avocados From Mexico

It was game on at the Avocados From Mexico booth, which featured a number of its current and upcoming promotions, including its World Cup and Super Bowl campaigns. It also displayed its Susan G. Komen bins that say: Good fats. Good cause. Share the good.

AFM’s 2023 Super Bowl campaign aims to remind shoppers why Avocados From Mexico are a top-scoring big game snack. The brand has a new national shopper marketing campaign featuring football legend Deion Sanders and his fiancée, TV and film producer Tracey Edmonds.

Avocados from Mexico
Shown from left are Jordan Phillips, Ana Ambrosi and Kelly Burke of Avocados From Mexico.

It also showed off avocado displays timed for the World Cup. The world’s biggest soccer event kicks off this November and AFM and Takis snacks have partnered on a marketing campaign titled, “Guackeepers Keep it Good.” The campaign features soccer legends Landon Donovan from the U.S. team, and Rafael Márquez, former captain of the Mexico National team.

But the star of the AFM booth was a tiny house designed to show that avocados are at the center of good times. The AFM house of goodness was complete with a kitchen equipped with a computer kiosk for learning how to pick, ripen and prepare avocados; a dance party in the living area; avocado-shaped furniture and more.

Related: Top trends at IFPA Global Produce and Floral Show, part 1

Related: Top trends at IFPA Global Produce and Floral Show, part 2

Local Bounti

Local Bounti, a U.S. indoor agriculture company combining vertical and greenhouse growing technologies, showcased its chef-inspired, premium grab-and-go salad kits made with greenhouse-grown greens.

The chef who created the recipes was in the booth sampling the Modern Greek and Poppy Power salad kits, currently available in the Pacific Northwest. The company says four additional chef-inspired kits, including Memphis Style BBQ Chicken, Premium Chicken Caesar, Chipotle Chicken Taco and Thai Style Chicken, are “coming soon.”

While the four new salads introduce chicken to the mix, “the salad greens are still very much the star,” said Meaghan McGrath, vice president of product development. Local Bounti also created its own dressings for each kit.

Local Bounti recently arranged a $23.3 million private investment in public equity (PIPE) investment to support the continued scale-up of its organization and build-out of its network of controlled environment agriculture facilities that leverage its proprietary Stack & Flow Technology.

As its name suggests, Local Bounti is locally focused and sells its products within a 400-mile radius of its facilities. The company is currently expanding with new facilities in Texas and Washington slated to open in 2023.

The Wonderful Company

At Wonderful Citrus, Zak Lafitte showed off Wonderful Naturally Seedless Lemons. Studies show that 80% of consumers would prefer a seedless lemon, he said.

The seedless lemons are in a fourth season and “volume is constantly growing,” said Lafitte, adding that seedless now represent 10%-15% of the U.S. supply.

Wonderful Citrus offers seedless lemon seafood bins to display the lemons in the seafood department as well as seedless lemon cocktail bins for display in the adult beverage area.

“We’re taking the things that have been successful in pistachios and bringing them to lemons,” said Adam Cooper, senior vice president of marketing for The Wonderful Company.

Wonderful Citrus has “doubled down on Halo POS,” said Cooper, who added the POS emphasizes the company’s commitment to quality. “We want you to have the same eating experience every time." Halos are now available 12 months a year.

POM Wonderful, which is celebrating its 20th anniversary and the start of the California pomegranate season, showed off the breadth of its pomegranate offerings including arils, juices and teas made with pomegranate extract.

“Retailers are embracing this exotic, ancient fruit,” said Pom Wonderful’s Derrick Miller, who added that even with inflationary pressure, Pom Arils continue to spark demand.

“This will be POM’s biggest year ever,” Cooper said. Even with POM’s significant growth, “we still think we can double this business.”

Wonderfull Company
Wonderful Pistachios' no-shell business has tripled in recent years, said Adam Cooper. Photo courtesy of The Wonderful Company

Wonderful Pistachios is now a $1.3 billion brand, Cooper said. “It’s the biggest snack nut brand in America.”

Cooper said Wonderful Pistachios' no-shell business has tripled in recent years, and half of that growth is in the no-shell flavored pistachios.

In addition to its 200 merchandisers across the country, The Wonderful Company is promoting its products through social and digital geo-targeted advertising.

Cooper said the company is reprising its “Get Crackin’” campaign and will launch a TikTok hashtag challenge before the Super Bowl, as part of its efforts to “bring in a new generation of produce buyers.”

Great Lakes Greenhouses Inc.

First-time “Big Show” exhibitors Great Lakes Greenhouses of Ontario, Canada, featured its array of greenhouse-grown produce, including bell peppers, tomatoes, mini eggplant and mini cucumbers.

The company also showed off its new beef steak tomatoes and cherry tomatoes on the vine.

Cherry tomatoes on the vine have “really been increasing” because of their snackability, said Jeff Richardson, vice president of sales. Mini cucumbers are also strong sellers.

“We’re shifting to make sure snacking is at the forefront of our operation,” Richardson added.

Stemilt

With the IFPA Show falling at the tail end of the apple harvest and with the pear harvest behind it, it’s “a good time to connect with retailers,” said Stemilt Marketing Director Brianna Shales.

As Washington apples, in general, experienced a short crop year, Stemilt is focusing on Cosmic Crisp, which has “grown substantially in volume,” Shales said. “It was the No. 11 apple last year, and I think it’ll crack well into the top 10 this year.”

Stemilt
The Stemilt team is shown at Global Produce and Floral Show. Photo courtesy of Stemilt

Stemilt showed off the European-inspired packaging for its organic Cosmic Crisp apples. Featuring a combination of paper and paperboard in a grab-and-go four-pack, the packaging includes a UPC on the pack that is fully recyclable.

“So much ring is lost on bulk with organics,” said Shales, adding that the UPC code eliminates the risk of loss.

The organic Cosmic Crisp apples are shipped in a display-ready bin.

On the pear side of the business, Stemilt offers Happi, what Shales says is the first branded pear. This marks the second year of commercial volume of Happi pears, and Shales sees continued growth for the pear that can be eaten yellow or green.

“Happi will help revive the pear category,” Shales said.

 

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