12/19/08 Pear Marketing Part 4

Pear Marketing Part 4. I'm Greg Martin with today's Fruit Grower Report. All this week we have been looking at what the future may hold for the pear. Kevin Moffitt with Pear Bureau Northwest recently spoke at the annual Hort Associations convention. Moffitt discussed everything from how the market and grocery stores have changed to what kinds of promotions are beneficial. MOFFITT: One area where we have seen stellar results is the ripening program. We need to continue to expand our ripening program. Our ripening initiatives which have helped get ripe pears into the hands of consumers has been a defining factor in the increased sales and interest in the pear category in the past few years. Moffitt says the Pear Bureau is working hard to make sure that they keep this in front of shippers and retailers. MOFFITT: We're looking into the length of time and temperatures necessary to ripen pears at different times of the season. Included in this research will be consumer taste tests which will compare pears softened to eating quality with and without ethylene. The goal is to gauge consumer acceptance and response to the flavor and aroma attributes especially comparing pears ripened with ethylene, compared to those without. Paying attention to the consumer and their buying habits is another key. MOFFITT: Now while we can't control the economy or the weather, we can anticipate shifts by the consumer and set up promotions in store to match consumer shopping patterns. Consumers are still looking for convenience and I believe we as an industry need to continue to pursue fresh sliced pears or maybe fresh pear halves. There are many firms looking at the opportunities and I believe we will see a commercial product on the market by next season at the latest. That's today's Fruit Grower Report. I'm Greg Martin on the Northwest Ag Information Network.