WENATCHEE, WA – Good work is never over, as our entire industry can attest. Stemilt Growers has announced that some retailers have shown better sales performance for pears than this time last year, with lots of opportunity for further growth throughout the entire segment. 

“The retail pricing from November shows that there is room for promotion in these early months of 2017. Retailers can highlight pears in ads and sell more volume at strong prices in order to elevate the pear category,” stated Brianna Shales, Communications Manager for Stemilt.

Stemilt’s Fruit Tracker analysis for November of 2016 U.S. pear composite data from Nielsen showed that some retailers experienced increased sales over the same timeframe in the previous year, while others were only a promotion or two short from meeting 2015’s average.

Stemilt noted that November is a big month for pears and increased sales throughout the U.S. as harvest is complete and nearly all varieties are available. According to a press release, in November 2016 the weekly averages for dollars and pounds of pears sold were down from last year, in addition to volume down 15% and dollars down 12.8%.

Stemilt also stated that these numbers led to a 0.1% drop in the pear category’s contribution to total produce department dollars at 0.9%. The East, Central, and South regions fell 0.2% below last year’s composite, while the West fell 0.1% below 2015’s numbers.

“The mixed results at retail for pears in November tell us that some retailers are falling one or two ads short of what is needed to meet sales and volume goals for pears,” said Brianna Shales, Stemilt Communications Manager. “Adding a pear ad or two to your plans for Q1 in 2017 is a great way to make up this ground, and ensure pear category health. There are many promotion opportunities to take advantage of around pears, including bulk and bags.” 

Stemilt noted that jumbo-sized pears offer retailers a unique opportunity to ramp up the category. Stemilt offers varieties around size 80 and larger in Rushing Rivers™ d’Anjou, Red d’Anjou, and Bosc pears. Larger fruit size in bulk promotion is a great way for retailers to increase sale volume because of the higher piece weight. 

The data also shows that bagged pears are close to 9% of pear volume sold, and can be driven further through Stemilt’s kid-size fruit program, Lil Snappers®. The company stated that this program offers 3 lb pouch bags for conventionally-grown fruit to build a larger purchase volume size. 

The retail price per pound for pears in November of 2016 was an average of $1.47 per pound, compared to the $1.37 per pound from last year. This increase was due to a higher price on both bulk and bags, but especially bags as that segment jumped $1.26 per pound in 2015 to $1.43 per pound in 2016.

Retailers can find more exciting opportunities for increased consumption through organic pears, as Stemilt offers a wide range of sizes for promotion. Through Lil Snappers®, the price of organics is still affordable in 2 lb bags of organic d’Anjou, Red d’Anjou, and Bosc varieties.

“Organic Lil Snappers® are great for in-and-out pear promotions, and also perform well alongside bulk organic pear ads to elevate the organic segment of the pear category, and capturing more dollars through the premium price on organics. On the whole, sales of organic products are growing by double-digits every year, and that should hold true with organic fruit as well,” said Shales. 

Stemilt notes that pears are a leading fruit choice among kinds because of their flavor and texture, and the size of Lil Snappers® is ideal for packing produce into lunchboxes. Organic fruit is also something that more parents are seeking for their kids today.

As retailers and growers alike focus on increasing pear sales, where will the category head next? AndNowUKnow will continue to report.

Stemilt Growers