Who doesn't love a story?
We're conditioned to perk up whenever there's a good tale or yarn to tune into, aren't we? From the time we were sitting in kindergarten class, everyone naturally quieted down when we heard those magic first words, “Once upon a time …”
Even when I was a rebellious 12-year-old seventh grader, we had a gem of an English teacher, Mrs. Johnson, who read the Jack London classic “Call of the Wild” aloud to us over six weeks. Not only were we riveted to the story, but hardly anyone cut class that entire semester. A good story will do that.
Which is why, after nearly 50 years in the produce industry, I love it when a produce department goes out of their way to explain where the local sweet corn comes from, what family farms are behind the scenes and how long they've been raising their crops. Sometimes there's a placard featuring the farmer's family pictured near one of their tractors, with bushels of the sweet corn piled in front.
It says it all. Agriculture at its finest. Something awesome that we all love: a story.
Related: More insight from Armand Lobato
It's a great time to be in the produce aisle. In fact, anyone can take a revered summer item, be it nearby peaches, melons, sweet corn, berries, grapes, stone fruit, cherries, sweet onions, etc., and describe it in more than words can say — all by using a simple, inexpensive refractometer.
As a quality control inspector many years ago, I was introduced to the device by an ex-USDA inspector who came to our warehouse to train myself and others from around the country. Besides showing us how to accurately take core temperatures, “score” inbound produce items, chart any defects on the quality and condition matrix, and identify lots within a single load (among other things), we learned how to use and read a refractometer. In the simplest terminology, the tool measures a product's brix, or sugar content. What is considered low, average and above average depends on the commodity.
Don't worry, this story gets better as we move along.
Fast forward to today. Far from that chilly receiving dock, I have my own, inexpensive refractometer at home that I bought on Amazon for about $25. Most produce operations have the fancy, pricy version, but the cheap one has served me well.
Being the produce nerd that I am, I frequently take the refractometer out of its case, rinse off the daylight plate (or cover), squeeze some fruit juice underneath on the prism surface, drop the plate down, hold the refractometer towards a light source and then read the numeric result through the eyepiece. It's very cool.
This weekend I bought a nice Dulcinea seedless watermelon from the nearby Costco store.
Watermelon is a cool treat and family favorite. A refractometer can help tell the flavor, quality story of what the brix is on any given day in your display. (Photo courtesy Armand Lobato)
I cut the melon on my kitchen counter. I ate some of the crispy, tasty melon as I cut smaller chunks for our meal, wrapped and saved half for later. I dropped some of the melon juice on my refractometer. It measured about 10 brix — sweet, and from experience I know in the coming weeks that watermelons will only get sweeter.
I shared the results with my family, who by that time didn't share the same enthusiasm. At least my dear wife smiled and gave me two thumbs up as she sampled some of the melon. “It's good,” she said. “That's all we need to know.”
However, there's an excitement here to be shared. Are you willing to help spread the news?
I've seen signing in produce departments calling out the sweetness levels before: “This perfectly ripe cantaloupe is close to 15 brix today! That's 50% sweeter than imported cantaloupe during the winter months!” The same sign could be created calling out the grapes, sweet corn or whatever you care to help promote in-store.
Consider that most of your customers aren't aware that ripeness degrees, or sweetness, can be measured. If you point out just this one feature to them, it could slow them down. Get them to sample the sweetness, and they'll buy. When they buy, they'll have a great eating experience and buy again, and again, all summer long.
And they'll not only love what you sell, but also enjoy shopping at your store. Just like the reassuring line in the movie “Gladiator”: “Win the crowd.” A simple, inexpensive refractometer can help create a little interest, a little buzz.
Anyway, that's my story — and I'm sticking to it.
Armand Lobato works for the Idaho Potato Commission. His 40 years of experience in the produce business span a range of foodservice and retail positions.