Two of the biggest stars of the retail produce department – apples and potatoes – historically have had similar challenges, and that continues today.
>Both suffer from the tendency to overproduce;
>Both have strong state brands that compete with local competitors;
>Both are pushing away from established less-sexy varieties to more specialized and higher value ones;
>Both recommend big retail displays with lots of options; and
>Both have strong momentum this fall with smaller crops.
In back-to-back weeks this summer, I attended the U.S. Apple Association annual conference in Chicago and the Idaho Grower Shippers Association convention in Sun Valley, and I saw optimism.
Growers generally breathed a sigh of relief at the news of smaller crops and likely stronger returns and the knowledge that much of their success this year will depend on them rather than outside factors.
The biggest opportunities lie in delivering on their quality promise.
In Idaho, the state's potato brand has built a quality expectation for both retailers and consumers, and Frank Muir, CEO of the Idaho Potato Commission, said the state's growers are committed to keeping it that way. Every state grows potatoes, so Idaho growers have to produce a potato that lives up to the premium it has earned.
“If you put an Idaho bag next to the local, and Idaho is a dollar more, we get that premium at retail,” he said.
Meanwhile, the apple crop is forecast for 248 million 42-pound bushels, down 7% from last season's 268 million, the fourth highest production year. U.S. Apple CEO Jim Bair points out that wholesale fresh apple prices have risen from 24 cents per pound in 2001 to 45 cents per pound last season.
“Investments in better varieties and production methods are really paying off,” he said in mid-September. “(People) are not shy about sharing their favorite variety. It's fun to be a part of that.”
He predicted the 2018-19 season would be the one that sees gala overtake red delicious as the U.S.'s top apple production variety. Everyone intuitively knows it's healthy to eat apples and potatoes, and both are poised for healthy seasons in the country's produce departments.