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for juices, Schur is among a few companies using the rounded Doy-style stand-up pouch for fruits and vegetables.
“Shelf visibility is important,” says Schur. “Try to be creative with the shape, material and graphics on the package.”
Graphics frequently are designed to appeal to a particular age group of consumers.
“If you go into a retail store, you can find very juvenile as well as adult-themed presen- tations, especially on those items targeted at a specific buying audience,” says Joe Bradford, vice president of sales at Temkin Interna- tional, Payson, UT. “In years’ past, we mainly saw a consistent look for a brand regardless of product. Now we see brands that target chil- dren, teens, as well as adults. We are seeing the produce industry learn from the cereal, confectionery and snack-food segments. Look at what they have done and the way they market to a specific buying audience. Produce is taking a step in that same direc- tion.”
Temkin produces flexible and rigid plastic packages in many shapes and styles, with the capacity to use brilliant, eye-catching graphics.
“The push for branding and marketing has been more evident in the past few years than ever before,” says Bradford. “Look at what the industry has done with the assistance of licensing agreements with companies such as Sesame Street. We market to specific age groups. We have seen a significant increase in target marketing.”
Other packaging specialists also have noticed that more graphics familiar to chil- dren are migrating into produce as young parents look to encourage their children to eat healthy.
PHOTO COURTESY OF SEV-REND
“One thing I notice with produce is the packaging is geared toward young fami- lies with kids,” says Watkin. “One example recently is the Eat Brighter! campaign in conjunction with Sesame Street. You have Big Bird, Elmo, the Cookie Monster on the package trying to get children to eat fruits and vegetables when they are young.”
THE MESSAGE
Although the first test of the package’s message is whether it catches the eye, for some consumers more detailed information matters.
“Consumers always want more informa- tion,” says Kristin Yerecic, marketing manager at Yerecic Label Co., New Kensington, PA. “We have found a multilayer label helps to communicate the grower’s story or an idea to utilize the product in a recipe. Many times, the messaging shifts over time to focus on the items consumers are interested in. For example, vitamin, protein and antioxidant callouts are very popular right now with the focus on health.”
Yerecic produces labels that include infor- mation modern consumers expect.
“In terms of claims or statements, organic, fair wage and value-added items resonate stronger with Millennials,” says Yerecic. “Boomers are drawn to nutrition and locally grown callouts. Millennials are also much more interested in digital resources such as aQRcodetoaHands&Pansvideooran Augmented Reality platform. Millennials are also more interested in the product and grower information.”
One way to look at the shape of the package is how much room it allows for visual and printed information.
“The more real estate on the packaging,
42 / AUGUST 2018 / PRODUCE BUSINESS