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they’ll never see a decrease in sales,” says Delbert Bland, owner and president, Bland Farms, Glennville, GA. “ at is why Bland Farms sees no di erence in the volume in the fall versus spring and summer.”
DOES ORIGIN MATTER?
e short answer is no.
“Customers may prefer domestic sweet onions, but the Peruvian onion is recognized by its shape, color and overall appearance as a high quality sweet onion and is the only true sweet available in the marketplace after August,” observes Cutler. “ e growing condi- tions in Peru are perfect for sweet onions. Arid conditions, warm days and cool nights all contribute to overall quality and sweetness. What di erentiates Peruvian sweet onions is the stability of supply for a long, seven-month time period, allowing retailers to focus on ad planning, promotions and sales rather than the source of supply.”
BAGS AND BINS
Peruvian onions are available in a limited number of retail options. Grower/shippers import the onions in 50-pound sacks of sweet onions and regrade them into 40-pound ship- pers plus consumer bags, with the 3-pound consumer bag being the most popular size. “Shoppers with one- or two-person house- holds prefer to purchase loose onions as they need them, but families really like the 3-pound bag,” says Rob Ybarra, director of produce and oral for Coborn’s, a retail chain of 26 stores based in St. Cloud, MN. “We often put the 3-pound bag on promotion.”
SHOUT OUT SWEETNESS
Consumers who are dedicated users of Vidalia onions are the ideal targets for Peru- vian onions.
“Peruvian onions o er an excellent contin- uation of the traditional sweet onion season because they are very, very similar in appear- ance and in taste to a Vidalia,” says Bland. “In Peru, we grow the same identical variety as the Vidalia. Since the seasons in Peru and
Georgia are opposite, we come right out of Vidalia season and go straight into Peru’s season never missing a beat. Consumers get the same wonderful sweet onion with concen- trated avor every day.”
CAPTURING KEY CONSUMERS
Peruvian onions are more widely available in the Eastern half of the United States. “ e sweet onion program starts earlier in the season in eastern states and smoothly transitions right from Vidalia season,” says Cutler of Michael Cutler Co. “ e West Coast marketplace starts later, after the late summer harvest is complete in both Nevada and Washington.”
Keystone Fruit Marketing’s Blume notes, “While a lot of East Coast consumers recog- nize Vidalia and West Coast consumers recog- nize Walla Walla, more and more consumers have been educated that Peru’s onions are similar. Side by side with Vidalias or Walla Wallas, and whole or cut, consumers can’t tell the di erence.”
Blume stresses the importance of retailers identifying sweet onions in the store with labeling and signage to help consumers nd what they want. “Sweet onions drive the cate- gory so retailers need to identify them properly,” says Blume.
Bland also notes, “We’ve seen more growth on the West Coast in the past ve years due to our focus on educating West Coast buyers about the similarities between Vidalias and Peru sweet onions. We bring a lot of onions into the country through Georgia and also California and New Jersey, so we are able to distribute them across the country.”
THE RETAILER PARTNERSHIP
“Our retail partnerships allow us to work together with retailers to plan promotional time periods for Peruvian onions,” says Blume. “We have been successful because we can o er consistent, season-long quality and supply at fair prices for retailers. ey pay $0.60 to $0.70 per pound delivered, giving them some ex- ibility in setting pricing. Merchandising and display is up to the retailers,” he says.
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“I am excited about sweet Peruvian onions in the fall, and I am willing to pay extra for this onion that consumers love because avor matters,” says Ybarra of Coborn’s. “We’re all about Peruvian onions during the season. Apart from our promotions, though, we do not have special displays or signage about the onion like we do with the Vidalias. We would welcome a partnership with a distributor or trade association with the resources to help us tell people about Peruvian onions.”
Patrick Mills, director, produce and oral, Lucky’s Market, a 39-store national retail chain based in Niwot, CO, looks for ways to educate the customer about all fruits and vegetables, including Peruvian onions. “We promote them in-store, advertise, and, most importantly, sample. Tastings teach customers about food. e No. 1, hands-down strategy is to get a product into the customer’s mouth.”
DISPLAY OPPORTUNITIES
A well-placed display can help grab the attention of consumers who otherwise might not notice Peruvian sweet onions or might mistake them for other types of onions. G&R Farms, Glennville, GA, decorates its consumer packs with the Andes Mountains. Shuman Farms o ers a wide variety of packaging options for retailers, including large display bins, consumer bags, display-ready containers, and cartons designed to create meal solution opportunities in the produce department and drive incremental sales. “Consumers buy with their eyes, so beautiful packaging and a quality product are still keys to driving sales,” advises Cutler. He notes demand is waning for in-store signage.
VALUE-ADDED BENEFITS
Value-added opportunities for Peruvian onions such as chopped, sliced, and in stew and stir-fry blends build awareness and encourage trial. Bland Farms extends the visibility of sweet onions with dressings and snacks that feature shopper-focused messaging and graphics that cele-
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