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A high percentage of respondents to a Food Marketing Institute survey listed high-quality fresh fruits and vegetables as the most important attributes for selecting a primary store.
Roerink, 210Analytics LLC, San Antonio, and a consultant on the SmartFood survey. “Many retailers highlight specific health benefits, such as vitamin types, antioxi- dants or fiber content in-store, or tie these properties to specific health benefits. A fresh garlic display at Lowe’s Foods in the Carolinas, for example, calls out that ‘garlic contains allicin, which has potent medicinal properties. It is also known to be a powerful natural antibiotic.’ ”
DOUBLING DOWN ON HEALTH
“Everybody knows fruits and vegetables are good for them, but they don’t appreciate just how good they are,” says Amy Myrdal Miller, RDN, Farmer’s Daughter Consulting, Carmichael, CA. “This results in part from the lack of strong branding and health messaging in fresh produce. Messages can be as simple as promoting avocados for better absorption of certain vitamins. Or strengthening partnerships with the phar- macy so that a customer who needs high blood pressure medication, for example, would be sent to the produce department for potassium-rich vegetables and fruits.”
Point-of-sale material offered by Orlando, FL-based Produce for Kids shows shoppers the health benefits of produce and directs them to websites to show them healthy ways to prepare food. In the Univer- sity of Arkansas Medical Science’s WISE program, which promotes smart eating for children, Harps Food Stores’ Roberts says his two participating stores saw increased sales of green beans, cucumbers, summer squash, peaches and watermelon. Roberts says the program will be expanded to more Harps stores.
Hy-Vee, based in West Des Moines, IA, sets a new standard for marketing health. The company recently opened Hy-Vee HealthMarket, a health-focused brand with a smaller footprint. “The Hy-Vee HealthMarket produce section is about a third of the size of a traditional Hy-Vee store and carries about half the number of varieties as a full- size store but offers a tremendous selection for quick, healthy choices that complement any meal or snack on-the-go,” explains Amy A. McCoy, director, communications. “Our 300 or so produce items represent the best in seasonal, organic and local. The Hy-Vee HealthMarket offers an assortment of value- added produce items and also has a large Short Cuts section, where customers can buy pre-cut, pre-washed and pre-packaged produce items.”
PHOTO COURTESY OF WAKEFERN
48 / OCTOBER 2018 / PRODUCE BUSINESS