PACKAGING, FRESH IMAGE COLLIDE IN PRODUCE DEPARTMENTS

Tom Zind

NEW YORK -- As demand for more convenient products grows, supermarket produce executives face a dilemma: how to provide packaged products while at the same time fostering the fresh image that's the hallmark of produce departments.

Indeed, the growth of packaged products endangers the unique look-and-feel of produce departments, some industry observers believe. Others, however, say it's a trade-off that must be made in this era of consumer convenience.

"There's an awful lot of plastic in the produce department today, and I think it's pulling down the look of the department," said Steve Jarzombek, vice president of perishables for Roundy's, a Milwaukee-based supermarket chain.

"It sometimes seems like everything is going to clamshells and bags, limiting the sensory experience of the department.

"When that happens, you limit some of the impulse nature of produce purchasing," he added.

A produce director at a West Coast chain agrees, but said the customer will be the ultimate arbiter.

"Every time you add a piece of plastic, you take away from the fresh look," said Lee Reynolds, produce director at Bellingham, Wash.-based Haggen, a chain of 32 stores that operate under the Haggen Foods and Top Foods banners. "I think we're going to be presented with a lot more choices along these lines in the future, and the consumer will tell us if they want these packaged products or not."

In a study released last year, the Produce Marketing Association found the consumer is conflicted over the value of packaged vs. bulk. Consumers surveyed said they thought bulk produce offered better quality and taste.

But they also said packaged produce was probably safer and more sanitary, two top concerns.

"Most primary shoppers currently tend to buy loose rather than pre-packaged produce by a wide margin, and they think loose produce is fresher and of a better quality and taste," the executive summary noted. "On the other hand, on attributes they tell us are extremely important (sanitary condition and safety), they consider packaged produce better at meeting those needs."

But of all the reasons to purchase packaged produce, "convenience" emerged as the top response. When pressed to name a single, specific reason to purchase it, 45% cited that attribute. "Clean and sanitary" came in at 14%, and various other safety-related responses came in at a combined 6%.

While "convenient" wasn't defined, in reality it can refer to a host of qualities, many of which are being addressed by today's new generation of fresh produce packaging. At the same time, though, the level of traditional produce packaging -- clear plastic bags of products like apples, citrus, onions and potatoes -- has remained steady.

Packaging serves many purposes, from simply making product easier to pick up, to providing the means of unitizing fresh-cut product, to offering an indication of a product's ripeness.

Ultimately, though, produce packaging is aimed at improving ease of use. At the same time, however, packaging is being designed to lessen any impact on the department's fresh look.

Rigid clear-plastic containers are a prime example. Used increasingly for everything from berries to grape tomatoes to salad mix, they give the consumer a 360-degree view of the product and provide a display look that comes as close to bulk as possible. Steadily improving with such features as better locking mechanisms and improved oxygen transmission capabilities, this packaging is becoming popular with labor-challenged retailers, as well as with time-starved consumers.

"Clamshells have come a long way, and there's definitely a place for them," said Jarzombek.

Besides letting consumers see what they're buying, stackable clamshells and other rigid plastic containers give the consumer a better way to store product in the refrigerator -- another element of convenience.

Overwrapped trays of fresh produce are also making a comeback. Such packaging marks a return of sorts to a type of packaging popular in the 1960s and 1970s. Eventually scorned, its demise opened the door for more bulk offerings as the merchandising approach shifted.

Four Seasons Produce, Inc., an Ephrata, Pa.-based produce wholesaler that supplies a number of independent grocers, has seen demand grow for overwrapped plastic trays of produce.

The main driver for this growth has been organic produce, a product line the company has specialized in since the late 1990s.

Ron Carkoski, president and chief executive officer, said overwrapping that protects the product has allowed retailers to more safely integrate organic produce into conventional product displays.

In essence, packaging has helped make it more convenient for consumers to shop for organic produce and has given them confidence that its integrity hasn't been compromised.

"Whatever product retailers are wanting overwrapped, the reason it's being done is to solve a problem, including labor and front-end product identification at the retailer end," Carkoski said.

While much of the packaging trend is simply addressing a new way to present traditional products in a more convenient form, some of it is tied to the emergence of new convenience products. A prime example is fresh-cut fruit.

Long viewed as the new frontier in produce, fresh-cut fruit has recently been coming into its own, partly because of advances in packaging. Better polyprop-ylene-type films that allow for the optimal exchange of gases have given fresh-cut fruit processors a packaging vehicle that can better ensure product quality and integrity throughout distribution.

"Better packaging has contributed to the growth of fresh-cut fruit," said Devon Zagory, senior vice president of quality and safety programs for Davis Fresh Technologies of Davis, Calif.

"And,in turn, the entry of big players into cut fruit has made packaging suppliers pour more money into R&D," Zagory said.

The slow but steady acceptance of packaging into produce hasn't stopped innovators from taking a stab at entirely new products with unique features.

One recent example is Ripesense Ltd. The New Zealand-based company has unveiled a new concept for packaging pears. Its "ripeSense" smart packaging senses ethylene gases given off by ripening pears and translates that level into a color-coded indicator that tells the consumer the state of ripeness.

The product, which allows for the packaging of four Anjou pears, was tested in some U.S. markets last year.

Haggen Supermarkets will be handling the packaged pears again this year. Reynolds said the packaging addresses consumer convenience by helping shoppers purchase pears of the exact ripeness they desire.

"It takes the guesswork out of a product that's very hard to tell how ripe it is in a bulk display," Reynolds said. "Depending on the level of firmness they like, the packaging will tell them what it is."