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February sees strong organic apple and pear volumes and sales
February organic pear and apples sales verified that the pandemic year has been incredibly positive for both categories. Both category organics sales and volumes are up, with organic share greatly increased in the last year.
Organic pears are experiencing strong growth. They were up a colossal 42% in dollars, and up 44% in volume. Average retail was steady at $2.11/lb. The organic pear category share has nearly doubled in the last year with sales rising from 7.1% in February 2020 to 12.5% in 2021. Volume rose from 5.1% to 9.5% share of the category.
“Supply is catching up with demand, which has excelled during the pandemic year. Consumers are looking for immune boosters, and for more ‘better than’ options like organics to optimize health. Organic pears are loaded with vitamin C, the ‘Antioxidant Vitamin’ that promotes healing and protection against infectious diseases,” describes Catherine Gipe-Stewart,
â2020 was a big year for organic apple growthâ
Demand for organic apples continues to jump, a trend thatâs only been fueled by the pandemic.
âThe focus on the perceived benefits of organics have increased demand. This will become a longer-term trend as organic growth hasnât slowed down in over 15 years,â says Cat Gipe-Stewart, communications manager with Superfresh Growers based in Yakima, WA. âThe pandemic is solidifying what we already knew.â She adds that increased supplies are also driving consumption and that orchards are rapidly transitioning to organic via a three-year process. âThis means that the overall apple volume may remain steady but is shifting from conventional to organic.â
Washington grower-shipper optimistic about solid start of 2021 for apples and pears
January apple and pear data provide a glimpse of the year ahead. Trends to heed: organic apple and pear sales continue to grow, Cosmic Crisp® apple rises in rank in its sophomore year and proprietary apples, such as Autumn Glory®, drive category growth. The following information is based on Nielsen reports ending January 23, 2021.
Organic apple and pear sales were strong in January, as they have been for much of 2020. This is a trend to watch, as organics assume a higher share of both categories. Organic pears were up 34 percent in dollars and 38 percent in volume. Organics represented 14 percent of total pear sales and 11 percent of volume.
December saw strong pear and apple movement
December was a very strong month for apples and pears, which were up seven percent and 12 percent in dollar sales, respectively. Double-digit organic growth in both categories, combined with strong showings by core and emerging apple varieties, drove the great results.
Core and emerging apple varieties led dollar growth in December. Core varieties (Honeycrisp, Gala, Granny Smith and Fuji) all had steady growth, ranging from three to 15 percent. Proprietary varieties, including Cosmic Crisp® and Autumn Glory®, saw large dollar gains. These gains were partially offset by dollar declines in Red Delicious, Golden Delicious, Cortland and Braeburn.