Stemilt's Fresh Blenders Apples Appeal To Millennial Smoothie And Juice Enthusiasts

WENATCHEE, Wash. – The Food Marketing Institute’s recent “Power of Produce” shopper study highlights the importance of promoting fresh fruits as ingredients for juice and smoothie blends in order to appeal to the growing crowd of millennial shoppers who juice at home. Stemilt’s Fresh Blenders™, which launched last October, are 5-pound grab-and-go pouch bags of apples that do just that by promoting the use of apples as a natural start to any juice or smoothie drink made at home.

The FMI study of 1,458 U.S. consumers found that over the past two years, 27% of consumers are buying more produce specifically for juicing. Consumers with young children are fueling the juicing and smoothie trend in order to ensure the entire family gets more servings of fresh fruits each day, while women in their 30s and specialty/organic shoppers are also participating in making juice/smoothies at home.

According to Stemilt marketing director Roger Pepperl, apples are a natural starter ingredient for juice and smoothie blends. They add frothiness, valuable nutrients like fiber and vitamin C, and juice and natural sugars to add sweetness to any drink.

“Not only did the FMI study find that people are buying more fruits with juicing/smoothies in mind, but also that 1 in 3 consumers use fruits and vegetables for juicing and making smoothies,” said Pepperl. “Apples are a great base ingredient to any smoothie and our Fresh Blenders™ pouch bags offer a unique product to help retailers appeal directly to this consumer. They sell intent to the shopper by clearly stating what the apples inside are for.”

The Fresh Blenders™ package is a 5-pound bag of value grade apples and comes in sweet or tart flavors and multiple varieties for each. The resealable pouch bag is long and narrow – like a blender – and designed to stand up vertically for easy display at retail and in the refrigerator at home.

“Fresh Blenders™ is a bright and fun pack that ships in a self-stacking display ready carton for building a quick display at retail. It’s an ideal package for refrigerated endcap displays or in building a juicing/smoothie destination in produce to promote alongside other popular ingredients for blends. The best part about Fresh Blenders™ is that it’s a pack that offers convenience at a value price to one of the best produce purchasing consumer groups,” said Pepperl.

The value-grade fruit inside each bag of Fresh Blenders™ is ideal for blends, as color percentages and shape do not matter when making a juice or smoothie recipe like they do when eating the apple fresh. A 5-pound bag can make a week’s worth of juice or smoothies for most consumers, Pepperl added.

Stemilt packs Fresh Blenders™ in both sweet and tart flavors. The varieties available for sweet are: Gala, Fuji, Red Delicious, and Golden Delicious. The varieties available as tart are: Braeburn, Granny Smith, and Pink Lady® brand apples. On the back of every bag is a Stemilt recipe that fits the flavor profile of the fruit inside. The front of the bag features the Mathison family, who own and operate Stemilt, in order to help tie the fruit back to the family farm it came from.

“Fresh Blenders™ is an ideal product to capture sales with the health-conscious millennial crowd of shoppers as they continue to develop purchasing habits in the produce department. It’s important for retailers to appeal to this crowd, and Fresh Blenders™ is a great value pack to do just that,” said Pepperl.

Stemilt will feature Fresh Blenders™ apples at its booth, 2453, at PMA Fresh Summit this month in Atlanta. For more information about Fresh Blenders, click here or contact your Stemilt representative.

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Source: “The Power of Produce 2015.” Food Marketing Institute. http://www.fmi.org/docs/default-source/document-share/popreport2015final.pdf?sfvrsn=2

About Stemilt

Stemilt Growers is a leading tree fruit growing, packing and shipping company based in Wenatchee, Washington. Owned and operated by the Mathison family, Stemilt is the leading shipper of sweet cherries and one of the nation’s largest suppliers of organic tree fruits. Stemilt has also demonstrated a commitment to sustainable agriculture and social responsibility since 1989, when founder Tom Mathison launched the company’s Responsible Choice program. For more information about Stemilt, visit www.stemilt.com and follow Stemilt on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, and You Tube.

Source: Stemilt