Stemilt Taps Into Millennial Demand For Organics With Lil Snappers Organic Pears

WENATCHEE, Wash. – The gateway to the holiday season is officially open which means the time is NOW to promote specialty items, including Stemilt Growers’ Lil Snappers® Artisan Organics™  pears in store! Stemilt is encouraging retailers to kick off the happiest time of year with a jolly and healthy promotion by taking advantage of the organic pear program during one of the most popular food holidays of the year.

“The holiday season is a great time to promote organic pears as it is a time of celebration,” states Brianna Shales, communications manager at Stemilt. “People are looking for healthy, specialty items for their holiday parties, and quick, healthy snacks for their kids, and pears are definitely part of that category.”

Stemilt’s Lil Snappers® program broke ground back in 2011 and has since changed the way small pears are consumed. Originally designed for parent consumers, the Lil Snappers® organic program has been popular among many types of shoppers due to organic options and smaller fruit size.

“The Lil Snappers® program does exceptionally well with consumers who are looking for smaller portion sizes,” states Shales. “In-store dietitians use this program to engage with diabetic shoppers who do not need large portion sizes, and the convenient grab-and-go style bag is perfect for any of today’s time-strapped shoppers.”

The organic category is also growing very rapidly making it a great time for retailers to offer another organic option to parent consumers. In fact, the 2017 U.S. Families’ Organic Attitudes and Behaviors Study found that millennial parents – ages 18-35 years old – are now the biggest group of organic buyers in America and believe that purchasing organic for their family makes them a better parent.

“The Lil Snappers® kid size fruit program was originally designed to target parent consumers to help encourage healthy eating within the household and it still does well with parent consumers today,” says Shales. “So it only makes sense that retailers could use this to their advantage and give parents another road to healthy eating.”

Lil Snappers® organic Bosc and organic red pears will be available now until January. Both are wonderful holiday varieties that work well for fresh application as well as in culinary dishes. All organic pear varieties are available in a 2lb. pouch bag which Shales believes is beneficial for both the retailer and consumer. “Organic pears are a niche item, and the 2lb. size helps lower the price point, while still moving more volume than typical for a purchase of organic pears,” says Shales.

Another organic pear variety that Stemilt encourages retailers to get on board with is Artisan Organics™ Concorde. A cross between the Conference and Comice varieties, the Concorde is truly a specialty pear. Its elongated neck, green coloring and sweet, vanilla-like flavor profile makes it’s a wonderful holiday pear that will work well on charcuterie boards or in your favorite baked dessert. The variety is grown in the beautiful Wenatchee River Valley, a location well known for its pear growing abilities. Alpine mountains and pristine rivers surround the orchards and provide cool temperatures making it an ideal place for produce high quality, world famous organic pears.

“The Wenatchee River Valley is truly a remarkable place, that grows amazing Artisan Organics™ Concorde pears,” states Shales. “And using this story to communicate with consumers about where their food is grown will sit well with them, making them come back for more.”

The organic Concorde variety is promotable in all sizes, including Lil Snappers® pouch bags. Stemilt ships Lil Snappers in display ready cartons (DRCs) and can also provide retailers with lane table displays to promote the fruit in high-traffic areas like checkout.

“Retailers could have fun merchandising the trio of colors of these organic pears,” states Shales. “The coloring of Red Pears mixed with the beautiful coloring of the green Concorde can make some really visually stimulating displays. Plus, Lil Snappers® pouch bags are built with the ability to stand up on their own. With that in mind, retailers can build displays using the variety of colors to create some visual separation to highlight each variety.”

Stemilt encourages retailers to use as many resources, including liners, in-store specials and social media to build demand for organic pears. “We want to support retailers with their promotions and we can help by providing both digital and print resources,” says Shales. “Anything from geo-targeting on social media to store-specific advertisements is possible and Stemilt is happy to help.” 

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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 a leading shipper of sweet cherries and 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, and You Tube.

Source: Stemilt Growers