WENATCHEE, Wash. – With its festive name and surprisingly sweet, tart, and tropical flavor, Stemilt’s signature apple variety, Piñata®, is the perfect apple for promoting in the produce department during upcoming Cinco de Mayo celebrations. Piñata® is a crisp and juicy apple with a unique high sugar and high acid flavor profile that comes from a trio of heirloom apples, including Cox’s Orange Pippin, Duchess of Oldenburg, and the well-known Golden Delicious.
Harvested in mid-October each year, Stemilt has steadily expanded the supply and season for Piñata® since adopting it as an exclusive apple variety back in 2004. Today, Stemilt is able to consistently supply Piñata® apples from the time the fruit harvests until June. This makes Cinco de Mayo, held every May 5, an ideal new promotional window for Piñata®.
“The quality and condition of this year’s Piñata® apple crop is fantastic,” said Roger Pepperl, Stemilt marketing director. “Beautiful color, high Brix (sugars), and balanced acids. Piñata® is an apple that gets better every year, and is the perfect tie-in to Cinco de Mayo promotions being held in early May in produce departments.”
During the 2015-2016 season, Piñata® apples were featured in over 7,000 supermarkets in the United States, with additional distribution in export markets including Canada. This season, Stemilt has found success with Piñata® apples in Mexico, thanks to the apple’s high Brix (sugar) flavor profile and Golden Delicious roots.
Stemilt has a number of merchandising vehicles available for Cinco de Mayo promotions, including bulk and pouch bags. Piñata® is available in Stemilt’s industry-leading Lil Snappers line of 3lb. pouch bags. It’s a great apple for kids because of the sweet-tart and juicy flavor profile. Stemilt also has a 5lb. pouch bag for Piñata® that is designed to stand-up on display and help drive both impulse sales and a larger purchase size.
“Bulk Piñata® apples should be on display along with promotion in produce departments leading up to and during Cinco de Mayo. Retailers can also use one of our pouch bag options as an in-and-out to drive impulse sales. Lil Snappers® 3lb. pouch bags are ideal for reaching parents and kids, while the 5lb. bag appeals to apple lovers everywhere,” said Pepperl.
Stemilt’s in-house marketing team supports Piñata® in a variety of ways at the retail and consumer level. The company packs Piñata® in high-graphic, tropical themed cartons to market the flavor profile of the apple right at the point-of-sale. Stemilt can also assist retailers with signage, photo, and recipe assets, and social media, which is especially important when promoting a product during a seasonal event like Cinco de Mayo. On the consumer side, Stemilt engages with shoppers regularly via the Piñata® Facebook page, conducts media and influencer outreach around the apple, and has a free downloadable recipe eBook to inspire shoppers to use Piñata® in new ways.
For more information about Piñata® apple Cinco de Mayo promotions, contact your Stemilt representative.
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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 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 Growers