Written by Jose Cartamil & Tom Foss Once fresh produce is picked, it is dying, plain and simple. Trying to maximize its life and freshness for your customers is key for great sales, reduced shrink, great margins, and satisfied customers. Use these keys below as reminders for how to stay fresh and focused on profits: · Culling/Rotation- A must for a business. Cull the department at least twice daily. Rule of thumb; if you wouldn’t buy it, don’t try to sell it. Rotation of not only product on the sales floor, but product in the coolers and backrooms as well. First in, first out is the best practice. · Space to Sales Allocation- Are you over shelved on certain items, varieties, or sections? Sometimes if you have too much produce on the sales floor, that produce will sit and not sell in a timely manner. This will create poor quality produce conditions on the sales floor. · Proper Refrigeration- Keeping product cool will extend shelf life. The optional temperature for fresh produce is between 34 and 40 degrees. Carlson AirFlo products help to maintain an optimum temperature for keeping produce fresher, longer. · Do Not Impede Air Flow- Items like case liner and pop creates work will for appearance, but will stop cool air from reaching produce. · Crisping- Trimming the “butts” off of leafy greens and giving them a soak in temped water will extend the life and increase freshness for your customers. · Over Fill- Overfilling a produce display can lead to many issues. Bruising and highly perishable items like berries at room temperature for long periods of time will drastically reduce shelf life. For every hour that a strawberry is out of the 34 to 40 degree temperature range, it will lose 2 days of shelf life. · Misting- It’s good to make sure that the misting system in the produce wet case is working well and that the nozzles are aimed properly. · Cleaning- Many times, especially during busy times of the year, deep cleaning will get over looked. “Sludge” build up will cut down on proper air flow throughout a case. · Signing- It is important to have your department properly and accurately signed and priced. The use of sign systems is a good way to accomplish this. · Proper Ordering- Take inventory of what is on hand in the cooler and backroom. Write the order on the sales floor, looking at the displays. Knowing what is in the cooler and backroom, having a record of what’s sold in the past helps cut down on any guessing. · Proper Employee Training- Produce department employees require one to two years to really understand produce. Going through each season will help provide a better understanding of how fruits and vegetables react to various conditions. · Sanitation Program- In most supermarkets, the produce department is the first department customers usually experience, therefore from a fresh image and food safety standpoint it is vital that all employees adhere to a strict sanitation program. · The Importance of Color- We shop using all of senses; including sight. The use of contrasting colors is one of the simplest ways to add visual impact to produce displays and make the produce more tempting to customers. Create “wow” displays. |
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I interviewed Josh Padilla of Krasdale Foods Inc. last week for his candid comments on some produce topics. His responses below might help you find some areas of opportunity in 2015. What are several best-in-class practices that successful independent operators should embrace? 1. Great Merchandising - The most successful operators are capable of balancing the produce department's small size and have ample product mix to offer to their customers. They might carry six different types of apples, instead of 10 or carry four different mushrooms instead of six. They merchandise based on sets i.e pepper wall, citrus set, apple set, a bagged salad set, etc. They give an ample display size to seasonal and sale items. They dummy displays: make displays look full with less. Quickly discontinue non selling items to make room for new items. 2. Rotation system in place. This helps the product to be properly rotated, minimize shrink and making the department always looking fresh. 3. In conjunction with the rotation system, the most successful operators have a fresh cut produce program to turnover their losses, help margins, and increase sales. They even get creative with recipes like making Siracha mango or cinnamon powder pineapple. 4. With produce prices changing daily, the most successful operators keep on top of their pricing; making changes as necessary to maintain an adequate gross margin. In addition, they are spot on their signage and provide up to date COOL. 5. They take feedback and recommendations from outsiders and incorporate many new trends in the produce industry in their stores. What technological capabilities must produce retailers have in 2015 to excel a best practice? I believe there are several technological capabilities that a produce retailer must have in 2015 to excel at a best practice. 1. An advanced scale that helps you change pricing, ingredients, country of origin, and items easily and quickly on all weighted items. Many operators have such antiquated systems that light-years behind. 2. Good register system that helps them keeps good records and provides reports on all produce items sold to identify sales opportunity and improve margin, shrink and buying. 3. Air-Flo systems, fillers misting system and salad pushers- I'm a huge proponent of having equipment that helps cut down on pack out but still gives the impression that the department is full and helps the refrigerated cases work as intended. 4. Produce identification book. Yeah a paper book! In an age of the food channel and self proclaimed foodies, a book that educates both the consumer and retailer on the different types of produce items and provides tips on their nutrition, preparation and availability, is a helpful tool and essential. As they say knowledge is power. What upcoming trends should independents be considering and implementing into their businesses? 1. Glass door merchandising- this could help in saving energy costs and extending the shelf life of product. 2. Local produce. I truly believe that is this an area of opportunity on par with organics. Local fruits and vegetables should be called out with POS and if possible merchandised together in its own set. 3. Embrace globalization. With nutrition and eating better in our consciousness, the produce industry is sourcing different items from over the world and they are slowing becoming mainstream items in our day to day diets. Items like papaya, chayote, were once ethnic items, well not any more: |
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