Al2-Uncast*r Farming, Saturday, Fabruary 2,1985
Peach marketing
(Continued from Page Al)
Hoover, who noted that as long as
growers pay more attention to
production than to marketing,
overproduction will plague the
industry.
The first panelist to take the
floor was Charles Walker,
executive marketing director for
the South Carolina Peach Board,
who noted that with an estimated
86 percent of the population using
peaches, “we’ve either got to get
them to use more or take out some
of our trees.”
Though Walker saw merit in
drafting an Eastern U.S. peach
marketing order, he pointed out
that such proposals take years to
develop.
“Based on my experience, you
end up talking about marketing
orders for 10 to 20 years before you
have one,” he said. “And then it
takes another 10 years before it has
any teeth in it.”
Walker called for stepped up
promotion activities, citing
California’s aggressive television,
radio and food service ad cam
paign as a successful marketing
tool. “They’re the only group of
growers putting their money
where their mouth is,” he said.
New Jersey peach grower
Robert Best was the next speaker,
pointing out a number of areas
where the industry needs im
provement. Best noted that
peaches are being picked too green
and immature, and that packers
often fail to fill containers with
'TtT
vn
ri!
'*■
IK AHEAD...
ores Markets on Page 3
THII
Read Futi
Come In, Pick Your Choice
And Receive "BOATLOAD PRICE"
Example: YANMAR MODEL 187 4WD Ag : /»nr -= _
18 H.P., Automatic Shift BOATLOAD PRICE
“A Little Out Of
The Way...
But A Lot Less
To Pay”
i '’ty,' ».■'
fruit of uniform size
He said that many boxes
currently in use are not designed
for palletizing, resulting in bruised
fruit when the containers are
stacked. He encouraged packers to
use the new shallower and wider
boxes currently available.
Such quality-related problems
fall in the lap of the grower and his
staff, Best emphasized. Peach
growers should not expect results
from increased promotional ef
forts if their product fails to appeal
to the consumer, he said.
York County Extension home
economist Joan Lamberson
presented information on current
produce buying trends at the
consumer level. She noted that in
the Northeast a larger percentage
of consumers shop the produce
specialty stores than in other parts
of the country.
In her own survey involving 100
York Countians, Lamberson found
that 46 percent bought produce in
the smaller, roadside markets.
Participants were asked to rate
a number of criteria involved in
produce selection. Heading the list
was freshness, with 99 percent of
those surveyed indicating a desire
to purchase the freshest possible
fruit. Other factors, in decreasing
order of importance, were
cleanliness, price, appearance,
nutritional value, growing region
and brand name.
Lamberson speculated that an
increase in generic advertising
may prove profitable, since only
one-third of those surveyed in
dicated a concern for brand names
and the region where the fruit was
grown
Nearly 50 percent of the con
sumers said they bought on im
pulse, c o advertisements and eye
catching displays at the point of
purchase should also boost sales,
said the economist.
Ninety percent of the survey
'participants said that they prefer
to buy their fruit in bulk, rather
than prepackaged.
“We should emphasize the
nutritional value of our products,
since there is a trend toward a
healthful lifestyle,” Lamberson
said.
We're Hawing A Boatload Sale!
Yanmar Tractor*
m nr mm m W> f 1 Wiwi
♦ *•
Buy A Yanmar Tractor
Right Off The Boat!
.S'*
IW. NorthoMiartfaxWeanGrtit
mmim
ORDERS MUST BE PLACED BEFORE THE BOAT’S ARRIVAL
DEADLINE FEBRUARY 9,1985
"SERVICE IS OUR MOTTO"
T AWINJ f A VIV 7 fll7
Kx..'
Horticultural Association conference were (left) Charles
Walker, executive marketing director of the South Carolina
Peach Board; New Jersey peach grower Robert Best; and
York County Ext. home economist Joan Lamberson.
Vegetable Conference
may sell truckloads of produce at
the wholesale level, retailing
means dealing with a broad cross
section of individual personalities.
“You’ve got to like people to be in
this business,” stated Blakeley.
•A diversity of products. Con
sumers are attracted to a wide
selection, as well as freshness and
good flavor.
•Timing. Retail customers want
small amounts of produce
available everyday, whereas
wholesalers are looking for large
amounts at more or less predic
table intervals.
•Tight scheduling. Plenty of
planning must go into the use of
such things as irrigation,
pesticides and herbicides, so as not
to inconvenience or endanger the
customer.
Other requirements include
specialized (and usually ex
pensive) facilities and equipment,
a specialized labor force, ad
vertising and promotional skills,
and competent employees for
times when the owner is absent.
Blakely then examined the
specific types of direct marketing,
pointing out their merits and
drawbacks. The breakdown in
cluded roadside markets, pick
your-own facilities, farmers
markets and delivery routes.
Though roadside markets have
/f
r
ig P<
(Continued from Page Al)
high income potential, they also
require large investments,
whereas a pick-your-own operation
can be implemented fairly inex
pensively. The pick-your-own
marketer, however, should not try
to cut corners on liability in
surance, Blakeley emphasized.
One way to increase sales
volume, said the consultant, is to
have shopping carts available,
making it convenient for con
sumers to handle more groceries.
Market owners will also find that
ice displays increase the sale of
leafy vegetables two to three
times, and juice sales six to eight
times over refrigerated displays.
Attention to small details such as
these is what makes a market
successful, says Blakely.
Speaking on the subject of row
tunnels for early vegetable
production was Dr. Joy S. Bloom, a
Dupont chemist from Wilmington,
Delaware. Dr. Bloom divided row
tunnels into two categories:
supported covers and floating
covers.
Floating covers were first
employed on tobacco seedbeds,
according to the speaker, with
cheese cloth being the popular
material. The newer spun
polyester covers offer distinct
advantages over both cheese cloth
and the supported covers. Being
PA,
i mm *|*
tp^
5> * *i':
<2,
very lightweight, the new
materials are easily adapted to
mechanical placement, with only
one man-hour of application time
required per acre.
Being porous, the polyester will
admit a fungicide spray, as well as
75 to 80 percent of the light striking
them. The covers offer about two
to five degrees of frost protection,
and also minimize insect damage,
according to Dr. Bloom.
Though the polyester material
does block some rainfall, there is
no apparent loss in soil moisture,
probably due to the lower
evaporation rate, says Dr. Bloom.
A highlight for vegetable
growers attending Tuesday’s
sessions was the tomato awards
luncheon. This year’s awards were
presented in four machine-harvest
and two hand-harvest classes.
•Class 1, Machine Harvest (100
acres and up): This class was won
by Mark and Earl Stem of Lock
Haven, Clinton County. They
harvested 4,570 tons of useable
fruit from 180 acres, for a yield of
25.4 tons per acre.
•Class 2, Machine Harvest (75 to
99 acres); Winner was Robert W.
Schwartz of Lykens, Dauphin
County, for harvesting 2,216 tons
from 98 acres for a 22.6 tons-per
acre average.
•Class 3, Machine Harvest (50 to
74 acres): Won by Dwight and
John Hess of Hess Farms,
Marietta, Lancaster County. The
brothers harvested 1,515 tons from
48 acres, for an average of 31.6 tons
per acre.
•Class 4, Machine Harvest (20 to
49 acres): Carl M. Schmidt of
Watsontown, Northumberland
County took this class, harvesting
535 tons from 22 acres for a per
acre average of 24.3 tons.
•Class 2, Hand Harvest (25 to 49
acres): Won by Dio Shetler of
Turbotville, Montour County for
his harvest of 891 tons on 31 acres
for an average of 28.8 tons per
acre.
•Class 4, Hand Harvest (5 to 14
acres); Donald E. Mowrer of
Marietta, Lancaster County was
the winner, harvesting 335 tons
from eight acres for an average of
41.9 tons per acre.
The annual recognition of out
standing tomato growers is
sponsored by the Penn State Ex
tension Service and the Tomato
Processors of Pa.
Most Models On Display
HQ1IB&
Mon,, Thurs., Fri.
BAM-BPM
Tues.&Wed.
8 AM-S:3OPM
Sat. 8 AM-2 PM
t-'M
rc