Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/34757
An apple called Honeycrisp just has to be good. Without name The Washington Tree Fruit Research Commission will commercialize new apple varieties developed by Washington State University and will make them avail- able to any Washington grower who wants them, since the breeding program has been strongly supported by grower funds. The first of the varieties, WA 2, can now be planted commercially. It has been released without a name, giving shippers and marketers the option to choose their own brand names for it. Sand said the WA 2 commercialization model could be something like that of Cameo, which was released without restriction. Anyone could grow it and propagate it, but, eventually, growers formed a voluntary group to market the variety and establish quality standards. Perhaps some packer or marketer will decide that WA 2 is a viable apple and run with it, Sand said, but releasing a variety without a name has not been tried before. “Coming up with the right name is critical,” Sand said. “Honeycrisp is one of the best names ever invented for an apple. It captures everything. You can’t help think when you hear the name, ‘It’s got to be good.’” Bob Mast, vice president of marketing at Columbia Marketing International in Wenatchee, Washington, thinks the first step with WSU’s new apple varieties should be to identify special characteristics that they have and then develop good names. CMI markets Ambrosia, a trademarked apple from British Columbia, Canada. Ambrosia is a pleasant, catchy name that reflects the apple’s somewhat perfumed flavor, Mast said. Similarly, the name of SweeTango, the latest release from the University of Minnesota, reflects the sweet, tangy taste of that apple variety. Mast thinks it important that a new variety have only one name so that a global marketing program can be developed. “There are already so many varieties out there to begin with, I think you’d really get a confused message if you start calling the same variety by different brand names,” he said. Having a single name helps build the brand and the desire for that brand. It enables consumers to recognize the apple even when they see it in different locations. PLU number A single brand name is also necessary in order to have a dedicated PLU number, Mast pointed out. Scan data are gathered from retailers around the country, and having a single number for a variety will help show how it is being picked up by consumers. “The more sales you can show in the database, the better,” he said. “If you start using retailer-assigned PLU numbers, it can get really messy in a hurry.” Riggan, at Chelan Fresh, also believes it’s critical that the variety be named to avoid confusion in the marketplace. “It could come out and have six different names and still be the same apple,” he said. “Ideally, WSU would just name it—have a naming contest, maybe on campus. That’s what they ought to do. What if Honeycrisp had come out under six different names? It would be a mess.” Mast emphasized that as well as having a name and a PLU number, any new variety must provide a good eating experience and have something special about it that appeals to consumers so they’ll go back and buy more. “You can sell it the first time—we can always do that—but if the variety isn’t received well by the public, it’s going to be tough to sell the second and third time, no matter what it looks like,” he said. “It has to be something special, because shelf space is limited, and there are more and more items fighting for that shelf space. There are going to some varieties that fall by the wayside. The varieties that resonate more with the consumer and the consumers enjoy the most will be the ones to survive.” • The name Ambrosia reflects the aromatic flavor of the apple. www.goodfruit.com GOOD FRUIT GROWER JUNE 2011 25 Robert Kershaw “The newer club varieties are going to have a tough time breaking in because of the bar that Honeycrisp is setting.” —Robert Kershaw COURTESY SALLY & WILFRID MENNELL