Speaking at the Horticulture NZ conference in Christchurch Beaton said while consumer preferences vary in each market, one strong global trend is the desire from consumers to know more about where their food comes from and who grows it.
But this consumer desire, coming in part from a loss of attachment to the land and food production, can be seen by growers as a huge opportunity, Beaton said.
“It’s a chance to leverage the authenticity of our growing story, to build a deeper relationship with our consumers and to add value to our brands by making people feel more positive about their food choice.
It’s critical now that growers recognise people have lost knowledge and direct connection with food production.
They are concerned about health risks, media hype and a complex food landscape.
Not long ago consumers had a very close, direct relationship with food.
“In NZ, even in the city suburbs, many of us had gardens at home and grew our own veges or otherwise you might go down to the local greengrocer where produce would be laid out in bulk and there probably wouldn’t be a brand attached, let alone a story.
“But you could trust it because you knew the people who ran the shop and besides you knew what good produce looked, smelled and felt like.
“You were a grower yourself or Grandad was and if you asked the grocer about the origin of the produce you’d hear what part of the country it came from.”
From the homegrown to retail, from the orchard to the table, the supply chain relationships were local, personal and high in trust.
But things have changed.
In 1900 only 14% of the world’s population lived in cities. By 2015 that number was 50% and for developed nations 75%.
In NZ and elsewhere population growth, housing intensification and other demographic changes mean far fewer people have vegetable gardens at home.
“Today there will be people, particularly younger people, who have never planted something in a garden, maybe never even picked fruit off a tree.”
While the scale of global food production is higher than ever there’s been widespread loss of connection between people, land and food, Beaton said.
“At the same time we see a rise in anxiety about food, amplified by the rise of media and communication technology.
“These days people are anxious about additives, pesticides, genetically modified organimss, food miles, animal welfare, fats and sugars, environmental impacts.
“Consumers find themselves literally spoiled for choice, inundated with unreliable information and sophisticated marketing, not knowing who or what to trust.
“People are trying to navigate through a food landscape that’s become unrecognisably complex, almost overnight, trying to find their way back to something authentic – back to good, honest food.
“This hunger for food you can trust has triggered an increasing demand for transparency and traceability of food.”
But the challenges are good news for his company, T&G Global, and others in horticulture, Beaton said.
“Our produce is manufactured by nature – people, plants and dirt.”
For us at T&G Global it also creates an interesting challenge.
“Firstly, we are a global company with growers all over the world. We’re not an artisan producer and we can’t pretend to be.
“Secondly, we’re an innovator. We embrace technology and we focus on research and development.
“In T&G Pipfruit we’ve created new, named and trademarked apple varieties that didn’t exist back in the good old days like Jazz, Envy and Pacific Rose apples.
“So how do we tell an authentic and compelling origin story?
“In a global market our primary storytelling channels are online.
“Our trademarked varieties each have their own distinct websites and social media channels but a consistent approach to storytelling sits across them.
“And this is where our growers really become our heroes.
“If you visit JazzApple.com, for example, you can see exactly where the orchards are and meet the people who run them.
“The growers talk with pride about their family history and their beautiful growing conditions, be it anywhere from Lake Chelan in Washington to Hawke’s Bay – as well as what they love about growing the Jazz variety.”
Social media is now the number one channel for consumers around the world to ask for information.
And with sustainability, in particular, it should go without saying that it’s not just about the storytelling and the marketing.
“You have to genuinely live what you say you stand for.
“You can’t fake authenticity.”
