Sep 2007
Quality at what price?
01 September 2007 10:37
John Hey
ONE of my personal highlights from the recent ASIA FRUIT LOGISTICA trade fair in Bangkok was sampling the delectable array of fruits in the Japanese pavilion. Not only did these items look amazing, they set the taste buds racing, whether it be muskmelons with a melting sweetness or purplish-black, perfectly-formed Pione grapes bursting with a rich flavour. If only all fruits tasted this good, I thought, the industry might not be facing such a challenge to boost global consumption! I was even more blown away, however, when told that the melon I was munching would cost me upwards of US$100 in Japan, or the pretty peach US$10 each. Makes five-a-day a bit of a challenge!
Those Japanese fruits are notoriously expensive, largely due to the extraordinary lengths that growers go to in nurturing their crops. Back in the conference room, the issues of price and quality kept cropping up at the Asiafruit Congress. Will Japanese consumers still pay a premium for fresh produce? Some thought so; others not. Are the expanding supermarket retailers in Asia prepared to share in the cost of programmes to promote socially responsible management practices or food safety by paying more for the produce they buy? Has China’s method of winning market share on low price forced it into a commodity trap or is it shifting to more value addition? And what is more important to the Asian consumer: quality or price?
“Price, price, price” was the answer from one respondent in a survey of Asia’s fresh produce business conducted by Asiafruit Magazine, the results of which were presented at the Asiafruit Congress by Rabobank. But some delegates countered that Asian consumers are actually value-conscious in general, which is not surprising when they often have an abundance of inexpensive, good quality local fruits at their disposal.
Delegates could find an answer to this question of price or quality in Bangkok itself on a tour of the city’s diverse range of retail outlets. At the upmarket Central Food Hall visited by delegates, there were premium-quality fruits selling at prices to match. And while this store obviously appeals to the top tier of society, it nevertheless reflects the segmentation that is increasingly being seen in Asian markets as affluence grows in the region. Thailand is a market where low-priced, “acceptable” quality Chinese fruit has made major inroads, but it is also one where high-quality fruits from sources worldwide are finding favour by offering new flavours to the aspiring consumer.
ONE of my personal highlights from the recent ASIA FRUIT LOGISTICA trade fair in Bangkok was sampling the delectable array of fruits in the Japanese pavilion. Not only did these items look amazing, they set the taste buds racing, whether it be muskmelons with a melting sweetness or purplish-black, perfectly-formed Pione grapes bursting with a rich flavour. If only all fruits tasted this good, I thought, the industry might not be facing such a challenge to boost global consumption! I was even more blown away, however, when told that the melon I was munching would cost me upwards of US$100 in Japan, or the pretty peach US$10 each. Makes five-a-day a bit of a challenge!
Those Japanese fruits are notoriously expensive, largely due to the extraordinary lengths that growers go to in nurturing their crops. Back in the conference room, the issues of price and quality kept cropping up at the Asiafruit Congress. Will Japanese consumers still pay a premium for fresh produce? Some thought so; others not. Are the expanding supermarket retailers in Asia prepared to share in the cost of programmes to promote socially responsible management practices or food safety by paying more for the produce they buy? Has China’s method of winning market share on low price forced it into a commodity trap or is it shifting to more value addition? And what is more important to the Asian consumer: quality or price?
“Price, price, price” was the answer from one respondent in a survey of Asia’s fresh produce business conducted by Asiafruit Magazine, the results of which were presented at the Asiafruit Congress by Rabobank. But some delegates countered that Asian consumers are actually value-conscious in general, which is not surprising when they often have an abundance of inexpensive, good quality local fruits at their disposal.
Delegates could find an answer to this question of price or quality in Bangkok itself on a tour of the city’s diverse range of retail outlets. At the upmarket Central Food Hall visited by delegates, there were premium-quality fruits selling at prices to match. And while this store obviously appeals to the top tier of society, it nevertheless reflects the segmentation that is increasingly being seen in Asian markets as affluence grows in the region. Thailand is a market where low-priced, “acceptable” quality Chinese fruit has made major inroads, but it is also one where high-quality fruits from sources worldwide are finding favour by offering new flavours to the aspiring consumer.
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