Fresh ideas for marketing Australian produce

Ms Philip's Rabobank-sponsored scholarship took her to major fresh produce retailers and marketing companies across the United Kingdom, Canada and the United States.

The aim of her tour was to study supply chain management, particularly the process of category management.

"Not everything that works overseas will work in Australia, but I think if producers can get closer to consumers, through better market research, they can develop products that will better meet consumer needs, and both will be winners," Ms Philip said.

"In the United Kingdom, Europe and the US you have several different mixes of how the retail chains handle buying and marketing of fresh produce within the produce category through their different supply base.

"For instance, I visited one company in northern England that deals with leafy green vegetable categories.

"They source from external suppliers and also grow their own produce, value-add through a range of packaging options and market five different types of leafy green vegetables for retailers."

Ms Philip said this style of company, which integrates production, processing, supply and marketing, was a common model in the UK and the United States.

"Another company I visited was Fresh Link Marketing, which was formed by five British tomato producers to provide them with a focused approach to marketing their product specifically to Sainsbury's," she said.

"The innovative approach of Fresh Link was to run the business as a cost centre but with a focus upon Sainsbury's.

"This would ensure the cost of Fresh Link would always be kept to an absolute minimum whilst the Fresh Link team would have maximum opportunity to achieve profitable sales growth for its growers.

"Fresh Link Marketing manages the whole supply chain, from contracting growers though to packaging, delivery in-store and marketing."

Ms Philip was particularly interested in Fresh Link's operations as her family's business – SP Exports Pty Ltd – is an industry leader in the production and marketing of fresh tomatoes throughout Australasia.

Based at Childers, three hours north of Brisbane, SP Exports packs more than 1.7 million cases of fresh market tomatoes a year.

Other companies Ms Philip visited included major European retailers Tesco, Marks and Spencers and ASDA in the United Kingdom, and several integrated marketing companies in the United States.

Part of Ms Philip's research has included speaking to Australian suppliers and retailers to identify where Australia fits into the international marketing mix.

"I think Australia is about 10 years behind in international retailing in terms of the sophistication of marketing and supply systems," she said.

"In Australia, retailers control the supply chain and marketing, but overseas they are increasingly using specialists with expert knowledge of each produce category to deal with these issues."

Ms Philip says this means Australian producers are also behind in terms of the correct supply mix to meet marketing requirements.

"We're providing fresh produce for a largely domestic market, and I think there's a lot more we could do to get closer to consumers.

"We don’t really understand current drivers of why people buy, the different types of produce they buy and at what price point they will stop buying.

"In Europe, for instance, there are so many different countries and cultures that affect purchasing behaviour, so there is a lot more emphasis on market research to cater for those differences.

"They are very in tune with consumer needs, not just with the requirements of retailers.

"Australian producers are already very efficient, because of the challenges we face in a number of other aspects of our business and environmental conditions. I think we are well set up to respond quickly to changes in the market and consumer demand."

Source: FarmOnline 28.04.08