Baloian Farms expands product mix with value-priced pepper pack
Baloian Farms expands product mix with value-priced pepper pack
Baloian Farms, a fourth-generation, vertically integrated family farm based in Fresno, CA, with year-round operations specializing in peppers and mixed vegetables grown in California and Mexico, will introduce a new value-priced consumer pepper pack called "Oddbells." The launch is scheduled for late July.
Citing consumer trends that include a rise in Bell pepper consumption, more home cooking with a greater use of fresh ingredients and a consumer emphasis on cost savings, Baloian sought to identify a market 
opportunity for its unusually shaped non-blocky peppers.
Jeremy Lane, Sales Manager of Baloian Farms remarked,
"As a company, we are always looking for new ways to add value to not only our bottom-line, but the bottom-line of our customers - including the consumers who ultimately take our product home," Jeremy Lane, sales manager at Baloian Farms, said in a press release. "Oddbells was a great place to use ingenuity more than innovation and add value without adding cost."
The Oddbells pepper pack is a one-pound cello pack that includes three or four unique shaped peppers. The aptly named product has a fun character-driven style and bright colored packaging meant to gain consumer's attention on shelf. Additionally, on-pack messaging that notes the cost saving proposition and goal of avoiding waste helps consumers understand the value of unique shaped peppers.
The unique, misshapen peppers are not a new phenomenon. Caused by seasonal changes affecting pollination or crowding of peppers on plant, up to 30 percent of all peppers picked could be misshapen. In the past, much of this product has been sold to processors and foodservice providers for considerably lower prices than traditional blocky shaped peppers.
Now, the new outlet of these peppers allows retailers to offer two different SKUs to accommodate two very different consumers while achieving reasonable margins on both items, according to the company. Oddbells are available in 12 one-pound packs for green and red peppers, and will be available for purchase in late July.
"We believe Oddbells has a clear place in the market and will serve two very different customers and ultimately increase total sales for the category," Mr. Lane added in the press release. "We look forward to sharing this product with our customers and rolling out many more products that bring added value to the category."
