CMI volume reflects state’s trends
CMI volume reflects state’s trends
Bob Mast, president of Columbia Marketing International, said he expects the company will supply approximately 11 percent of cherry volume coming from the Pacific Northwest this season. The company is headquartered in Wenatchee, WA.
Statewide trends show that 2013 cherry volume will return to more typical levels following the 2012 record-setting crop. He said crop reductions in the early districts are expected to be between 30 to 40 percent.
Return bloom, he went on to say, was lower. “We probably cropped some trees too heavily last year,” he said.
Mast expects CMI’s cherry season will be reflective of statewide trends in 2013. CMI’s harvest was expected to ramp up around June 7-8. He expected the early peak to occur prior to the Fourth of July. “As we go into July, we will have a significant crop,” he said. Product movement will show a significant peak around July 14.
CMI installed a new production line to accommodate its later volume.
Cherries are marketed under the “CMI” and “Nature’s Candy” labels. The company will introduce several new retail options in 2013. “We’re putting a lot of faith in our new cherry pouch bag,” he stated.
The bag is intended to showcase CMI cherries, and bag graphics don’t impede the consumer’s view of contents. According to Mast, the high-quality, high-end pouch bag reinforces the premium qualities of cherries.
He expects the new bags will promote additional sales and help retailers reduce shrink. “There’s a lot of ease with these bags,” he went on to say, adding that he expects retailers will fill produce bins and displays in single layers. “It will present the cherry much better.”
The pouch bag will be used for dark sweet varieties and Rainiers. “We’re one of the few shippers with one year under our belts [with these bags],” Mast stated.
A new two-box cherry shipper will also be available for cherries, apples and pears this season. The self-contained displays, complete with fruit, are designed for quick set up in the produce department. “We call it the 4D cherry shipper,” Mast said of the display’s sensory qualities. The shipper is designed as an opened window. “It looks like you’re looking into an orchard,” he added.
