Tomato Specialists Inc.’s Steele: ‘The new sweet onion is pink’
Tomato Specialists Inc.’s Steele: ‘The new sweet onion is pink’
North American consumers will have a chance to color up their plates in 2015 with pink onions. Joanne Steele, president of Tomato Specialists Inc., said this is the first full season the company will make the onion available to its customers.
“Pink onions are a breed,” she told The Produce News. “We started sourcing [from England] last year.”
Tomato Specialists is headquartered in Lehigh Acres, FL, and is celebrating its 27th anniversary this year.
“The pink onion is a known culinary onion,” she stated. “It’s used for refined eating at high-end restaurants.” Pink onions have long been established in Europe. Steele expects their introduction in North America will create marketplace buzz, as consumer purchases of sweet onions continue to grow.
“The new sweet is pink,” she commented. “It’s a very mild onion.”
Tomato Specialists is finalizing its trademark process, and Steele said she is excited about prospects for the rollout. “We’ve been launching them slowly,” she went on to say. During the inaugural year, the pink onions will be sold to customers in selected key markets in North America.
Because of the onion’s color, Steele said customers are encouraged to think about the potential for all cause marketing to promote product. The pink onion has a natural tie-in to cancer awareness. But Steele said retailers are encouraged to think more broadly about the potential to create special areas to promote such causes. She illustrated by saying that Walmart has created special bins to move items associated with cause marketing. “This helps companies get involved with their employees,” she observed.
Strategies are not restricted to the retail environment. “Restaurants can do a ‘cause plate,’” she added.
Tomato Specialists is currently designing its company website, which will feature pink onions prominently once the site goes live.
