Pears will be the main focus of the Fruitness, Enjoy it! campaign organised by Italy’s CSO Fruit & Vegetable services centre and co-financed by the European Union and the Italian agriculture ministry to promote Italian fruits and vegetables Germany, Denmark, Poland, Sweden and the UK.
A series of promotional events are scheduled to take place in various supermarkets in these countries, all centered on pears.
“Pears possess numerous virtues from a health point of view, and by carrying out dedicated promotion activities in the main supermarkets in these five countries the Fruitness campaign aims to increase consumer awareness of the benefits of regular pear consumption for all members of the family,” the campaign’s organisers said in a press release.
The many benefits of pears include their richness in natural sugars, low calorie content (roughly 100 calories in an average-sized 160g pear), and high fibre content, which assists intestinal regularity and helps keep cholesterol levels down.
“An average-size pear also contains roughly 210mg of potassium, an important element in sustaining muscle contraction (and therefore exercise and sport), nerve transmission and protein metabolisation. Last but not least, pears also contain plentiful vitamin C (roughly 7 mg per pear), excellent for maintaining a youthful skin and boosting the immune system,” the statement said.
According to figures published at Prognosfruit, the annual conference devoted to estimates of international apple and pear production, Italy emerged again as Europe's top pear producer, with a production forecast of 707,000 tonnes, slightly down (- 3 per cent) on 2013. Spain has the next highest volume, with a forecast of 371,000 tonnes for 2014, a fall of 8 per cent on last year. In third place is the Netherlands which, unlike the majority of European countries, actually shows an increase in production, with 336,000 tonnes forecast for 2014, a 3 per cent increase compared to 2013 and 17 per cent up on the last three years.
The “Fruitness, Enjoy it!” project was first launched in 2006, and as well as pears focuses on peaches, nectarines, kiwifruit, apricots and plums. Since its launch, 35m contacts have been made with the www.fruitness.eu/ website, notching up over 9.2m individual users per month. This figure is complemented by a further 25m contacts through traditional Press Office and Public Relations activities, and 10m through banner campaigns in sector websites.
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