Sunkist highlights start of California Star Ruby grapefruit season

In the US, Sunkist has announced the start of the California Star Ruby Grapefruit season.

To accompany the campaign, the citrus specialist is launching a national display contest that will run through July.

The initiative is geared towards retailers to help boost the grapefruit category by promoting its flavours and health benefits that enhance overall wellbeing.  

Sunkist noted that citrus was an important part of consumers’ shopping baskets right now, with Circana showing volume up 6 per cent mid-way through April.

The category is outpacing total produce (up 1 per cent) and total fruit (up 1 per cent) compared to the same time last year.

To further delve into the popularity of the segment, Sunkist launched a grapefruit-specific study seeking insight into shoppers’ overall perception of the variety and the determining factors to making a purchase at the store level.

“We have learned a lot about grapefruit shoppers over the years, and according to a new Sunkist-commissioned study, grapefruit buyers continue to be loyal to the variety, with 50 per cent making repeat purchases multiple times per month,” said Cassie Howard, senior director of category management and marketing at Sunkist Growers.

“When speaking with shoppers, we also know that pricing, promotions in-store, and a strengthened focus on health are the key takeaways to encourage more grapefruit purchases.”

The new study revealed most shoppers were purchasing grapefruit for its health benefits, followed by taste, and that breakfast and snacking were the most common usages for consumption.

“A recent webinar from Circana focusing on ’The Snack Journey’ showed almost half of consumers snack more than three times per day, with over 70 per cent of snacks being sourced from home,” explained Howard.

“We aim to be a shopper’s go-to resource for instilling healthy citrus-infused habits at home, and with snacks on the rise, our engaging social media campaigns and website content are great tools for shoppers to reference as they internally battle healthy eating versus indulgence at checkout.”