Perle Union has recently launched its own brand, “Hauts-de-France Producers”, under which the group of cooperatives will sell 35,000 tons of regional fruit and vegetables. In order to mark the launch, various events were organized this month in several Auchan supermarkets: an ark with seasonal fruit and vegetables and producer posters. Olivier Hirel, director of the vegetable department, talks about the total success of the operation for both organic and conventional products. “The posters reassure the consumers and the ark draws their attention. We are creating a friendly space dedicated to local products. Everyone wins.”
Olivier adds that several producers already want to join the brand and some retailers have been asking if the brand can be opened to other producers. “Besides the brand, we are also creating a real regional movement around the promotion of local fruit and vegetables.”
Olivier decided to first market the brand at one retailer only. “We managed several locations simultaneously, which requires quite an organization. Following the success of our first regional operation (“Saveurs en Or”) with fliers at Auchan stores, we can extend our scope of action to other partner retailers who wish to promote local products. In the coming months, we will need to reinforce our presence and visibility in local stores. To do this, we will have to seduce, surprise and win the loyalty of consumers by being as close as possible to their expectations.” Perle Union will continue to organize seasonal promotional actions with its partner retailers.
At the moment, the flagship products are the heavy winter vegetables. “Due to the drought in the summer, the supply of leeks and turnips is limited, but the demand is quite high.”
The current inflationary context, with the rising gas and electricity prices, has a strong impact on the productions of the Hauts de France region. “We have a lot of vegetables in cold storage, such as carrots, red kuri squash and onions, which represent a significant consumption of energy. For some vegetables, we have to pass on an extra cost of 0.20-0.25 €/kg [0.20-0.25 USD/kg], which is enormous. But if we don’t, or if retailers don’t accept this increase, we will probably lose a lot of producers in the Hauts-de-France and other French regions, because they will not manage to find prices equivalent to those of previous campaigns. Needless to say that it will also be very complicated for a young producer to get started in this context full of uncertainty and turmoil...”
For more information:
Olivier Hirel
Perle du Nord
Phone: +33 3 61 33 40 07
o.hirel@perledunord.com
www.perledunord.com