Although growing only a small percentage of dates in the world, the Bard Valley region in the United States distributes dates globally. “It’s a testament to the quality produced in the region,” says David Baxter with Bard Valley Natural Delights. “We even export into other date growing regions like the Middle East.” The company’s brand, Natural Delights, is known around the world for its consistent quality and variety of offerings.
During Ramadan, consistent quality is more important than any other time of year. Muslims break every fast by eating three whole Medjool dates. “Every year, for Ramadan, we see a huge uptick in sales to Indonesia, Australia, and New Zealand in the months leading up to Ramadan,” shared Baxter. Europe is a smaller export market for us, but one with opportunities. “In many countries, people look and ask for our date brand during Ramadan. Sales to Indonesia, for instance, are mostly generated around Ramadan.”
While exports are an important part of Natural Delights’ business, about 75 percent of dates are sold in the domestic market, which includes the US and Canada. “Also domestically, we see a large increase in demand for dates leading up to Ramadan,” commented Baxter.
The company sells to the ethnic market and many mainstream retailers put out displays to promote the brand. Last year, the US date category saw a 30 percent sales increase during Ramadan whereas domestic sales for Natural Delights increased by 57 percent. “Globally, many more people are coming into the category for Ramadan, expanding the universe of who eats dates.”
Window boxes
Overall, Natural Delights hopes to continue its growth, selling more dates during Ramadan this year compared to last year. “We are putting more emphasis on global sales and supporting Ramadan with more products.” About 1.5 years ago, window boxes were introduced that are gaining more popularity. In fact, whole dates in window boxes are becoming popular for Ramadan as they are very well suited for gifting. People are looking for large pack sizes and whole dates in 2 lb, 5 lb, and 11 lb. window boxes are most popular. Click here for a Ramadan recipe guide.
Window box with whole Medjool dates.
Logistics are looking much better this year. “Last few years, port schedules were all over the place, but it looks like port bookings are more reliable this year. Everything is scheduled out a bit more which gives us time to get the product to the port on time. Domestically, we are also seeing logistics costs stabilize,” Baxter commented.
Sales increases like these will ask for a significant production increase. Will Bard Valley date growers be able to meet the increase in demand? It takes seven years for a tree to start producing, but production only becomes consistent after 14 years. “Date palms are like temperamental teenagers, but we are blessed with a variety of growers who can more than support our growth,” Baxter finished.
For more information:
David Baxter
Bard Valley Natural Delights
[email protected]
www.naturaldelights.com/ramadan