The second part of the French apple campaign is already well underway. Sandrine Gaborieau, marketing and communication manager of ANPP, gives an update on the current state of the market. “We started the year 2023 with relatively low stocks, in France and in Europe. On January 1st, the European stocks were 6% lower than in previous years. As far as France is concerned, we observe a 7% drop compared to the previous campaign and 9% compared to the average of the last three years.”
Stable sales in France and decline in exports
The stocks have been relatively low, which should make for a more “serene” second part of the campaign. In terms of sales, although the supply is limited, the demand is not very dynamic. “Sales in France are relatively stable, but we observe a decline in export sales (-12% as of early February).” This decrease is most likely due to the fact that this year’s apples do not keep as well as they did in previous years, as a result of the extreme weather conditions of the summer.
Average selling price is lower than last year
Consumption is relative, but we nonetheless observed a 3% increase in volumes sold during the first part of the campaign, compared to last year during the same period (August to late December), but a 6.5% decrease compared to the average of the last 3 years. “This year, the average retail price is 2.01 euros [2.15 USD], all distribution channels and varieties combined, which is down by 7% compared to last year, despite the increase in costs. As denounced on January 14th, prices on the shelves are very high while producers do not get a fair valuation of their apples. It is fair to say, however, that some retailers have played along, with a slight increase in the price paid to producers since our action in mid-January.”
Increase in sales of apple bags
The lower average price can be explained by the large gap between the price of apples that are discounted or in bags and the price on the shelf. Apples in bags are highly popular among consumers under financial strain. “Pre-packed apples represented 36% of the sales in 2018-2019. In 2019-2020, they went up to 39% and they have now reached 43%. We observe a higher turnover generated from apples in bags than from the more expensive and high-end apples, which shows that consumers are increasingly focused on prices.”
For more information:
Sandrine Gaborieau
Association Nationale Pommes Poires 
Phone: +33 (0) 5 62 72 44 49
[email protected]
[email protected]
www.lapomme.org