consumer packs continue to evolve in the apple category.don armock, president, riveridge produce marketing, sparta, mich., said consumers continue to purchase various styles of consumer packs.&ldquosales of tote bags are up,&rdquo he said.ken korson, sales and marketing for north bay produce inc., traverse city, mich., agrees.&ldquoit seems every year we do more tote bags. they are really becoming more of a mainstream package we didn&rsquot offer in the past,&rdquo he said.korson believes the totes provide a more personal feeling to consumers.&ldquoit gives the apples a farm stand look because it feels like it offers more of a connection to the farmer,&rdquo he said.the increase in tote bags is likely translated to fewer traditional bags, korson said.&ldquothey still want bags, but i&rsquom sure it&rsquos eating away a little of that business,&rdquo he said.steve lutz, vice president of marketing for wenatchee, wash.based columbia marketing international, has seen increased interest in the company&rsquos 2pound pouch bag. they also offer a 4pound pouch bag for club stores.&ldquothe pouch bag has really redefined the packaged apple,&rdquo he said.&ldquobags used to be only cheaper, lower grade value fruit, but now more upscale apples are adding value back into the category through the power of packaging in those pouch bags,&rdquo lutz said.rainier fruit co., selah, wash., also started offering more pouch bags.&ldquowe have joined the pouch bag revolution this season,&rdquo said andy tudor, director of business development.armock said that in a year with a record crop, he might have expected bulk fruit to have a stronger share of the market, but that hasn&rsquot necessarily been the case.&ldquoconsumers continue to want the convenience and cleanliness of bags and other consumer packs,&rdquo he said.john schaefer, president, jack brown produce, sparta, mich., has seen retailers wanting customized packaging options.&ldquoi think a lot of our customer base is looking for something unique to them,&rdquo he said, mentioning the company packs everything to order to offer that flexibility.however, tudor is hopeful the major shifts in packaging may be mostly over for awhile. he is looking forward to settling into the newly emerged favorite packs.&ldquothe &lsquonew packaging&rsquo trend has hopefully hit a lull. we have inundated consumers, not to mention our production lines,&rdquo he said.sage fruit co., yakima, wash., is finding use of licensed characters can be effective when it comes to packaging design, even though the majority of apple sales in the u.s. &mdash about 75 &mdash are still bulk packed, according to chuck sinks, president of sales and marketing. see more at httpwww.thepacker.comfruitvegetablenewsmarketingprofilesconsumerpacksdrivec…
