De Lier, The Netherlands
May 20, 2021
During the World of Fresh Ideas event, a range of experts will be sharing their perspectives on the international fresh produce business. Jan Doldersum, Manager Chain & Retail at Rijk Zwaan, is one of them. On Wednesday 26 May 2021, he will explain how the vegetable breeding company works together with its customers to respond to changing markets. This two-day event, which will take place online, is being organised by Fruitnet. Registration is free.
World of Fresh Ideas
During the World of Fresh Ideas online event, the vegetable breeding company will be highlighting a number of different varieties and concepts that can help customers to address the current changes in the market. “Mechanical harvesting has been a major trend in the USA for some time, but the COVID-19 pandemic is now accelerating it worldwide, including in the UK and Spain for example. With our Salanova® Teenleaf range, we offer growers and food processors lettuce varieties that are perfect for mechanical harvesting,” says Jan Doldersum, Manager Chain & Retail at Rijk Zwaan.
Inspiring consumers
He goes on to explain that the trends of ‘fresh and healthy’ and ‘home cooking’ have also received a considerable boost over the past year. A concept like Crunchy Lettuce is closely aligned with this development, because it inspires consumers to eat more healthy vegetables. In his presentation from the Rijk Zwaan studio, Doldersum will demonstrate to the event attendees just how crunchy this innovative lettuce really is.
Another way that Rijk Zwaan inspires consumers is through Love my Salad, the company’s online platform that has gone from strength to strength over the past decade. “Interacting with consumers through social media is an essential part of our strategy nowadays. Our visitor numbers have increased by 300% over the past year. During my presentation, I will be providing some nice examples of how we use our Love my Salad platform in campaigns with our chain partners,” continues Doldersum.
Professional studios
Besides that, he will reveal how Rijk Zwaan adapted its own communication approach in the coronavirus era in terms of both format and content. “We analysed the impact of the pandemic and shared our findings with our chain partners so that we could respond to the changing markets together,” he adds. “And in terms of format, we transitioned from offline to online. We set up studios at a number of our sites so that we could organise professional broadcasts of our events such as the Open Field Days. That also opened up new opportunities, such as the possibility of engaging with our customers’ customers in one-to-one sessions. In the future, we envisage a hybrid format of live and online meetings.”
Jan Doldersum, Manager Chain & Retail at Rijk Zwaan, will be speaking during World of Fresh Ideas on Wednesday 26 May at 10:00 h. Click here to see the full programme and the day’s other speakers. Register now – attendance is free!
Topics
Species
