ISHS Acta Horticulturae 436: I International Persimmon Symposium
PERCEPTIONS OF PRODUCT QUALITY AS A BASIS FOR NEW HORTICULTURAL INDUSTRY DEVELOPMENT : LESSONS FROM THE AUSTRALIAN NON-ASTRINGENT PERSIMMON INDUSTRY. |
| Author: | R.J. Collins |
| Keywords: | Diospyros kaki, industry development, persimmon industry, product quality |
| Abstract:
In theory, consumers' perceptions of fruit quality should drive production, marketing and research and development processes. This is being ‘marketing oriented’. In practice, in new horticultural industries, a great deal of effort is often expended in improving production parameters such as yield, size and reliability without knowing much about the demand for the product. Some new industries have failed because consumers' perceptions of the product were not understood. This overemphasis on production-based information has even more serious consequences in newly emerging horticultural industries which are export oriented, because here, production and consumption are often separated both geographically and culturally. This paper presents a case study of the role of consumer perceptions in the development of the Australian non-astringent persimmon industry. The industry began from a zero base in the late 1970's and will be worth AUD 15–20 million by the year 2000. Its development has been driven by the potential to export to Asian markets, particularly Singapore. Focus groups with Singapore consumers identified colour and sweetness (including non-astringency) as key attributes of Australian non-astringent persimmons. Size and freedom from blemish were also important. This information was used in two ways. First we developed a quality management program focused on meeting consumer needs. Then, to embed these quality management concepts in the perceptions of consumers, we used focus group information to name and develop our brand, “Sweet Gold”. This approach to developing the non-astringent persimmon industry underpins the activities of the Australian Persimmon Export Company, an industry-wide group of key growers exporting 60 percent of Australia's crop. This company's vision is to achieve sustainable profitability through better consumer understanding. | |
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