PACKAGING AS A CONDITION FOR GROWTH IN SALES OF FRUITS AND VEGETABLES

Аннотация

Vegetables and fruits are one of the main categories in the FMCG segment. According to analysts, vegetables account for 26.3% of all purchases, fruits - 23.4%. Such figures do not depend on the season, and have recently been growing annually. This is due to the fact that there is now a trend for a healthy lifestyle. As demand grows, retailers are forced to pay more attention to this product category. They have to work both with expanding the range and with merchandising. At the same time, the category is very conservative, so you won’t be able to experiment much - this will scare off potential buyers. But you shouldn’t think that new techniques are not used at all to promote vegetables and fruits. Now, work with packaging, presentation of organic products, and sales of ready-to-eat sets has noticeably increased. These solutions not only bring new interest, but, as statistics show, become a driver of sales growth in the FMCG segment Keywords: Vegetables, fruits, packaging, sales. Packaging is beneficial to everyone. Why is packaging so important? Because customers have become more discerning. They want to see a fresh, attractive product. The retailer should try to maintain the appearance for as long as possible. Packaging makes the product more noticeable, creating a reputation for the manufacturer brand. Even the fact that packaging makes vegetables and fruits more expensive does not affect demand. The manufacturer receives additional profit, and customers get a quick search for the desired product, clear information about the place of production and, most importantly, additional safety of fresh vegetables or Выпуск журнала №-29 Часть–1_Июль –2025 68 MODERN EDUCATION AND DEVELOPMENT fruits. The presence of packaging makes you think that the supplier uses more advanced technologies during processing, which means less harm to health. It is worth taking into account the desire of customers to save time. For example, you can pick potatoes in the store yourself. At the same time, sorting, cleaning from dirt and weighing will take 5-10 minutes. At the same time, another visitor will take a neat net with washed potatoes, which will cost a little more. Reducing the time for cleaning will allow you to cook potatoes much faster. Packaging of fresh fruits and vegetables is the prerogative of hypermarkets. After all, by the time the product reaches the shelves, it may, if not spoil, then lose its attractive appearance. In addition, information about the product can be placed on the packaging. This attracts the buyer and inspires confidence. The demand for these products is high, so they do not stagnate on the shelves. Packaging plays a major role not only for the consumer, but also for the manufacturer/supplier. It helps to brand the product and thus distinguish it from others. The psychology of modern people is such that the more expensive fruits and vegetables are, the more trust they inspire. If the product is of proper quality, no matter how much it costs, buyers will return to it again and again. And recognizable packaging will allow you to immediately distinguish it from others and not waste time searching. Another reason why consumers choose packaged fruits and vegetables is convenience. Let's take an example. In one tray there is a beautiful onion in a clean orange net, already weighed, packaged, packed. In another, the same onion, but thrown together haphazardly, unwashed, which still needs to be sorted, put in a bag and weighed. What will the buyer choose? Correct! Branding of fruits and vegetables. A large number of suppliers have become more active in the country. Local producers and Asian countries have replaced European products. With the expansion of the market, many began to feel competition. Therefore, distinguishing through packaging no longer seems like a strange idea. Выпуск журнала №-29 Часть–1_Июль –2025 69 MODERN EDUCATION AND DEVELOPMENT You can present the same product in different ways. But adding beautiful packaging and truthful information immediately sets the tone of premium, which every buyer wants to feel at least sometimes. Thus, the better the packaging is thought out, the more people will be interested in the product. More demand - more profit. Branding helps the consumer to distinguish a certain brand from others. In turn, for the producer and the seller, this is additional income. Because if the fruits are sold in bulk, some may be worse, some may be better. But if they are packaged, it means that the brand will monitor their quality. After all, if they are bad, the buyer will choose another one next time. Thus, the manufacturer accustoms the consumer to a certain choice, and therefore can be sure of a stable demand for its product. For the seller, the benefit is similar. If a brand is in regular demand, it is possible to forecast sales and know approximately which batch of goods from whom and in what time frame to order. Focus on organics. Everyone understands that a healthy lifesty