What are supermarkets asking of suppliers? Less shrinkage and more shelf life

Under the title 'Evolution of commercial structures and new green trends in the European Union' CITROSOL has successfully held a webinar that has aroused great interest among the professional audience. On the one hand, the well-known consultant Paco Borrás described the 'New trends in distribution and consumption in Europe', and on the other hand, Benito Orihuel from Citrosol presented a new green chemistry solution with high efficiency in the control of citrus rot. Paco Borrás is currently a senior consultant after a long period until 2017 as commercial director of Anecoop. His presentation dealt with highly topical issues related to the trends in distribution chains in Europe. "What are supermarkets asking of suppliers", Borrás asked, going on to mention shelf life and the reduction of wastage, closely linked to post-harvest treatments, and completing the list with demands in terms of traceability, food safety, compliance with labour legislation, social audits, sustainability, planning, loyalty ("when there is difficulty in obtaining produce, the supermarket should obtain it", he explained) and flavour ("it will be increasingly important"). Borrás insisted that during day-to-day operations, the chains "value freshness and shelf life to avoid losses on the shelf, speed, less wastage, innovation, organic and zero waste, pre-prepared and pre-cooked convenience food, and quality regulations and audits". The speaker went on to describe the penetration of the chains in the different European markets from the Mediterranean arc, Central Europe, the British Isles, Scandinavia and Eastern Europe. In many of these countries, a Germanisation of distribution through German discounters can be detected, but not in all cases. Another trend is in corporate concentration: in 2011, the top 20 chains in Europe accounted for 43.6% of the total turnover, in 2017 the share had already risen to 49.4%. In the top 10 retail chains according to European share are Lidl, Carrefour, Aldi, Tesco, Edeka, Rewe, Auchan, Leclerc, Metro and Sainsbury. Rounding out the top 20 are Intermarché, Ahold, Walmart, Mercadona, X5 Retail, Coop, Casino, Magnit, Migros, Système. Borrás acknowledged that it is not possible to predict what the future will be like in the coming years, although he did stress that there are clear trends among supermarkets, especially in Germany, to reduce the maximum number of active ingredients. And also well-known restrictions such as the one third of MRLs. Attention to VEGETAL coatingsBenito Orihuel pointed out that: "If the fruit is not well coated, weight loss increases, skin blemishes, cold damage and ageing appear. Coating is used to avoid this". In this sense, Citrosol has two new coatings such as PlantSeal® and PlantSeal® Shine Free that achieve high efficiency in controlling weight loss, which translates into an increase in shelf life and a reduction in skin deterioration, whether due to ageing, skin fatigue or cold. Traditionally, no coatings were used on citrus fruit and apples, as there were no certified coatings for organic production. As a result, these organic fruits age more quickly than conventional fruits. Citrosol's R&D&I department has worked hard on the development of these two plant-based coatings Plantseal® and Plantseal® shine-free, and in many aspects and performances they have turned out to be Citrosol's best coatings. Fruit ageing is to a large extent a consequence of water loss, manifested as a loss of fruit weight. With this second skin, made up of these coatings, the commercial life of the fruit is reduced and thus extended. This is one of its great advantages, Plantseal® is perhaps the coating with the best control of weight loss on the market today. And Plantseal shine-free® exerts more control than most standard waxes. In addition, they are very effective in controlling the Chilling Injury staining that occurs in the refrigerated transport of citrus between continents, and in prolonged cold storage. In addition, both waxes are fully compatible with any fungicide active material, both conventional and green chemistry. In the case of citrus, rotting is the main cause of postharvest losses both on arrival at depots and on supermarket shelves. Consequently, this compatibility is of great relevance. In short, alternative 'residue-free' treatments are effective if there is proper disinfection in the washing machine and good waxing; not forgetting proper harvesting to minimise injuries during harvesting and optimal cleaning and disinfection in the warehouse. "These are fundamental elements for reaching distant destinations using only green chemistry", concludes Benito Orihuel. Images1. Benito Orihuel on the left, accompanied by Paco Borrás.2. Raúl Perelló, Sales Manager International