In Robert-Pierre Cecchetti’s orchard, apples hang as far as the eye can see. While he began harvesting Granny Smith and other varieties long before this sunny fall day, his Pink Lady will remain on the trees well into winter. “Their ideal ripeness is reached at the end of October and the beginning of November,” says farmer Cecchetti, who grows apples and pears on a total of almost 120 hectares in Mudaison in southern France. From the end of September onwards, the leaves around the Pink Lady would first be removed. This is supposed to expose them to the blazing sun and stress them out.
It is not obvious from the color that the apples here are Pink Lady. They are not characteristically pink like in the supermarket, but rather red-yellow like Braeburn. But this is still completely normal at the beginning of autumn, explains Cecchetti on a tour of his orchard. Only when temperatures drop below ten degrees at night do Pink Lady begin to turn pink. While the sun promotes the production of sugar in the apples during the day, the cool nights stimulate the formation of the coloring substances. Without the large temperature amplitude, the apples remained pale.
The very long ripening period over at least seven frost-free months and the late harvest with increased weather risk, but also the high climatic conditions make Pink Lady a challenging apple variety. In Europe they are therefore only grown to any significant extent in France, Spain and Italy. Multiple picking rounds are also common practice, as the apples in an orchard turn pink at different speeds.
More effort than with other varieties
“Pink Lady requires more effort than other varieties,” admits Cédric Modica-Amore, marketing director of the European Pink Lady Association. According to him, 700 working hours have to be estimated per hectare. That’s around 20 percent more than with other varieties, and that’s largely in October and November weather, which, as we all know, can be uncomfortable.
To make matters worse, there is a considerable risk of loss: as a club variety, the cultivation of Pink Lady is strictly regulated. Farmers must apply for a license from the association. Not everyone receives this. For example, if the climate risks in the growing area are too great, the association will refuse them.
Anyone who receives the license and wants to grow Pink Lady must adhere to the specifications for production, marketing and acceptance. The association’s own quality controls check compliance. Farmers like Cecchetti are not allowed to sell apples that are not pink in color but are also not the specified size as Pink Lady. On average, around 30 percent per tree falls through the cracks. If it rains a lot, it can quickly reach 50 percent, not to mention losses caused by birds, insects and fungal infestation.
Criticism of the club model
The club model is repeatedly criticized. It is criticized that it makes farmers dependent on the association and imposes high license costs and major risks on them. The Pink Lady representatives counter: The variety offers farmers income security thanks to the clear specifications and purchase guarantee at a fixed price, while there is no guarantee whatsoever with “free” varieties such as Braeburn and Elster. The fact that Pink Lady is at the upper end of the price scale also makes its cultivation economically interesting. Farmers also benefited from the association’s active marketing activities.
Cecchetti was convinced early on by the model and the special features of Pink Lady. In 1995, he started growing the variety on the farm where his parents once grew wine. Today it makes up almost 30 percent of his apple inventory. Cecchetti was one of the pioneers; after all, Pink Lady only came to Europe around 1995, after the Australian breeder John Cripps crossed the Lady Williams and Golden Delicious varieties in the early 1970s. Cripps Pink, now marketed as Pink Lady, should taste mildly sweet and sour, remain crisp even after a long storage period and be easy to transport. Today there are almost 3,200 farmers in Europe who grow Pink Lady on 6,600 hectares, of which just over half are in France.
Increasingly popular in Germany
The club is pleased that Pink Lady has been increasingly well received in recent years, not least among German consumers. Apart from Pink Lady and Granny Smith, only a few varieties would otherwise have gained new buyers in an overall shrinking market, the association representatives emphasize, citing figures from market researchers at Kantar. 12.8 million German households chose Pink Lady, only Elstar, Braeburn and Gala were even more popular. According to the market researchers at Europanel, the market share of pink apples in Germany was recently 9.3 percent by volume and 12.5 percent by value.
Precisely because apple consumption is falling in Europe – contrary to all appeals for a healthy diet with regional foods – other varieties are not the competition, says Modica-Amore. These are more snack and chocolate manufacturers. Pink Lady’s marketing director urges cooperation. “The real challenge today is to increase overall fruit consumption,” he explains.
Pink Lady’s marketing department pays particular attention to young people. They want to make eating apples a “cool,” enjoyable experience, says Modica-Amore. It is undeniable that this is currently generally associated with other (southern) fruits, if at all with fruit. According to the Pink Lady Association, the average apple consumer is between 50 and 60 years old. Modica-Amore is convinced that the image could be changed and that the entire industry would benefit from it. With apples in particular, market research showed that consumers developed an interest in other varieties once they had picked up one variety.
