Thanks to hot summers, demand for watermelons is growing steadily. With the yellow varieties from Rijk Zwaan’s seedless Tropical® range, retailers can add an alternative product to this category. “Consumers are enthusiastic about our yellow watermelon,” notes Specialist Marketing Heleen van Rijn-Wassenaar.

© Rijk Zwaan

Flavour
The Tropical range has yellow flesh and is positioned as an alternative to traditional red watermelons. “At Fruit Logistica in Berlin, we served visitors our yellow watermelons on a stick, just like an ice lolly. ‘Wow, this is delicious!’ was the most common reaction,” says Heleen. The range was awarded three stars by the International Taste & Quality Institute (ITQI) in Brussels.

Production
The two varieties in the Tropical range are described as offering uniform production. Both Tropical Sunshine and Tropical Honey are seedless.

Heleen explains the differences between the two varieties: “Tropical Sunshine has an average fruit weight of between 5 and 6 kilos while Tropical Honey weighs between 3 and 5 kilos, depending on the cultivation method. Additionally, the two varieties look different; Tropical Sunshine has a dark green ‘sugar baby’ rind, and Tropical Honey has a tiger rind. This enables retailers to choose a yellow watermelon that stands out from their standard red watermelons in terms of size and/or appearance, so that consumers can tell them apart easily in stores.”

© Rijk Zwaan

Retail availability
According to Rijk Zwaan, the yellow watermelons are available through retailers in North America, the United Kingdom, South Africa and Australia.

Support
Rijk Zwaan says it can connect retailers interested in the product with watermelon growers through its producer network. The company also offers marketing materials, including product photos, and promotes the product through its consumer platform, Veggies First.

© Rijk ZwaanFor more information:
Heleen van Rijn-Wassenaar
Rijk Zwaan
Email: [email protected]
www.rijkzwaan.com