Investigating alternative banana distribution channels (BA09034)

This is a final research report from Hort Innovation’s historical archives. Please note that as these reports may date back as far as the 1990s, the content and recommendations within them may be superseded by more recent research.

What was it all about?

This project was aimed at finding, assessing and proving the viability of alternative distribution channels for fresh bananas into the Australian domestic market. The overriding goal was to find commercially robust ways to get bananas to consumers with a priority focus on distribution channels that serviced snacking occasions.

There were recent international precedents for the development of banana sales through non-grocery distribution channels. This provided some useful learning that guided the selection of local channels and the nature of the product and logistics offer required for trials. These international market developments also led to the identification of challenges driven by specific local market issues that needed to be addressed.

Based on the size and configuration of retail networks and the sales they generated for snacking products, it was determined that there was potential for the development of banana sales through Convenience store (C-store) chains and independent cafes and sandwich/milk bars.

Supply chain partners were found and trials were conducted with C-store chains and food service distributors servicing cafes/lunch bars. Parallel with these developments, leading banana wholesalers forged an alliance with 7-Eleven Australia and this retailer commenced ranging bananas.

The project outputs included the definition of potential alternative channels and challenges that needed to be resolved to make them commercially viable.