Sweet Palermo® colour mixes are gaining shelf space

Huge fans

Marcel is passionate about flavour, which is why he initially chose to grow red Sweet Palermo at his three-hectare farm called Red Energy in the Dutch village of Poeldijk many years ago. “My customers in the Netherlands, Germany, the UK, Denmark and beyond always give me positive feedback, and that’s my biggest reward. Sweet, versatility and healthy are what make consumers happy. My own children, aged 9, 11 and 13, are huge Sweet Palermo fans; they eat it every day. And a local chef regularly drops by to pick up a bag containing various colours.”

Growing interest in Sweet Palermo colour mixes

He deliberately chose to grow all four Sweet Palermo colours: “It makes my business unique, and I enjoy the extra challenge of the different colours. Notably, the chocolate variety Chocolony RZ, with a Brix value of 8.5-9.5, is not inferior to the red, yellow and orange Sweet Palermo, and its aromatic flavour is very surprising.” Although the red Sweet Palermo still accounts for 89% of his growing space, the other colours give Marcel opportunities to diversify. “I offer all kinds of colour mixes, tailored to each customer’s wants and needs. I notice that, to give consumers more choice, they are increasingly interested in colour mixes in addition to the red variant. As a result, pointed peppers are steadily gaining more shelf space, just as the red Sweet Palermo has done over the past few years.”

Marcel van Kester - Owner Red Energy C.V.

Fantastic combination of taste and sweetness

BAMA, a leading Norwegian retail service provider, confirms the growing interest in Sweet Palermo. “It is a strong and robust variety with a fantastic combination of taste and sweetness which is rather unique,” explains Elisabeth Rittfeldt, Product Manager. “The colour is a beautiful deep red and it has a shiny skin. In fact, this helps to promote and sell the product on the shelves.The size is also perfect for a two-pack or three-pack sales unit for Norwegian households. Consumers use Sweet Palermo mostly in salads, but also in warm dishes like tacos, as stuffed peppers or on the barbecue. Because of these good experiences, our goal is to introduce other colours besides red, such as yellow and chocolate, on the market for 2024.”

New varieties and effective promotions help growers to move freshly forward

According to Marcel, Rijk Zwaan’s investments in both developing and promoting varieties contribute to these market opportunities for Sweet Palermo. “I trial new varieties every year. This year I started growing the new red Sweet Palermo Ramsey RZ, which is resistant against tomato spotted wilt virus (TSWV). That’s a significant improvement. After all, a healthy crop forms the basis for quality and taste,” comments the grower. He also appreciates how well the brand is promoted, and he is keen to help out. “As an individual grower, I could never develop a website so professional as www.sweetpalermo.com. But I’m happy to provide Rijk Zwaan with peppers for trade fairs, presentations and photo shoots. Our close partnership creates new opportunities for Sweet Palermo which really help my business to move ‘freshly forward’.”

‘Freshly Forward, from Foundation to Future’ – this is the theme Rijk Zwaan has chosen for tackling today’s challenges, together with its partners. We will be presenting robust and resilient solutions as well as inspiring innovations at Fruit Logistica 2024 (Hall 1.2, D-13). You are also welcome to visit the Rijk Zwaan Retail Centre in Berlin – the company’s very own experience and research facility

Join Rijk Zwaan in moving Freshly Forward!