New Zealand grower Golden Bay Fruit is exceeding sales expectations with its Miranda apples in Tesco UK, replacing plastic film with a premium cardboard tray and boldly designed Ravenwood linerless fruit lid.
Golden Bay Fruit has been growing the Miranda apple variety for seven years, previously marketing the fruit exclusively to Asian markets. Now supplied exclusively to Tesco in the UK, Miranda is making an impression with its distinctive green colour, exceptionally sweet flavour and crisp texture.
Looking to reduce its reliance on plastic film, Golden Bay Fruit was encouraged to explore linerless labelling by its packing partner, Mansfields, which was already packing the company’s Sassy apples using the technology. Following year-on-year sales growth with Sassy, Golden Bay Fruit decided to adopt the same approach for Miranda.
Since its UK shelf launch this summer, Miranda sales have already exceeded expectations, with 10,000 packs produced each week for Tesco.
Premium presentation with less plastic film
The Miranda pack combines a cardboard tray with a bold, bright linerless label, creating a distinctive, premium look designed to stand out on shelf. Moving away from plastic film towards linerless labelling also supports Golden Bay Fruit’s ambition to reduce its reliance on plastic packaging.
The labels are produced by ProPrint Group, a Ravenwood-approved UK linerless printer, and applied using a Ravenwood Nobac 5000L linerless applicator. Designed specifically for fresh produce applications, the machine applies a linerless fruit lid featuring die-cut holes in the label face, allowing the fruit to remain visible while delivering an impactful branded presentation.
Graham Bonus, Sales Director at ProPrint Group said: “Working with strong brands to deliver sustainable, plastic-free options for fresh produce is becoming a go-to solution. By combining commercially viable production speeds with growing consumer demand for more sustainable packaging, this format offers an attractive solution for brands and retailers alike.”
Building on early success
Golden Bay Fruit’s experience with Sassy provided a strong foundation for introducing linerless packaging to Miranda. With sales already ahead of expectations, the company is currently operating one Ravenwood Nobac 5000L while monitoring supply and demand before deciding whether additional production capacity will be needed.
Patrick Meikle, Chief Commercial Officer at Golden Bay Fruit said: “Moving away from plastic film to linerless labelling was an important step for us as we wanted to reduce our reliance on plastic packaging. The visual impact of the cardboard tray combined with a bold, bright label also gives the pack a premium look and feel, which can make a real difference on shelf.
“Miranda has a point of difference, too. People often expect green apples to be sour, but Miranda is incredibly sweet and crunchy. That combination of a distinctive variety and standout packaging is helping the product exceed our expectations in the UK.”
Golden Bay Fruit grows Miranda, Sassy and Dazzle on New Zealand’s South Island, with Miranda now extending the success of its linerless packaging strategy into the UK market along with Dazzle and Sassy varieties.
For further information, contact Ravenwood’s marketing team on +44(0)1284 749144.
