Canned fruit sales still showa decline year on year but attempts to stimulate sales by introducing more varieties on the shelves have shown that customers are interested in trying combination packs. Peaches are still the most popular, with Greek packers dominating the own label sector. A recent review of retailers' own brands showed that most of them had switched to Greece for supplies, and that, in the main, stricter attention to quality control had delivered better results. In the past, Greek packers were categorised as fuelling the discount sector with little or no concern about quality. This has changed. The leading UK supermarket quality control managers have upgraded their specifications so the products could be sold at more sensible levels. Spain has had raw materials cost issues to face as a large percentage of the fruit crops are sold through the fresh markets. There are also complaints that Greece has made better use of European Union funds by helping farmers to concentrate on fruit for canning. South Africa and Australia continue to enjoy a loyal following with the farmers taking business on peaches and Australia on pears. Italy dominates the fruit cocktail market in both retail and foodservice sizes. There remains a steady consumer demand for the five fruit pack, particularly in the north of the country where there is a strong following among the older' customers. Tesco's own label peaches from Greece were this week selling for just 9p. {{PROVISIONS }}

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