Following an excellent European campaign, Kissabel® is ready to return to the Southern Hemisphere, supported by progress in volume growth and numerous brand awareness initiatives. This marks a new chapter in the global development of the innovative range of coloured-flesh apples—spanning pink to deep red—as it continues to win over consumers looking for unique flavours and a ‘surprise’ factor.
“The European campaign delivered excellent results in terms of both quality and quantity, as well as generating ever-increasing consumer interest” comments Emmanuel de Lapparent, manager of the IFORED programme. “Building on these results, we are now moving into the Southern Hemisphere season, where the initial commercial phases are underway and trial volumes continue. Thanks to high-profile partners, Kissabel® continues its developmental journey, capturing the hearts of apple lovers with its distinctive taste and the surprising effect of its coloured flesh.”
Southern Hemisphere: new harvest and brand development activities underway
The development of Kissabel® now continues with the new Southern Hemisphere harvest, thanks to partners in Australia, Argentina, Chile, South Africa and New Zealand.
In Australia, where the venture is most advanced, Montague Farms expects a commercial window extending from March to August, focusing on red-skinned and red-fleshed varieties. Promotional activities include participation in consumer events with tastings, tie-ups with local venues and restaurants to create dedicated dishes, in-store sampling and harnessing creator output on social media. Marketing is still in its early stages, but the focus is on building brand awareness. “Our goal is to establish Kissabel® as the ultimate ‘foodie’ apple, the one consumers look for in their local supermarket” explains Michelle Hau, Marketing Manager at Montague Farms. We are focusing heavily on in-store tastings, partnerships with the catering world and social content that highlights the surprising red flesh.”
Kissabel® is also making progress in Latin America, through the work of partners Moño Azul in Argentina and Unifrutti in Chile.
For the Chilean partner, which is reporting volumes from commercial orchards this year, the objective is to continue consolidating the development of the most suitable varieties and progressively expand the acreage dedicated to Kissabel®. “In parallel, we are committed to marketing efforts to further raise brand awareness in our target markets, such as Brazil, which remains a priority” says Cristian Matte, Commercial Director at Unifrutti Chile. Chilean production focuses on red-fleshed and red-skinned varieties.
In South Africa, the Dutoit Group is leading a dynamic campaign to introduce Kissabel® to a wider audience, showcasing its distinctive red flesh and positioning it as a bold, innovative addition to the fruit category. Designed to convert curiosity into trial through digital and in-store touchpoints, the campaign reinforces Kissabel® as a true stand-out. As a key partner in the global IFORED programme, Dutoit is playing an important role in developing the variety locally. “We are moving forward with the test stage and are now able to apply commercial orchard practices to the concept orchards we are working on,” says Willie Kotze, Technical Manager at Dutoit. “We have seen encouraging results and are preparing for commercial orchard rollout from 2027, with strong potential for both the local and export markets.”
Trials are also currently underway in New Zealand with partner Yummy Fruit.
A record season in Europe
Volumes up by 25%, good price positioning, high quality and increasing consumer engagement: these are just some of the results achieved by Kissabel® apples during the 2025 season in Europe, which led to a strong overall performance. This was further bolstered by excellent pack out and intensive social media activity.
Among the European partners of the IFORED programme, Red Apple Germany notched up an outstanding season, with a record harvest and very high quality levels, supported by high-impact promotional and in-store initiatives. In the United Kingdom, Worldwide Fruit also reported higher volumes and excellent product quality, implemented a marketing strategy increasingly geared towards digital channels and working with creators, while trials continue to increase volumes and extend the marketing window. France also saw a good season for Mesfruits and Blue Whale, with rising volumes.
In Switzerland, Fenaco successfully marketed Kissabel® through its relationships with established partners and solutions in the gastronomy and processing industries. Results were particularly positive in Italy, where the NovaMela Consortium (Melinda, VIP, Rivoira, La Trentina, and VOG) recorded an excellent campaign in terms of quality and sales performance.
Overall, the European season was a milestone for both high quality and volumes, noted for a strong commercial performance and communication activities aimed at promoting the uniqueness of coloured-flesh apples
