Wholesaler Van Gelder presented special tomato 'Bikkel-bekers' during the AGF Detail. They are aimed at children with a playful and cool appearance. The Bikkels consist of three child friendly characters called Pling, Woesj and Forz who are crazy about vegetables. Account manager Michael van Lierop explains how they came up with this product. "I saw a sign with the images of the Bikkels at a growers association. It looked so fun that I started to talk to them about it and that is how it all started. The association developed this great concept together with a packaging supplier." "We will be supplying the bikkels in just a few weeks, but our buyers are really enthusiastic. We are already seeing good growth in the demand coming from the supermarkets and retailers. The cups are filled with tomatoes at the moment, but in the future they could definitely be filled with cucumbers or carrots. We received a lot of positive reactions during the convention. We are currently in talks with the growers association to develop a promotional display for the cups. One of our strengths is to keep coming up with new ideas so we can continue to surprise our customers. It doesn't always work, but this time it was a success!" Van Gelder was focussed on the catering sector in the past. "We have recently been getting more requests from the speciality stores and various local supermarkets chains. We have a wide selection in our assortment which is beneficial to a speciality business. The target groups compliment each other. The advantage for the speciality stores is that they don't have to take all of the goods but can also purchase just the products they are wanting. We have a diverse and wide assortment and retailers are becoming more and more specialised, so in that respect they have more than enough choice." For more information: Michael van Lierop, Van Gelder Groente & Fruit, Handelsweg 70, 2988 DB Ridderkerk, Tel: +31 (0) 180 425077, Fax: +31 (0) 180 431813, www.vangeldernederland.nl , www.wijzijnbikkels.nl, Source: Fresh Plaza
