Increasing Value through Branding. An investigation for the Australian banana industry

The Australian banana industry has seen year on year increases in banana production (ABGC, 2017). However, the increase in production has not been met with an increase in the value of the product. In 2016, while the banana industry experienced a 7.5% increase in banana production, there was a 7.7% decline in the value of the product produced (Paul, 2017). This is not a sustainable situation for the industry.

With declining profit margins, there is a need for banana growers to be provided a higher return for their product. However, considering the basic economic principles of supply and demand, an increase in supply does not necessarily mean there will be a proportional increase in consumer demand. Therefore, producers need to identify ways to differentiate their product on the market place and command a higher price.

Product branding is a method to differentiate products on the retail shelf. Only once consumers can identify a product are they are able to appreciate what distinguishes this product from competing products. There are some important considerations around branding such as what feature is to be highlighted, what message is to be conveyed to the consumer and what packaging will support the product to allow the brand to be visible. The brand, the brand message and product packaging must also align to provide a consistent message.