Faced with increasing pressure in the marketplace, in which competitors use primarily low-cost foreign apple juice concentrate, we recognized the need to differentiate the Tree Top brand from the crowd of low-priced juice producers. Our Marketing Team embarked on a comprehensive market research project, with the objective of re-branding Tree Top such that it better represented the company, what it has to offer, and clearly set us apart from the competition. The result was a new logo and the tagline—Real Fruit from Real People—which we believe better represents the broad range of Tree Top products, from apple juice to juice blends, and from original apple sauce to a variety of new flavors of apple sauce. This change also better represents the source of those products, the grower-owners of Tree Top and its employees. As the fiscal year ended, the transition to new labels had been made on nearly all of our consumer packaged goods products.

Over the past year, we’ve sharpened our focus on a number of growth opportunities. Juice blends is a growing market, as evidenced by the growing number of blends on grocery store shelves. Tree Top introduced several new blends last year.

Flavored, natural, and organic apple sauce also present a growth opportunity. We’ve recently introduced several new flavors into the market, along with a change in our sauce formula; Tree Top apple sauce is now sweetened with apple juice concentrate, which we believe is healthier and better tasting than other formulas.

Fresh sliced apples continue to be a growing market, as consumers continue to demand healthier, ready-to-eat snacks. And with our new fresh facility in Selah, we’re able to service this market much more efficiently.

Organic products are also in high demand from consumers these days. Unfortunately, the supply of organic apples has not yet caught up with the demand, so it's a balancing act for Tree Top to accommodate requests for organic products. But we do our best with the supply available as we continue to see this market grow.

Northwest Naturals continues to exceed expectations. As demand for specialty and clarified concentrates expands, Northwest Naturals is expanding its customer base and name recognition throughout the industry.

Tree Top’s other specialty ingredient products are enjoying an expanding customer base, as well. Our Ingredients team created a tool for food companies to use when developing new products, which allows them to ensure they have full single or multiple fruit servings in an item, based on specific portions of Tree Top’s various ingredient items. With the release of the new food pyramid last year, and consumers’ increased desire to ensure they're getting the recommended fruit servings in their food, the tool has been in great demand.