Watermelon Category Growth Accelerates with 7 Million New Households and $3.2 Billion in Sales
TL;DR
Retailers can gain market advantage by implementing NWPB's omnichannel strategies to capture the $782 million in new watermelon purchases from 7 million new households.
The NWPB research outlines how channel dynamics and evolving shopper demographics drive watermelon category growth through tailored marketing and merchandising strategies across retail formats.
Increased watermelon consumption promotes better nutrition and hydration in millions more households, contributing to healthier communities through accessible, nutrient-rich food options.
Watermelon reached 75% of US households with 5.3 billion pounds consumed last year, offering excellent Vitamin C content while being 92% water for natural hydration.
The National Watermelon Promotion Board has released comprehensive research showing substantial growth in the watermelon category, with 7 million new purchasing households added since 2021. Watermelon now reaches 75% of all U.S. households, with these new buyers generating $782 million in incremental purchases that have pushed total category purchases to $3.2 billion, representing a 33% increase over the period.
The research findings provide marketers with actionable insights into watermelon trends, highlighting how channel dynamics, purchase behaviors, and evolving shopper demographics are reshaping the category. Mark Arney, Executive Director for the NWPB, stated that industry partners now have a clear roadmap for growing watermelon sales across retail channels. By tailoring strategies to the unique opportunities present in each channel and among evolving shopper demographics, retailers can strengthen loyalty, broaden penetration, and drive incremental trips and dollars.
Key findings from the study emphasize the importance of refining channel strategies. While grocery remains the leading retail channel for watermelon, Mass, Club, and Online channels are seeing new shoppers and growing at faster rates. The industry can strengthen omni-channel engagement by adapting marketing and merchandising strategies across these formats. The Club channel has become particularly important for watermelon, with merchandising tactics that boost volume per trip representing a key opportunity for growth in this segment.
Demographic shifts are also driving watermelon category growth, with strong performance among smaller, higher-income, younger and more diverse households. Engagement among older households is also rising, presenting marketers and retailers with opportunities to balance efforts between loyal Heavy shoppers and these emerging segments. To help industry stakeholders capitalize on these opportunities, the NWPB has released a companion Marketing Guide designed to help translate channel and demographic trends into actionable steps that support category growth.
Arney added that as shopper habits continue to evolve across retail formats, understanding where and how consumers buy watermelon helps the industry make smarter decisions about marketing, merchandising, and promotions. This study builds on NWPB's initiative to invest in research that helps the industry grow the watermelon category, including the Watermelon Attitudes and Usage and Watermelon Shopper Segmentation studies, providing a comprehensive understanding of the evolving watermelon shopper landscape. The complete research study and companion Marketing Guide are available at https://www.watermelon.org/audiences/industry/research/retail-research/.
Curated from 24-7 Press Release