ABSTRACT
Any analysis of consumer trends in apple sales needs to take account of the fact that different participants in the global apple market have different goals and different time frames for making decisions. For example, consumers are concerned primarily about the immediate satisfaction for themselves and their families. Retailers want current information so they can serve their apple customers more profitably. Marketers want rapid feedback so that they can service their retailer customers more effectively. On the other hand, breeders, nurseries, producers and packers must make investments whose success will be affected by consumer trends one or two decades into the future. Since the share of fresh apples entering international trade continues to rise, decision makers also need to be concerned about consumer trends in both the domestic market and numerous foreign markets. Analysing consumer trends in apple sales across many countries and years into the future is a very challenging intellectual exercise.
