I came across some Pinkglow Pineapples at Freshfields Farm in Orlando not too long ago for an incredible price – $6.99 each – so I thought I’d give them another try.
Del Monte started cultivating the genetically engineered pineapple in 2005. They were granted approval by the FDA in 2016, and had their commercial launch in 2020 – not exactly an auspicious time for a new product on the market.
At the time, they were marketed for $50 each – an outrageous price for most people I know. I was able to get my hands on a sample of the slightly more reasonable smaller size Petite Pinkglow in November 2020, and my boys and I had mixed feelings. Compared to a Del Monte Honeyglow, the Pinkglow is a very lighter shade of flavor, with nuance we didn’t really appreciate. (Ok, it was bland)
Over the past few years I’ve seen a lot of retailers offer them as a delicacy, something with a lot of “Wow!” in the produce department, to some success.
With the price point coming down to a more realistic $10-20 each, a few retailers have told me they liked the product and found some success with it. Earl McGrath, director of produce for Freshfields Farm told me they sell well, especially with the deep discount. He said the key was really the premium packaging, and banded isn’t enough. It needs the high-impact box to really sell it, McGrath said.
Without it, people can’t tell the difference between Pinkglow and a standard gold pineapple, especially with it being sold crownless – something many American consumers can’t stomach, despite the eco-friendly advantages of crownless pineapples. Crownless pineapples weigh less and can be transported more cost-effectively and efficiently…but people just won’t buy them. In Pinkglow’s case, the pineapples are sold crownless so people can’t propagate their own.
But how do they taste?
My son Uli and I tried the Pinkglow I purchased at Freshfields, and one sent to us for a spring break adventure by TropicalFruitBox.com. They were fantastic. It was such a change from our first try. We got almost a bubblegum, cotton-candy like flavor that we just don’t remember from the first time we tried them back in 2020.
Would I buy it again? Sure, if the price was right. I’m a bargain shopper, after all, but I’ve been known to splurge on something fun when the occasion calls for it.
And about the GMO in the room. I mentioned in my TikTok video that they were produced using genetic engineering, and a few people raised a stink about it, but fewer than I expected. TikTok is a great opportunity for the produce community to get out there and talk about what genetic engineering is, and isn’t, when it comes to fresh produce.
