The Delightful Rise of Dried Dates

An ancient fruit finds new fans through creative packaging and products.

In a world where health-conscious consumers constantly seek nutritious and flavorful alternatives, the humble dried date has emerged as an unexpected star.

Once considered unfamiliar or niche, these chewy, naturally sweet treats are finally appreciated. In grocery stores across the country, dried dates are now a staple.

SURGING DEMAND

This surge in demand can be attributed to a confluence of factors. Dates are trending on social media, and when grocery shoppers head out, new packaging and displays grab their attention.

Austin Patry, co-owner of Realsy, a snack food maker based in Dallas, TX, responded to viral videos promoting a snack of Medjool dates filled with nut butters and chocolate. “It’s like a healthy Snickers that went viral on social media,” says Patry. “We saw millions of views on random videos, and we saw that everyone was making this product at home, including ourselves.”

Tasty as it is, a nut butter-filled date is usually refrigerated or frozen, and homemade ones can be messy. Realsy made its nut butter date snack packs, filled with peanut butter, almond butter, or cacao and peanut butter, shelf stable with no added sugars. One resealable pouch contains three whole, filled dates that are vegan, gluten-free, and made with organic ingredients.

Realsy also sells a single peanut butter-filled, individually wrapped date sold in a gravity-fed box holding 40. These types of displays are easily placed at checkouts for impromptu purchases.

MERCHANDISING DISPLAYS

Despite their trending popularity, finding dates can be a challenge for shoppers, says Bridgette Weber, trade marketing manager at Bard Valley Natural Delights headquartered in Yuma, AZ. “To address this, we recommend using our merchandising solutions, such as banana display racks designed to fit on banana tables,” she says.

Weber says its eye-catching shipper displays effectively highlight nutritional benefits, enhancing appeal. Natural Delights offers several merchandising options, including banana table racks, shippers, pallet displays and customized options.

Once considered a niche or unfamiliar ingredient, dates are surging in popularity as consumers seek healthy, nutrient-dense snacks with natural sweetness.

Natural Delights also partners with influencers and registered dietitians to produce content that retailers can use on their own social media platforms to share with their shoppers for inspiration and health information, she says.

For Ben Antongiovanni, president of Pure Palm Produce, based in Bakersfield, CA, it’s still tried-and-true to cross-merchandise dates with bananas to enhance the high potassium message. Antongiovanni says one retailer places a decorative chalkboard behind the dates, calling out the health benefits.

“We encourage retailers to build a display in the middle of the banana,” says Antongiovanni. “So, you give up a square foot of merchandising space in the banana display for dates and it ends up making the retailer more money.”

Pure Palm Produce packages its dates in a plastic container with a resealable film, offering the only resealable top-seal film container in the category, which it reduces plastic by 31%, he says. “It is easy to open and reseal, stacks in the refrigerator and is convenient for on the go.”

Realsy initially packaged its dates in boxes, but switched to pouches. It is possible that dates can be squished in pouches more so than in clamshells or boxes, but there are other advantages to pouches, including that they are lightweight, resealable, eye-catching, and easy to carry.

Realsy, who recently launched its products into Giant Eagle, is developing merchandising strategies for dates, including different shipper display options. “Giant Eagle has done an amazing job of putting our dates in great displays that look like hanging woven baskets,” says Patry.

He says they’ve also successfully placed dump bins filled with 200 individually wrapped dates. Those are popular when demand for dates increases, such as the holidays and around observances of Ramadan. Patry believes that individually wrapped dates will be popular as a healthy alternative to candy during the Halloween season.

INCREASING FAMILIARITY

Social media has promoted the message of dates being a healthy natural source of energy for athletes. Pregnant women have heard the message that eating dates in late pregnancy could ease their labor.

“There were so many consumers who had never tried a date before. Now, over the past five years, people have tried it and realized they’re sweet and they really enjoy the caramel flavor,” says Antongiovanni. “Once they realize they’re good, they find out that dates are nutrient dense with 16 vitamins and minerals and a lot of fiber and potassium.”

One obstacle to reaching a younger group of consumers is that they may associate dates with prunes. Patry says some young people recall their grandparents eating prunes and think they won’t like dates. He even spoke with a produce executive who admitted that he had never eaten a date.

It’s also possible that people have eaten dates and simply not realized it — many popular energy bar brands, including Clif and Lärabar, use dates as an ingredient in their products.

“Younger generations are actively seeking to incorporate dates into their everyday lives,” says Natural Delights’ Weber. “Ten years ago, we were focused on raising awareness among shoppers under the age of 40, and now that gap has narrowed significantly.”

As people seek healthy alternatives to processed food, dates are a natural choice because they add sweetness and nutrients to morning smoothies, Antongiovanni says.

Flavor combinations, such as strips of Medjools dusted with Tajin, introduced by Natural Delights, have been well-received by consumers, says Weber.

PREMIUM PRODUCT

Dates are a premium item that is costly to grow. Antongiovanni says his crew climbs their palm trees seven times a year to manage different aspects of the growing and harvesting. “It’s very labor-intensive,” he says. “There’s hardly anything automated in the fields, which makes dates a pricey item. But the nutritional benefits you get from dates justify the higher price consumers pay.”

And it helps that consumers are willing to pay more for a high-quality piece of fruit, he says.

That price could become more volatile due to recent weather-related impacts. The U.S. date industry was severely impacted by the storms that hit California late last summer and early fall.

“The industry probably lost half our crop because the storm happened during a very pivotal time during our harvest season,” says Kristy Kneiding, manager with the California Date Administrative Committee (CDAC), headquartered in Indio, CA.

Globally, Egypt is the largest producer of dates, but in the U.S., California’s Coachella Valley is the leading producer. According to the CDAC, more than 70 million pounds of dates are grown in this area.

Kneiding says the industry is looking forward to a good year, and is continuing its marketing outreach, including sponsoring food- and wine-related special events. Continuing the “healthy energy” message, CDAC provides dates to the tennis players at the BNP Paribas Open. They also supply dates to California restaurants to highlight on their menus.

Kneiding says over the years, dates have had a bad rap, but that’s starting to change. “It seems like each generation tends to lean a little healthier, and now there’s a big focus on gluten-free and on low glycemic index foods, which dates are,” she says. “More nutritionists and people are finding that the health benefits are just amazing, so that has definitely caused the increase in popularity and interest.”