The National Watermelon Promotion Board has released comprehensive research revealing significant growth in watermelon consumption, with the category now reaching 75% of all U.S. households and generating $3.2 billion in total purchases. Since 2021, watermelon has added 7 million new purchasing households, contributing $782 million in incremental purchases and representing a 33% increase in category value over the four-year period.
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.
The research identifies several key opportunities for industry growth. 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, with merchandising tactics that boost volume per trip representing a key opportunity.
Demographic shifts are also driving watermelon growth, with strong performance among smaller, higher-income, younger and more diverse households. Engagement among older households is also rising, creating opportunities for marketers and retailers to balance efforts between loyal Heavy shoppers and these emerging segments. The complete research study and companion Marketing Guide are available at https://www.watermelon.org/audiences/industry/research/retail-research/.
This study builds on NWPB's initiative to invest in research that helps the industry grow the watermelon category, including previous Watermelon Attitudes and Usage and Watermelon Shopper Segmentation studies. 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.
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. With watermelon consumption per capita in the United States reaching roughly 15.6 pounds in 2024 and total consumption at nearly 5.3 billion pounds, the category represents significant economic importance to the agricultural sector and retail industry.
