The juice blend is marketed as combining the tartness of cranberry with the sweetness of the apple.
The Cranapple blend helped turn the cranberry into a year-round product.
Gelsthorpe's focus was to expand the company's product base, recognizing that there was no way to convince people to "eat cranberry sauce every time you have chicken", no matter how much money was spent on advertising.
The company was struggling with a seasonal product and had been hit by consumer fears after a 1959 government warning that chemicals sprayed on the cranberries could cause cancer.
[3] Working together with food editor Sylvia Schur of Creative Food Services, he oversaw the development of the Cran-Apple blend that would balance the tart and sweet tastes of the respective juices.