Fresh Times – Edition 1, 2020
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Editor’s Note: Next generation eaters
The next generation of fruit and vegetables eaters is always a key target demographic for promotion campaigns. With many successful campaigns continuing into 2020, children and young adults are being encouraged to try different fruit and vegetables to expand their fresh produce palette. As shown in this Fresh Times edition, at the same time the start of the year is always an important time for promotion campaigns with Valentine’s Day themed initiatives becoming more popular and national product days gaining traction across Europe. Keep a look out for more promotion inspiration in the next edition of the Fresh Times in April.
EU: #400gChallenge in Brussels
This February the ‘Follow me to be healthy with Europe’ campaign was in Brussels at the POLITCO EU Studies and Career Fair. Young professionals took up the #400gChallenge and blended their own fruit smoothies with a bicycle and ate seasonal snack fruit to get a few extra portions of nutritious fruit into their diet. The stand at the fair raised awareness amongst participating students and young professionals to include at least 400g of fruit and vegetables per day in their diet. The part EU-funded three year digital campaign by Freshfel Europe and Aprifel is now in its second year.
Italy: Women promote cancer prevention
The Italian national association ‘Le donne dell’ortofrutta’ is promoting female cancer prevention by providing 60,000 limited edition fruit and vegetable boxes designed by the illustrator Elisa Cocchi. Containing 1.1kg of produce grown by members of the Association, each box will be sold in outlets for 4.99 euros from which 50 cents will be donated to the Umberto Veronesi Foundation for scientific research on female cancer prevention. Specifically the donated funds will study a pilot project for one dedicated researcher. This promotion will also endeavour to raise awareness of cancer prevention through fruit and vegetable consumption.
UK: Veg Power returns
The award winning campaign Veg Power has returned to encourage children to eat more vegetables. 10 million pounds have been dedicated to a media alliance between ITV, Channel 4 and Sky to promote the Veg Power campaign. On the 15 February the new Eat them to Defeat Them TV advertisement aired to 80% of UK households with children, equivalent of 3 million pounds of broadcast airtime, marking the biggest ever single campaign to promote vegetables in the UK. The 2020 campaign will run over seven weeks focusing on different vegetables each week. Over 1.500 schools will also take part with vegetable-related canteen recipes.
Germany: Germany My Garden
This year is the tenth year of the ‘Germany – My Garden’ initiative by the BVEO (German Federal Association of Fruit and Vegetable Producers’ Organisations). The campaign, which draws attention to the quality and variety of local fruit and vegetable products, was featured this year at International Green Week. The initiative was part of the ‘Zum blinden Früchtchen’ (Blind restaurant), where visitors could recognize fruit and vegetables by taste, smell and touch only during a blind tasting. This campaign initiative successfully highlighted the freshness and flavours of German local production. At the campaign stand visitors could also spin the wheel of fortune and win Germany – My Garden cookbooks among other items.
UK: Rabbit salad
The unwashed fresh cut salad brand ‘fresh & naked’ has partnered with Sony to promote fresh cut salad mixes with the successful children’s film Peter Rabbit 2. Peter Rabbit and his friends are of course a number one fan of fresh fruit and vegetables straight from the garden. For fresh & naked Peter Rabbit was the perfect spokesperson for their products. Customers of the fresh & naked salads will have the opportunity to win Peter Rabbit 2 competition prizes. This contest is set to run on pack and across social media for 12 weeks and will encompass the cinematic release of the film at Easter.
Finland: Picky eaters
It’s common knowledge that your early childhood is critical for adopting a healthy diet rich in fruit and vegetables later in life. Finnish researchers at the University of Eastern Finland have discovered that a positive example from mothers is important to encourage children to eat more fruit and vegetables. However, a positive example from fathers was most important when it came to eating vegetables. The study concluded therefore that both parents are instrumental in teaching good eating habits to children. Dinner at home was also shown to be the most important meal at home to tech children to eat more vegetables.
Spain: LOVE strawberries
In celebration of Valentines Day this month the Huelva-based cooperative Grufesa, which produces strawberries, raspberries and blueberries, launched a new love themed strawberry container to inspire healthy Valentines Day celebrations. The new celebratory packaging featured a cut out heart and the world LOVE on a reusable 400g format. The cut out packaging features not only serve to promote strawberries as being part of this day, but also to give visibility to the product. The new packaging design was marketed in Spain as well as in other countries on the European market to encourage strawberry consumption across Europe.
Italy: Made in Nature
One of CSO’s latest EU funded projects ‘Made in Nature: Discover the principles of European organic farming is promoting the processes and culture of Italian, German and French organic fruit and vegetable production. The three year project (2019-2022) will incorporate B2B meetings, presence at trade fairs, press events and consumer-oriented initiatives in Italy, Germany and France to uncover the world of organic fruit and vegetables. The project was kick-offed at Fruit Logistica in 2019 and over the project lifetime information about the quality and culture of organic products will be disseminated to consumers, journalists as well as sector professionals.
Spain: Strawberry hearts
Fresh, ripe strawberries taste as sweet as love – especially on Valentine’s Day! To celebrate Valentines Day and in conjunction with the Spanish strawberry season SanLucar brought out a new package for its Spanish strawberries. Creatively labelled ‘SweetHearts’, the new packaging design featured a strawberry punnet in the shape of a heart filled with seasonal handpicked strawberries. With the messaging ‘SanLucar strawberries are a matter of the heart’, the new packaging design went on sale just in time for Valentine’s Day for consumers to buy as a special treat for their loved one. The punnets were available in POS in Germany and Austria.
Germany: Apple day
On German Apple Day, the 11 January 2020, FlixBus teamed up with the initiative ‘Germany – My Garden’ to celebrate the national day for apples. At Munich, Hamburg, Berlin and Hanover central bus stations, FlixBus travellers were given an apple and an information flyer about the initiative in celebration of the day. A total of 20,000 apples were given out with the aim to raise the awareness of apple consumption and in particular German apple production. Anyone who also posted an imaginative photo of their apple and themselves with the hashtag #TdDA2020 went into the running to win one of 10 FlixBus vouchers.
US: Super Fruit Bowl
In January the Chilean Fresh Fruit Association of North America launched their new promotional campaign ‘Super Fruit Bowl’ in conjunction with the US Super Bowl to raise awareness of the wide range of fresh fruits available from Chile during the winter months. At this time of year Chilean summer fruits (blueberries, cherries, and table grapes) are in season and while the campaign will run until April, it has included a contest to win tickets to the Big Game in Miami, Florida. Sales and distribution teams will also be provided with weekly harvest and export reports to provide customers with the best products.