Fresh Times – Edition 2, 2020
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Editor’s Note: The new normal
Promotion activities across the fresh produce sector are continuing despite the ever-changing pandemic situation across countries. This Fresh Times edition illustrates the resilience and adaptability of the sector, outlining how many companies have been adapting their campaigns to be able to continue to reach consumers despite varying restrictions across the months. Simultaneously, the importance of a healthy and sustainable diet still prevails, with both new and existing campaigns striving to improve diets in all age groups, especially during the UN International Year of Fruits and Vegetables 2021. Look out for the next edition of the Fresh Times in June.
Italy: EU Art of Taste
This year is the third year of The European Art of Taste, a EU-funded project to enhance the knowledge of Italian fruit and vegetables in China, Japan and Taiwan. In Asia Italian fruit and vegetable are popular thanks to their excellent taste, high quality and tradition. This year the project will continue to focus on its digital activities to cater for the COVID-19 pandemic restrictions, before restarting its in-store events and fairs as part of the normal programme. In 2020, the project reached over 12 billion people through its digital communication activities. This involved over 1000 press offices and participation at digital fairs.
Netherlands: Taste lessons
Taste Lessons is a teaching program about taste and food for primary schoolchildren developed by the Dutch Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality. Taste Lessons is offered via the EU School Scheme, where 3,000 participating primary schools offer fruit and vegetables to all pupils every year for 20 weeks, three times a week. Taste Lessons are part of the School Program curriculum educational activities. The aim of Taste Lessons is to provide information about taste and food to students to empower them with more knowledge about healthy nutrition, regardless of the school’s own nutrition policy.
Ireland: Fyffes Fit Squad
Fyffes is continuing its successful Fit Squad this year. Since its launch three years ago over 20,000 children have taken part in live Fit Squad sessions to learn about adopting a healthy and active lifestyle including healthy recipes. This year over a 12-week period until the summer holidays, Fit Squad is releasing 20-minute videos twice per week featuring Irish world boxing champion Kellie Harrington and track and field Olympian David Gillick. These ‘easy-to-follow’ videos will feature workout routines, warm-up exercises and cool-down stretches along with their favourite healthy-eating recipes. The videos are available to view on the Fyffes Fit Squad website.
France: Name an apple tree
Pink Lady is bringing a new meaning to apple orchards this Northern Hemisphere season. In conjunction with Aldi in the UK, Pink Lady is offering a promotion for customers to win the opportunity to adopt one of its apple trees in France and be in the running to win a trip to its orchards. 500 shoppers will have a Pink Lady tree named after them in France, with the idea being to create a moment of escapism by giving every winner a little patch of sunshine in a Pink Lady orchard. The contest is running on the Pink Lady website with on-pack instructions.
Belgium: Sustainable basket
The objective of WWF’s #Eat4Change project is to tackle the climate crisis and facilitate the transition to more sustainable and equitable food production and agriculture. In doing so, WWF is helping to support young European citizens in transforming their eating habits and making food production more sustainable. As part of the project WWF-Belgium commissioned a study on how our consumption can be adapted to limit global warming to 1.5˚C without giving up the pleasure of eating or having to resort to drastic changes. Importantly, the flexitarian diet proposed suggests to eat more fruits and vegetables to adapt our diet.
Germany: Kiwi spotlight
The EU-funded project Made in Nature’s next instalment of activities occurred in April in Tegut stores across Germany. Managed by CSO, the project supplied Tegut stores with dedicated islands and information materials about Italian green kiwifruit, supplied by specialist organic supplier Brio, as part of a dedicated week-long promotion campaign. The initiative initially ran in March and received positive consumer feedback, showcasing the high quality Italian organic kiwifruit. The aim of the project is to raise awareness of organic fresh produce’s nutritional and cultural values. Made in Nature’s promotional activities will continue into the year targeting consumers in Italy, France and Germany.
Spain: Online strawberries
With most countries still under COVID-19 restrictions many companies have diversified their business models. Fresón de Palos the renown strawberry brand, for example, now has its own online shop. Consumers all over Spain can now shop and buy their fresh strawberries and blueberries through the online shop and have them delivered direct to their homes. Importantly, the online sop now allows customers to buy their fruit on the same day that it is picked, with products delivered in a 24-hour period from harvest. More products are set to be added to the online store, which also features recipe ideas.
Italy: Marlene is 25
This year Marlene is celebrating its 25th anniversary, which will be marked by a multi-channel advertising campaign in Italy, Spain, Malta, Cyprus, Libya, Jordan, the Netherlands and Scandinavia. Marlene’s new image, the 2020 winning design for Marlene, will feature prominently in the campaign. Marlene apples will feature in a new version of the apple’s famous commercial ‘Marlene, daughter of the Alps’ in a special 25th anniversary edition. Marlene’s social media channels will also feature 25 exciting stories about South Tyrolean producers and Marlene apples. Other 2020 competition finalist designs will also decorate public transport in Milan as part of the campaign.
France: Educational garden
The Ekölo association and producers of the Swing.bio apple have joined forces to build an educational garden for children on vacation camps and for the youth from the medical-educational institute (IME). On the 18 April the educational garden was built including the planting of Swing.bio apple trees and honey-producing plants as well as the construction of insect hotels. The goal of the educational garden is to reconnect children with nature, especially through the seasonality of fruit and vegetables. On their side Ekölo will invite summer camp children and IME youth to carry out the project and tend the garden.
US: JAZZ spirit
JAZZ apples are joining up with the new DreamWorks Animation film, Spirit Untamed, this summer. Apples are core to the horse-themed story of Spirit Untamed, which hopefully will encourage children and families to eat more JAZZ apples and other healthy produce. Along with their retail partners, JAZZ will promote the film with custom package artwork depicting the film’s heroes to entice apple consumption. The campaign will also include public relations, social media and a digital ad campaign. In addition, the dedicated website will feature a store locator, Spirit Untamed themed children’s activities and a child-friend recipes inspired by the movie.
Global: World banana day
For the second year in a row consumers celebrated World Banana Day on 21 April. This year people all over the world celebrated one of the most versatile and well-loved fruits with bananas among the top fruits consumed universally across the world with taste and nutritional appreciation across demographics. The banana sector celebrated global banana day by reflecting on the contribution bananas have made to diets the world over. The day also offered opportunity to look at continued challenges for the banana industry, such as the spread of TR4, and how to improve the sector for a fairer banana.