Monthly Shipping and Marketing Report | October 2017

Council Update

Council Meeting: The next Council meeting will take place in February 2018 in San Diego, CA. If you would like to attend, please let us know so we can make sure you are accommodated.

Nominations: Background forms of eligible nominees have been sent to the Secretary of Agriculture for possible appointment. At this time we are still waiting on appointments.

Shipment Summary

To see current charts, click here.

The Month Ahead

Digital

In the spirit of football season, we’re launching a social media campaign, calling on consumers to join Team #Blenditarian. Anyone who takes the Blenditarian pledge in the month of October will be entered to win a $100 gift card to Whole Foods and a Ninja Blender. Spread the word by sharing the sweepstakes posts on your social media channels.

Retail/RD

Barons Market, an upscale retailer in the San Diego area specializing in natural and specialty food, will be sampling The Blend in seven of their stores. Each store will sample The Blend for eight hours. Along with the demo, they will be passing out other literature about The Blend and sharing the event on their Instagram and Facebook pages. Shippers are encouraged to attend the store demos. Exact dates in October are still being determined. Please check the website for exact dates and locations.
Albertsons’ dietitians will provide two-hour blend food demonstrations featuring a blend burger developed by the Albertsons Company Wellness Services Corporate Dietitian. Fifteen demonstrations will take place during October in the following banners: Alberstons, Safeway, Jewel-Osco and Acme. The Council will receive sales comparisons and photos of the events. Shippers are encouraged to attend the store demos.

UPCOMING EVENTS

School Foodservice

The Council will be exhibiting at the Florida School Nutrition Association State Conference, October 5 – 7. Ocean Center 101 N. Atlantic Ave. Daytona Beach, FL 32118
The Council is planning State Focus Visits to California (Oct. 9- 12) and Georgia (Oct 30 – Nov. 3)
The Council will be exhibiting at the California School Nutrition Association State Conference, November 9 – 11, Sacramento CA

Highlights from September

Digital

We launched the ‘ShroomCam.com – a live video feed of mushroom production – to educate consumers on mushrooms’ sustainability and their unique growing process. View the time-lapse video that shows the growing process in fast motion here, and share it on your social media channels.

Retail/RD

Martin’s Potato Rolls and The Council featured a Mushroom Blend Meatball Slider Recipe on a selected popular blogger site to promote The Blend and tailgating during the fall. Please click here to see the blog post and recipe. Martin Potato Rolls also featured the recipe and other mushroom information on their site for National Mushroom Month. Click here to see the blog post. This is a perfect opportunity for Shippers to amplify the promotion and promote it on their website and share on their social media sites.
Baesler’s Market, a higher end grocery retailer in Indiana promoted Turkey Blend patties in their meat department along with a variety of blend recipes during their test launch. Shippers of mushrooms to Baesler’s are encouraged to visit the store and amplify distribution by talking to the produce and deli managers.

School Foodservice

The Council has put out a survey to foodservice directors regarding the a new USDA Pack Size

Digital Metrics

MushroomInfo.com

Blenditarian.com

Tracker Highlights from 08/13/2017*

Spotlight – Notable and Newsworthy: Click here for the full report.

In the 4-weeks –Mushroom category dollars up seven percent
In the 52-weeks – Mushroom category surpasses $1.2 billion

* IRI/FreshLook Data provided by Fusion Marketing