Monthly Shipping Report | June 2013

COUNCIL UPDATE

• Ballots for positions on the Council beginning January 1, 2014 were mailed on June 3, 2013 to those eligible to vote. If you do not receive a ballot and believe you should have, please contact Cheryl at the Council office. Completed ballots are due no later than July 1.
  • USDA and the Mushroom Council encourage all eligible producers, including women, minorities and individuals with disabilities to participate in the nominations and seek nomination to serve on the Council.

• The next Council meeting is being held on Saturday, June 22, 2013 in conjunction with the NAMC in Vancouver. If you would like to attend this meeting please contact Cheryl so we can make sure you are accommodated.

• To view the 2012 Annual report click here: https://www.mushroomcouncil.org/about-the-mushroom-council

• Upcoming Webinars are listed below:
  • Thursday, July 11; 2:00-3:00pm EST – Digital/Social Media“How do I get started with social media?” and “how do I use social media to grow my business?” are two very common questions asked by today’s professionals. In this Social Media Webinar we will examine the online social ecosystem and show you how to leverage and integrate social media sites like Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest and LinkedIn into your everyday marketing to grow your personal and professional brand.Follow this link to register: https://www3.gotomeeting.com/register/906163022
  • Thursday, August 1 – Retail/Foodservice
  • Thursday, September 26 – Retail/Foodservice

 

SHIPMENT SUMMARY

To see current charts through March 2013 click here.

 

MARKETING SUMMARY

Industry Tools

• A new visual detailing the mushroom growing process is now available to download and use as a marketing tool. This one-sheeter gives a behind-the-scenes overview of how mushrooms begin the journey from farm to plate. Use this visual in print and digital forms to help share the mushroom growing story with your customers, retailers and foodservice operators.

Mushroom Council Marketing Summary – May 2013

• May consumer media highlights feature mushrooms in articles about meat replacement, weight management, vitamin D and versatility. Click on the links below to view the full stories.
  • 50 Ways to Spice Up Your Grilling, O, The Oprah Magazine, June 2013
  • Quick Dinners with Sizzle: Grilled Portobellos with Chopped Salad, EatingWell, June 2013
  • June, Food Network Magazine, June 2013
  • Hail the White Veggies, Miami Herald, 5/30
  • 7 Ways to Avoid the Worst Summer Calorie Bombs, Health, 5/30
  • 56 Healthier Burger Recipes for Summer, Greatist, 5/27
  • 7 ways to sneak more vegetables into your diet, Fox News, 5/25
  • Your Guide To Grilling Fruits and Vegetables, Boston Globe, 5/23
  • Grilling Vegetables To Bring Out Their Best, Prevent Cancer AICR, 5/21
  • Mushroom Tacos with Salsa Verde, Restaurant Business Recipedia, 5/20
  • Are you a super-taster? Here’s how to remodel your food choice, The Oregonian, 5/19
  • Don’t Judge a Food by Its Color: Put Some White In Your Bite, US News and World Report Eat + Run, 5/16
  • Mushrooms pack a nutritious punch, NBC News, 5/9
  • 6 May Superfoods to Eat This Month, Shape, 5/8
  • 5 Meatless Burgers Worth Trying, Huffington Post, 5/7
  • 5 Top Foods for Quick Weight Loss, Forbes, 5/2
  • May Superfoods, Huffington Post, 5/1

• The Council is partnering with Top Chef All-Stars Winner Richard Blais to spotlight Blendability and mushroom versatility throughout the summer. Richard is creating a Blendability burger to be featured at his popular Atlanta restaurant, Flip Burger Boutique, throughout July and the Council is conducting national and local media outreach to promote the partnership and recipe as well as engaging in influencer and stakeholder outreach.

• As part of the Council’s partnerships with Academy subgroups, the Council co-sponsored a webinar with the National Organization of Blacks in Dietetics and Nutrition (NOBIDAN) Academy Member Interest Group (MIG) to educate over 70 registered dietitians about Vitamin D – with an emphasis on this nutrients’ importance for African American audiences. Following successful collaboration for Experimental Biology in April, Dr. Michael Holick partnered with the Council in goodwill to share his highly visual presentation about vitamin D and discussed his latest mushroom/vitamin D research. Follow-up encouraged attendees to find more information and resources on mushroominfo.com.

• The Mushrooms and Health Summit is scheduled for September 9-10 in Washington, D.C.
  • Twenty speakers have been confirmed for the two-day summit, including USDA Under Secretary for Research, Education & Economics Catherine Woteki who accepted the invitation to serve as the keynote speaker for the welcome session.
  • Invitations were distributed to nutrition scientists, nutrition leaders/communicators and targeted media, as well as those at government agencies, universities, Human Nutrition Research Centers, and nutrition organizations. The Council is working with directors and many agriculture and nutrition universities and research centers to share the Summit information on event calendars and through newsletters or list-servs.

• Search Engine Marketing drove more than half of total visits to MushroomInfo.com during May 2013 – 24,531 total visits – and served as the largest source driving return visitors to the site, with 3,858 visits from this audience.
  • Top performing keywords included “morel mushrooms,” “mushroom recipe,” “stuffed mushrooms” and “vitamin D deficiency.”

• The Mushroom Channel blog published nine posts in May, including new recipes by blogger contributors.
  • The most visited were: Crab Stuffed Mushrooms (received 1,818 pageviews), Marinated Grilled Mushrooms and Balsamic Beef & Mushroom Kebabs. Click here to read all posts.
  • Two of the Mushroom Channel’s blog contributors (Dine and Dish and Add a Pinch) were among the top 10 sources driving visitors to the blog, with a combined 1,234 visits.

• From May 31- June 2, the Council sponsored Eat, Write, Retreat – an intimate, learning intensive food blogging conference in Philadelphia, PA. During the conference, Tony and Joe D’Amico, from To-Jo Mushrooms hosted a one hour session on behalf of the Council about the mushroom growing process, showcasing live growing bed displays.

• The Council’s presence generated 147 tweets from 54 unique participants with a reach of 68,648 people and 29 Instagram photos with the designated #EWR13 and #mushrooms hashtags.
• The team also announced the summer “Swap It or Top It” recipe contest through an “idea card” passed out at conference registration to educate attendees about Blendability and encourage them to think about how they can use mushrooms to makeover meals this summer.
• To date, 11 post-conference blog posts reference the mushroom session, which the Council is highlighting on an Eat, Write, Retreat Pinterest board.

• Facebook fans increased six percent from April, generating more than 3.6 million impressions. The platform drove more than 4,600 total visits to Mushroominfo.com and drove 1,791 visits from return visitors in May (the second largest source of return visitors following Google).

• Twitter fans increased two percent since April, resulting in more than 2 million impressions.
  • The Council participated in two Twitter chats: one hosted by @Fruits_Veggies with the hashtag #TheWilltoGrill to discuss summer grilling; and another hosted by Flatout Bread with the hashtag #FlatoutGood where the Channel shared several Flatout Bread recipes featured on Mushroominfo.com.

• Pinterest fans increased 10 percent since April, resulting in more 1.7 million impressions. The platform also drove 31 percent of all visits to Mushroominfo.com directed from social media sites with 3,200 visits.

On the Horizon

• Following the success of the Eat, Write, Retreat Conference, the Council will sponsor a “Progressive Dinner Party” hosted by the Kitchen Play community (conference founders), with 8 bloggers posting a mushroom course in the dinner party, highlighting blendability messages and promoting the Swap it or Top it contest. The progressive dinner will culminate in a Twitter chat on June 25.

 

FOOD SERVICE SUMMARY

Industry Tools

Newest foodservice tools available to the industry include two Infographics, which will be posted on the website at www.mushroomcouncil.org.   The Infographics are short, simple, visually-focused information sheets that show the significant growth of mushrooms in foodservice and how mushrooms are penetrated within specific foodservice categories.  The front provides data on Mushroom Growth.  On the back is information on interesting mushroom menu items across all categories.  The second   features Mushrooms on Pizzas, as well as interesting pizza dishes across segments and regions.  Future Infographics will feature Mushrooms and Chicken, Mushrooms and Steak, Mushrooms and Burgers, Mushrooms and Appetizers and more.

 

Marketing Summary
The Mushroom Council is working with a Chicago area burger chain on their first ever promotion, Mushroom Mondays, where guests receive 20% off their Portabella Sandwich.  Interesting for a burger chain to promote its Mushroom menu item, but the promotion is not only dramatically increasing Portabella sales, but also driving traffic and burger sales on Mondays as well.  Council support includes merchandising, a competition for guests who can win a Portabella sandwich every Monday for a year, social media and server incentives.   Epic Burger even has a link to the new Johns Hopkins Mushrooms research on its website.

Darden’s Bahama Breeze recently introduced shiitake mushrooms to their menu.  They already feature white button mushrooms in their Lobster Shrimp Linguine and Jerk Chicken Pasta, as well as portabellas in two sandwiches and one salad, Now, they are menuing two new bowls with Shiitakes—Vegetarian Asian Tofu and Asian Chicken Vegetable.

On The Horizon

The Council has follow-up presentations coming from participation at the Marketing Executives Conference of the NRA.  Blendable culinary sessions are upcoming with several colleges, and the Council will present at the Healthy Menus Collaborative.

 

SCHOOL NUTRITION SUMMARY

• Mushroom Council Board Members, Fletcher Street, Jim Angelucci, Dave Carroll, Pat Jurgensmeyer and Roberto Ramirez along with Council employees met with members of the USDA on Friday, June 14 including Deputy Under Secretary of Food, Nutrition and Consumer Services, Dr. Janey Thornton and new Administrator to the Agriculture Marketing Service, Anne Alonzo. Council members discussed the pending mushroom purchase for the National School Lunch Program.
• A frozen mushroom spec submission was submitted to the USDA for consideration on June 10. The spec was discussed during the Council meeting on June 14. The final spec will be submitted to the industry for review and comments in late June.
• The three successful mushroom blendability pilot programs in St. Louis, South Bend and Hickman Mills were documented into case studies as an industry resource.
• The Council is finalizing content for the upcoming Mushrooms In Schools Website. Look out for the launch in late July.
• The Council is preparing to showcase mushroom blendability in a culinary demonstration and through booth sampling at this year’s School Nutrition Annual National Conference in Kansas City July 14-17^th.
• An E-Blast highlighting mushroom blendability in schools was distributed to school district attendees from the Culinary Institute’s Healthy Flavors, Healthy Kids summit.
• Progress on the Mushroom Council’s School Nutrition Program was reported at the Council’s Regional Meetings May 16^th, 17^th and 21^st.
• Council School Nutrition resources can be found here.

 

RETAIL SUMMARY

The Topline report week ending 04/21/13 was sent to the industry on 05/29/2013; click here to access the report online.

Total Mushrooms – 4 Weeks

• The Total U.S. dollar sales trend of +4.4% lags Total Produce’s growth trend (+9.2%) by -4.8 points
• All Regions posted positive dollar sales trends with Southeast leading at +9.3% followed by Plains at +7.9%
• On a Market basis, Milwaukee delivered the top dollar sales trend at +21.2% (a large gain on a smaller base). Portland showed the largest decline at -5.1%
• Volume in pounds for the Total U.S. increased by +3.8%. Great Lakes was the only region to show a decrease in volume at -2.8%
• At the Market level, Milwaukee showed the largest increase in volume at +22.1%. Grand Rapids showed a double digit decrease of -13.7%

 Segment/Variety – 4 Weeks

• Total U.S. dollar sales of the White segment fell slightly (-0.5%), while Brown mushrooms grew +13.1% overall. Both Creminis and Portabellas showed strong growth, up +6.2% and +34.2%, respectively
• On a Regional basis, the dollar sales trends for the White segment were mixed. Southeast delivered the top dollar sales trend (+6.3%), while Northeast fell -3.8%
• The Brown segment saw double-digit growth in six of eight Regions while Northeast fell -0.9%. South Central led with dollar gains of +34.0%
• At the Market level, White segment dollar trends were mixed, ranging from +11.4% in Jacksonville to a drop of -13.2% in New York. Eighteen markets declined in White mushroom dollar sales. Conversely, 39 of 48 Markets turned in strong gains in the Brown segment, including Omaha (+48.3%) and Salt Lake City (+46.9%)
• Total U.S. volume in pounds for the White segment decreased slightly at -0.3% while the Brown segment saw overall volume growth of +12.4%, led by Portabella mushrooms at +28.1% and Creminis at +7.7%
• On a regional basis, 4 of 8 regions in the white segment increased with Southeast leading (+6.6%), while Great lakes had the largest decline of -7.9%. In contrast, 7 of 8 regions in the brown segment increased, with South Central leading the Regions at +47.1%. California was the only segment to decrease at -4.2%

Total Mushrooms – 52 Weeks

• The Total U.S. dollar sales trend of +3.8% lags the Total Produce growth trend of +6.4% by -2.6 points
• On a Regional basis, all Regions were up vs. the prior 52-week period.  Northeast holds the largest dollar share (21.1%) and grew +3.3% while Southeast (13.3% share) leads the Regions with the top dollar sales trend of +6.7%
•  At the Market level, most Markets experienced dollar growth, notably Cleveland (+13.4%), Columbus (+11.5%) and New Orleans/Mobile (+11.4%)
• Total U.S. mushroom volume in pounds grew +3.6%.
• All Regions witnessed volume growth, led by West at +7.9 % and Plains at+7.1%
• Only seven of 48 Markets saw downward volume trends including New York (-4.7%), Houston (-1.2%) and San Francisco (-1.2%)

 Segment/Variety – 52 Weeks

• Total U.S. dollar sales for the White segment decreased by -1.0% with most Regions posting losses.  In the Brown segment, dollar sales were up +14.4%. All Regions posted positive trends with seven Regions in the double digits
  • Brown segment trends were driven by Cremini mushrooms, which hold a  73.4% dollar share of Browns and delivered sales growth of +11.9%
• At the Market level, dollar sales trends in the White segment varied greatly, ranging from an increase of +13.1% in Cleveland to a -16.5% decline in Milwaukee
• The Brown segment saw very strong dollar sales gains across nearly every Market, except San Francisco which declined -3.0%
• Total U.S. volume in pounds of White mushrooms was also down -1.0%, but gains were seen in California (+3.9%), Plains (+1.4%) and West (+1.4%). Total U.S. volume in pounds of Brown mushrooms grew +16.7%, led by the West, which grew volume +35.3%
  • Brown segment volume growth trends were driven by  Cremini mushrooms which have a 76.0% volume share of Browns and delivered volume growth of +14.4%
• As with dollars, the Market level volume trends for the White segment were mixed, with 24 Markets trending downward including New York (-12.5%) and Milwaukee (-11.8%)
• The volume trend of Brown mushrooms fared significantly better, with only San Francisco (-10.4%) and Grand Rapids (-3.9%) posting downward trends
  • Strong volume increases in the Brown segment occurred in these Markets: Phoenix/Tucson (+55.8%), New Orleans/Mobile (+52.2%) and Salt Lake City (+46.6%)

 

Marketing Summary

Communications surrounding the Council’s Swap It or Top It Contest were shared with the trade press.

Mighty Mushrooms –   Progressive Grocer– 05/02/2013

Mushroom Council’s Swap It Or Top It Summer Promotion in Full Gear – Produce News – 05/28/2013

Mushroom Council Begins Promo– The Packer – 05/29/2013

Mushroom Council Sizzling Summer Promotion -The Perishable News – 05/29/2013

The Mushroom Council Launches Swap It Or Top It Summer Promotion– AndKnowUKnow Produce – 05/29/2013

Mushroom Swapping Equals Weight Loss – Produce Business – May 2013