Mid-term report - Fruits & Veggies - More Matters

So how is the new campaign to increase produce consumption doing? That will be my poll question this week, and I'm not quite sure what to expect from our readers. Is the launch of Fruits & Veggies - More Matters where the industry thought it would be at this point? "5 a Day" was such an ingrained message for so many years it still may be hard to let it go, and no measure of success for "More matters" may be enough for some. I have heard one person say he hoped for a "harder" launch of the brand message, and others may not be in love with the "juggler" image. Yet, despite the disconcerting news of a "Meat Matters" campaign (more on that later) there are signs the campaign is coming into its own. For your consideration I have provided some input from PBH on the subject of the launch.

A few weeks ago Elizabeth Pivonka sent me the mid-year report for the Board of Trustees for the Produce for Better Health Foundation. Dated September, the 14-page pdf file examines the launch of the Fruits & Veggies - More Matters campaign. Here is the opening letter from Elizabeth and Michael O'Brien that is found in the document.

From the report:

The beginning of 2007 marked the launch of Fruits & Veggies—More Matters™: a national health initiative that has the promise of making increased consumption of fruits and vegetables a reality for everyone. The launch was a success in garnering a great deal of media attention to help generate consumer awareness of the new initiative and now the hard work lies before us. The new Fruits & Veggies—More Matters brand will need strong, active support on many fronts to provide moms with the assistance they need to make eating
more fruits and vegetables a reality for their families. PBH with its national partners is committed to spreading the word to the consumer through key influencers, including the media, nutrition professionals and classroom educators. Producers, processors, and retailers can build on and increase the momentum by working to translate consumer awareness into
action where purchasing decisions get made, at point of sale. We encourage all fruit and vegetable stakeholders to put the Fruits & Veggies—More Matters platform to work to strengthen your customer relationships and to help grow your produce sales. Retailers, remember the basics: feature the new brand in advertising every week, update your point of sale material including signage and bags, and harness the power of the internet by updating and linking your website. Then work with your colleagues across the aisle from the produce
department to get the new brand executed for all forms of fruits and veggies, including frozen, canned, dried and 100% juice. Suppliers, the new brand presents the same kind of relationship-building opportunities to you. Use the new brand to promote your brand with package labeling, advertising and promotions, and website content and links. And you can leverage your marketing dollars with the millions being invested by other licensees.This mid-year report demonstrates that Fruits & Veggies—More Matters is off to a great start. However, more support for the new brand really does matter, to our companies, to our industry, to our consumers and to our nation’s health. Together we can make 2007 and future years be the time for the consumption needle to move resulting in a healthier America!
Thank you for your continued support of PBH’s mission.

Michael F. O’Brien
Vice President of Produce & Floral, Schnucks Markets, Inc.
Chairman of Produce for Better Health Foundation

Elizabeth Pivonka, Ph.D, RD
President and CEO, Produce for Better Health Foundation
Joint Letter from Chairman and President


More notes from the report:

PBH secured CARMA, a third-party media analysis provider, to assess the success of the Fruits & Veggies—More Matters launch. Between February 1-May 10, 2007 there were a total of 727 stories resulting in 45 million consumer impressions.
Consumers claimed they learned of 5 A Day primarily through the media, supermarkets, and packaging, so assuring that Fruits & Veggies—More Matters begins to replace 5 A Day and
allow for consumer exposure to this more relevant message is important. Through May, 2007 nearly 500 SKU’s have been approved to carry the Fruits & Veggies—More Matters brand logo. Supermarket Retailers delivered an estimated 600 million consumer ad impressions from January 2007 through June 2007 in their circulars alone.