Retailers Look to Tell Grower Story

MATTHEW ENIS

NEW ORLEANS — The local food trend may be getting all of the press, but today's consumers are also demonstrating growing interest in the origin of their food no matter what the source. Large growers and shippers have an opportunity to connect with shoppers at the retail level by working with produce managers and dietitians, according to Kim Kirchherr, corporate dietitian for Jewel-Osco/Supervalu, and Doug Riley, assistant vice president of produce operations for Hy-Vee.

Kirchherr and Riley both presented during the “Empowering Retail Staff as Ambassadors for the Grower-Shipper Story” session sponsored by SN and the Allen Lund Co. here at the United Fresh Produce Association's 2011 convention and expo last week.

“It's not all about just getting the product out of the field and into the store anymore,” Riley began. “It's about getting the product out of the field, into the store and into the consumer's hands, and the consumer coming back for more.”

Riley explained that Hy-Vee puts a lot of work into educating its retail personnel, its more than 160 dietitians and its 50 executive chefs. Hy-Vee regularly invites growers and shippers to come to a store and talk to groups of personnel about growing practices, and the company has also received several invitations by growers for produce managers to come to their farms and see their operation first-hand.

“Those produce managers then come back into our stores, and they're excited, they're pumped,” Riley said. “Hopefully, they'll go back and tell the customers what they saw. They understand the product. They know how it's grown. Those people are your best ambassadors when it comes to talking to your customers.”

Grower-shippers can also inform produce managers about their products via websites, or by providing signage and POS materials, Riley said. And, they should never overlook dietitians as a resource for reaching consumers.

“Dietitians can be a huge asset for you and the education of your customers,” Riley said, noting that healthy eating advice generally has a strong produce component.

Kirchherr's presentation expanded on this topic. She advised grower-shippers to become familiar with how dietitians worked with different companies. Are there a few corporate-level dietitians setting up events throughout a chain, or does the company have a network of dietitians at the store-level, like Hy-Vee? This can impact how different companies should be approached with educational materials or new programs.

And, Kirchherr encouraged grower-shippers to use social media sites like Facebook to connect with nutritionists and shoppers. Citing one recent example, she explained how a simple Facebook post can generate great feedback.

“On St. Patrick's Day, all I put up [on Jewel-Osco's Wild Harvest Facebook page] was, ‘What's your favorite green fruit or vegetable?’ Within an hour I had so many people responding back. … The conversation was very robust about both fruits and vegetables. And what was interesting, they didn't just tell me what fruit or vegetable, they told me how they liked to eat it in some cases.”

One of the benefits of using social media sites is that it facilitates a two-way conversation with shoppers, Kirchherr explained. Rather than pushing the healthy eating message, questions like, “Have you ever had a grilled vegetable sandwich?” can encourage shoppers to respond with ideas. Or, dietitians and department managers can use the Facebook page to inform shoppers of upcoming sales on specific items, and link to recipe suggestions and nutritional information.

“People slowly start to tell you what they're interested in doing,” in terms of cooking, recipe ideas and nutritional information, she said. “It's really a fun conversation to have.”

To facilitate these types of interactions, grower-shippers can start by providing dietitians photos of their products, along with information.

“Dietitians love to get recipes,” she said. “And we love to hear from you about what messages we can say that are USDA and FDA approved. … Tell us about that. We'll spread the word for you.”