The Watsonville-based California Strawberry Commission in 2011 plans to build on last year’s program to connect with health professionals and consumers, said Carolyn O’Donnell, communications director.
The commission will exhibit at the American Dietetic Association’s conference in September in San Diego and will be a sponsor of a program for supermarket registered dietitians who write newsletters and provide information to help promote healthy eating within grocery store chains, she said.
“We’ll be talking with them and giving them information about the health benefits of eating strawberries,” she said.
The conference for dietitians is set for March 27-29 in Napa, Calif.
Through its social media outreach program, the commission plans to sponsor a slide show on webmd.com — a top Internet health resource — telling how consumers can boost their immunity.
The slide show will run from late March until the end of July.
The commission also will conduct a two-part program with mom bloggers.
The first part will consist of identifying five mom bloggers with large followings in five key markets and taking them out to the field to meet growers, visit research plots “and get a better sense about growing strawberries in California,” O’Donnell said.
When the bloggers return home, they will host up to 25 other bloggers in their areas and challenge them to prepare blog posts about strawberries.
The commission will award a prize for the best blog.
The organization launched a revamped website in September that appeals to a wide range of consumers, O’Donnell said.
“We’re finding that consumers are interested in things other than recipes,” she said.
Pages that feature grower profiles and tell how strawberries are grown in the state also are attracting interest, she said.
Finally, the commission has updated its strawberry app for iPhone and iPad, adding recipes and tips on nutrition for children and adults that can be shared by e-mail, Facebook and Twitter, she said.
David Grotto, a registered dietitian and author of “101 Optimal Life Foods,” is among those who provided tips.
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