Got To Be NC promotes North Carolina produce

(Photo courtesy North Carolina Dept. of Agriculture. )

Touching more than 30 commodities, the Got To Be NC initiative promotes North Carolina-grown fresh produce and other farm goods to buyers around the corner and across the ocean.

The program, free to growers, features a searchable website at gottobenc.com/find-local to help consumers, retail and foodservice buyers find suppliers, said Kevin Hardison, agricultural marketing specialist with the North Carolina Department of Agriculture.

The program and its predecessor have deep roots in the state. 

Founded in 1985, the Goodness Grows in NC program was rebranded in 2005 as Got To Be NC.

The program promotes the state’s bounty, starting first with the 250 or so farmers markets, the 130-plus roadside stands, and then retail and foodservice produce buyers in the state, across the country and beyond U.S. borders.

For growers who supply farmers markets, the program helps them with standard TV, radio and traditional mixed media promotion campaigns, as well as social media mentions.

The North Carolina Department of Agriculture also has four state-owned farmers markets that are options for growers seeking outlets to market their produce.

The Got To Be NC program has cameras and drones available that it uses to help create marketing campaigns.

“Growers can access that as well for their own personal benefit,” he said. “If there is a PMA show or a United Fresh show and they wanted to put together a little video about what they do at their farm, those are some of the resources they can use,” he said.

Beyond promotions for the local farmers markets and roadside stands, the program works with retailers to make sure the Got To Be NC logo and the name of the grower is prominently featured in stores. 
“The (point of sale) signage is a great way we do that,” Hardison said.

Working with retail nutrition directors and local chefs, the program also uses media and social media campaigns to produce and promote recipes for shoppers.

“We find that the best way to get food in the hands of customers is to let them be prepared to use (locally grown food) to their benefit,” he said, noting that the recipes and use suggestions the program curates do exactly that for shoppers.

Nationally, the Got To Be NC program attends trade shows across the state, the U.S. and internationally.

“We bring growers with us at the shows to help promote themselves to the individual buyers across the state and around the world,” he said.

The program also hosts tours for individual buyers who come to North Carolina to see farming operations. “Nothing sells produce like actually seeing it grown and harvested,” Hardison said.

The international reach of North Carolina agriculture products includes sweet potatoes to Europe, but also a mix of other vegetables, blueberries, cantaloupes, potatoes and Christmas trees to Canada and other countries.

Retail support

Hardison said the state’s retailers are supportive of the program. With Publix and Wegmans recently coming to the state, both have supported the Got To Be NC program, he said. 

“As we see our relationships with both (established) larger retail stores and newer stores, it’s really great to see how much they have taken to using the Got To Be NC program in their displays.”

The logo for the program is free for growers, Hardison said.

“Whenever they ship their packages out of their packing shed, whether it be to a retailer, whether it be to a wholesaler, whether it be to foodservice, or whether it goes into our own schools, it has the Got to Be NC logo as well as our growers’ logo,” he said. 

“Our whole intent is to make sure the growers are getting the recognition that they can build and keep those relationships.”

Pandemic realities

Just as some growers pivoted during the pandemic to offer online ordering options direct to consumers, the Got To Be NC staff invested more time in video chats with buyers rather than in-person meetings, Hardison said.

“We used whatever technology we could to say in front of buyers,” he said. 

Even with virtual trade shows and digital handshakes, Hardison said business was done online.

2021 has not fully restored the event calendar, but more in-person shows are scheduled. Still, the digital element will remain important, he said, whether that includes introductory videos from growers or farm tours.

Buyers with questions about the program can reach contacts at gottobenc.com/contact.
 

 

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