Dole Food Co. celebrates fruit’s role in American life
Dole Food Co. is launching a five-month healthy-living initiative to celebrate the iconic role that fresh fruit plays in American life.
Inspired by classic Disney characters, Dole’s Fruit Love campaign has launched with recipes, digital downloads and social interactions celebrating apples, bananas, strawberries, pineapples, peaches, pears and other farm-fresh favorites and the roles they have in many memorable dishes, according to a news release.
“From a baby’s first banana to baking blueberry pies with grandma, summertime watermelons and cantaloupes busting with flavor to pumpkins in the fall — yes, pumpkins are a fruit! — fresh fruit holds a uniquely nostalgic appeal for many of us,” Melanie Marcus, a registered dietitian and Dole’s nutrition and health communications manager, said in a news release. “It’s exactly the place that fresh fruit has at the center of some of life’s best memories and most celebrated moments that we honor today.”
A series of dedicated posts on Dole’s Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Pinterest pages will bring the produce love to hundreds of thousands of followers, according to the release.
Dole is also working with retailers to develop POS and other in-store materials to bring the Fruit Love message directly to shoppers, the release said.
Twelve new recipes featuring a combination of vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, low-fat and low-sodium choices for breakfast, lunch, dinner and healthy snacking occasions are available on the Fruit Love website. The recipes include:
Recipes for all ages
- Banana, Raspberry & Chia Layered Parfait — vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, low-fat, low-sodium
- Nutty Chipmunk Cookies — vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, low-sodium
- Vegan Cheeseburger Skillet — vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free
- Buttermilk Squash Mac and Cheese — vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free
- Carrot Pigs in a Blanket — vegetarian, low-sodium, dairy-free
- French Onion Soup with Arugula Pesto — vegetarian, vegan, dairy-free
- Pineapple Chicken Stir Fry — dairy-free
- Sweet Potato Banana Bread — vegetarian, dairy-free
- One-Skillet Sloppy Joe Sliders — dairy-free
Recipes that double as DIY baby food
- Cauliflower Soup Mousse — vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, low-fat, low-sodium
- Banana Bread Batter Pudding — vegetarian, vegan, dairy-free, low-fat, low-sodium, gluten-free
- Coconut Cream Pie Parfaits — vegetarian, low-sodium
A highlight of the program is a set of six new, collectible Dole Banana stickers and Dole Pineapple tags featuring Disney Baby Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck, Daisy Duck, Pluto and Stich, the release said. The limited-edition stickers and tags follow a five-sticker set depicting classic Disney characters released in November 2022 and can be found on tens of millions of bananas and pineapples at supermarkets in the U.S. and Canada through March 2023.
To encourage fans to collect all 11 classic and baby character stickers, Dole has posted a Fruit Love Club Printable Banana Sticker Peel & Play Book that is now available for free download on the Fruit Love webpage, the release said.
