Advocating for future generations
Every September the produce industry gathers in Washington, D.C., for the annual United Fresh Washington Conference. This conference is my favorite event of the produce industry travel schedule because it has the best speakers and attracts some of the best and brightest talent from the industry to gather in a more intimate setting than many of the larger trade-fair-type shows.
Also, it gives attendees a chance to perform their civic duty on behalf of the industry, to advocate for a better tomorrow in front of their elected legislators. I hope that this conference will still be in existence, and ideally, will be enhanced by the new association that is being formed between United Fresh and the Produce Marketing Association.
No matter what your passion is, the fact of the matter is that you should advocate on behalf of our industry for it.
This year in D.C. is a particularly significant opportunity for our industry to help shape the future of produce as it relates to children. As a result of COVID-19, there has perhaps been no greater awareness around federal feeding programs that target children.
Over the past year, school meals have been free for all students, schools had the option of sending Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program produce home with families, the WIC benefit for fruits and vegetables has been tripled, and SNAP benefits have been increased (about half of which go to families with children).
But these changes are temporary, and now is the time for Congress to hear from the industry on how these programs impact our communities and businesses.
According to the Congressional Research Service, the programs that have historically made up the Child Nutrition Reauthorization process represent approximately $28 billion in annual expenditures. If this number alone does not cause excitement and wonder about how to capture some of this revenue, then perhaps the longer-term ramifications of these programs will.
Now is the time for Congress to hear from the industry on how these programs impact our communities and businesses.
Selling produce to children is really like selling to three separate markets at the same time. Each child that eats produce in a school is not only generating current revenue, but the child may also influence their inner circle’s (parents/siblings) spending decisions outside of school, increasing supplementary sales.
In addition to this, the more positive experiences that a child has in his/her formative years with produce, the more likely it is that they will be a lifelong produce consumer, generating repeated future sales. It seems to me that perhaps the most profound ingredient for increasing produce consumption in the long run is to influence eating habits at a young age.
This year’s lobbying efforts may be the most promising in a long while to influence the powers that be in D.C. for our industry’s cause. I believe that we have a solid chance of maintaining universal free meals beyond the current waivers that exist.
The more positive experiences that a child has in his/her formative years with produce, the more likely it is that they will be a lifelong produce consumer.
Also, we should be able to work with congress and the U.S. Department of Agriculture to create a better and permanent box program that is also well funded. Perhaps we will even be able to increase the amount of annual funding for the Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Snack Program. No matter what your passion is — nutrition, water, immigration, infrastructure, food safety, etc. — the fact of the matter is that you should advocate on behalf of our industry for it.
Whatever your political beliefs are, things are happening, and money is being spent — it is your duty to play a role in the process.
Alex DiNovo is president and COO of DNO Produce group of companies, Columbus, Ohio. Find more of his columns here.
