What good is it if your company makes all these efforts to operate in a more environmentally sustainable way — if no one knows about it? Well, besides the good for the planet and its people and all.
The third annual Best of SPS Marketing Awards recognizes excellence in sustainability-focused marketing by the fresh produce industry. Farm Journal’s fresh produce marketing manager, Brock Nemecek, presented the awards at the May 18 Sustainable Produce Summit, held the day before the West Coast Produce Expo, co-located at the same resort in Palm Desert, Calif.
Related: All the sustainability news
Farm Journal, Trust in Food and its produce divisions of The Packer and Produce Market Guide-PMG fielded submissions proving that creative, impactful marketing is yet another commodity that our industry grows and delivers year-round and across the globe.
Check out the 2023 winners:
Best in Packaging
Jac. Vandenberg Inc., based in Tarrytown, N.Y., won for its Sunrays branded packaging on grapes and mandarins. The company’s commitment to sustainability is evident in the Sunrays brand mission: “We aim to deliver the best tasting, most sustainable, life transforming, zero waste snacking experience the world has to offer.”
The company effectively communicates those aims with its straightforward and impactful messaging on packs, with a QR code also printed on the tag that allows the consumer to learn more about the package — including the full carbon footprint of that package, the materials used and how to properly discard it.
Best in Website Marketing
Driscoll’s, Watsonville, Calif., for its One Family, sustainability-focused website, the aim of which is “to connect our products to the company’s missions and values, and our desire to grow in harmony with the farming communities and the environment we depend on.”
Related: Flashfood’s Brody Slacer at Sustainable Produce Summit: ‘I needed to do more’
With the Driscoll’s website and messaging, the brand makes clear it understands that sustainability messaging can either be too technical (which risks losing the consumer) or too vague (which does not feel authentic).
With One Family, Driscoll’s has found the balance between impactful storytelling that receives regular, positive consumer feedback and motivating customers and consumers to engage with the brand.
Best in Social Media Marketing
Dole Food Co. for its #Fresh4Future campaign, which launched on Earth Day and runs through May 31. The campaign shares company and farm efforts to provide sustainable plants to the world.
The versatile, multiplatform campaign is broken down into four topics and segmented into two audience structures. Each post’s voice, creative and flow caters to its specified audience.
However, all posts can intertwine across audiences as needed. “And trust me, marketers love to be able to utilize content in multiple applications,” Nemecek said.
Best in B2C Messaging
On April 18, The Mushroom Council and agency partner Curious Plot hosted more than 80 media members and influencers for an Earth Month-focused dinner and reception at the Sommwhere Sustainable Event Space in New York City.
The groups brought the mushroom sustainability story to life by creating a zero-waste NYC event that led to numerous articles in both trade and consumer media and an uptick in social media impressions.
The message was mushrooms are an easy way to be sustainable in your cooking, whether you’re a five-star chef or someone looking to expand your palate.
Related: NYC influencers taste trendy mushroom bites, absorb sustainability facts
