2016 Watermelon Carving Contest

Size: px

Start display at page:

Download "2016 Watermelon Carving Contest"

Willa Holland
5 years ago
Views:

2016 Watermelon Carving Contest Beginner and Experienced Carvers Alike Honored Another exciting National Watermelon Month

Held every July, NWPB hosts an online carving contest featuring five theme categories.

Judging is based on originality, whimsy and technical skill.

1 2016 Watermelon Carving Contest Beginner and Experienced Carvers Alike Honored Another exciting National Watermelon Month annual promotion has wrapped up and we have selected and chosen the winners from entries submitted from across the world. Held every July, NWPB hosts an online carving contest featuring five theme categories. There are winners in each category as well as a People s Choice winner chosen by online gallery vote and a Judge s Choice. Judging is based on originality, whimsy and technical skill. 2 In-School Outreach: Foodservice Shifts Strategy & Jump with Jill 4 Partnership with Produce for Kids to Reach RDs & H-E-B Expo 5 New Watermelon.org User Experience: Features, Developer Tools and Bringing the Blog Home

In-School Outreach Successful Shift in Strategy to Outreach with School Foodservice In 2015, the NWPB analyzed the opportunity to reach and influence foodservice decision-makers in K-12 education and

We learned many schools order their produce through the Department of Defense (DOD) to keep costs low but the product must be grown domestically if it is to be available from the DOD.

2 In-School Outreach Successful Shift in Strategy to Outreach with School Foodservice In 2015, the NWPB analyzed the opportunity to reach and influence foodservice decision-makers in K-12 education and our presence at the School Nutrition Association conference. We learned many schools order their produce through the Department of Defense (DOD) to keep costs low but the product must be grown domestically if it is to be available from the DOD. Watermelon is available as a part of this program and 5 million pounds were used between July 2014 and July Due to the height of the season overlapping with summer break and many schools not having the proper tools or labor to process whole watermelon, we decided to focus our efforts on providing cafeteria education materials. Afterall, K-12 Foodservice only represents 2.5% of the foodservice industry but they are feeding future consumers. The NWPB continues to be a member of the School Nutrition Association (SNA) but instead of attending the conference invested in window clings for the cafeteria to help educate students about watermelon. The new offering and the other great Freebies available at watermelon.org was promoted through SNA Smart Brief digital ads in July and August, leading up to the new school year and overlapping when watermelon is grown domestically. The NWPB sent nearly 2,000 clings to school districts in more than 30 states, as well as many other pieces of school-friendly collateral. The NWPB Smart Brief ads had nearly double the average engagement (click through rates) which was reflected in the flood of orders in the two-month window!

In-School Outreach Continued Jump with Jill Continues Delivering Messaging to Students The Rockstar Nutritionist Jump with Jill and her four casts has been touring the country all year and singing

In 2016, they have performed at 484 schools with a live attendance nearly 160,000 kids.

3 In-School Outreach Continued Jump with Jill Continues Delivering Messaging to Students The Rockstar Nutritionist Jump with Jill and her four casts has been touring the country all year and singing the praises of healthy eating and exercise featuring watermelon among the cast of rockstar foods. They provide in-school assemblies to elementary students, sometimes two shows a day. In 2016, they have performed at 484 schools with a live attendance nearly 160,000 kids. These live brand experiences have a high impact on the kids, and their perception changes after participation, feeling empowered and excited to eat more watermelon! The yearlong partnership with Jump with Jill includes the lives shows, press placements, website spotlights and social media, mobile advertising via their watermelon vans, and new in 2016: cafeteria posters! These are included as leave-behind materials at all the schools AND we have them available in our Freebies at Watermelon.org will lead the conversation, supported by inspiring recipes and usage ideas The Sweet Beat music video that NWPB funded in 2015 is a real winner! This modern music video features watermelon and other fruits and vegetables and it has won two Telly Awards and has been nominated for two Emmy Awards! When it s broadcast on TV, the eligibility is founded. This is a great example of how the activities created with the JWJ team keep earning value, impressions and views! Additionally, the Texas Department of Agriculture " has teamed up with Jump with Jill to help Texas children realize that eating nutritious foods and exercising every day make them part of a very cool and healthy crowd, said Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller. These young Texans receive research-proven nutrition education along with follow up materials that continue the learning into the classroom. As part of our innovative Farm Fresh Initiative, this live event provides valuable lessons about good nutrition and Texas agriculture in a way that children will connect with and remember for years to come.

We heart RD s And RDs Heart Watermelon! For the first time ever, the NWPB partnered with Produce for Kids for a month of the We Heart RDs program.

In addition to healthy eating tips from Produce for Kids, retail dietitians received NWPB brochures, stickers, and other fun family-friendly watermelon recipes to share with shoppers.

It provided an excellent way to share nutritional information and the resources we have available to RDs.

4 We heart RD s And RDs Heart Watermelon! For the first time ever, the NWPB partnered with Produce for Kids for a month of the We Heart RDs program. The program is designed to provide the growing number of retail dietitians with a family-focused kit of healthy resources, recipes and activities to use in-store with accompanying online components. In addition to healthy eating tips from Produce for Kids, retail dietitians received NWPB brochures, stickers, and other fun family-friendly watermelon recipes to share with shoppers. The kit was distributed to more than 300 retail dietitians at 45 grocery retailers across the U.S. and Canada. It provided an excellent way to share nutritional information and the resources we have available to RDs. NWPB Returns to H-E-B Expo NWPB co-exhibited alongside Luke Brown Watermelons and M&P Produce Company at the H-E-B expo held in San Antonio on August 17 th. This expo is attended by all of H-E-B s produce managers, buyers, and top-tier executives. Armed with the new retail kit, the Texas Watermelon Queen, and our resources on merchandising tips, NWPB was able to speak with many produce managers and buyers about the assistance available to them to promote watermelon. NWPB also sampled fresh watermelon and our Watermelon Breakfast A Go-Go recipe that consisted of diced watermelon, yogurt, and granola. Those that sampled the recipe voiced their enthusiasm as well as their surprise of how versatile watermelon can be with other common ingredients. Following the expo, current Texas Watermelon Queen Makensie Anderson and past queen Kendall Duke each participated in in-store promotions at two H-E-B stores in the area. Team watermelon was definitely a crowd pleaser in San Antonio that weekend!

Watermelon.org User Experience: New Features, Developer Tools and Bringing the Blog Home Watermelon.org is the home base for all things watermelon, and as such has undergone.

5 Watermelon.org User Experience: New Features, Developer Tools and Bringing the Blog Home Watermelon.org is the home base for all things watermelon, and as such has undergone. improvements and enhancements this year, many of which are not seen by the user but are nonetheless important for a user experience that is educating, enriching and enticing for visitors to our website. The goal of the user experience? Attract more visitors, keep them longer on the site, and intrigue them with user paths to explore and learn more about watermelon. WhatAboutWatermelon.com blog moves to The Slice at Watermelon.org The NWPB-funded blog called What About Watermelon launched in 2009 and was authored by The Watermelon Guy and hosted via a separate website. We have brought the blog home and it now lives at and includes not just entries by The Watermelon Guy, but also hosts content from NWPB with a permanent place to live, such as contest announcements, new partnerships and the like. This transition required a significant back-end software creation, allowing staff to upload and post entries with photos, links and formatting. And no blog is complete without comments, creating an actual dialogue between users and the post. Additionally, the top 100 blog posts and their comments have been imported to The Slice, and are sorted into the following categories: Cooking and Carving Tips, Health, News and Events, Contests and Promos, Spotlight, Mythbuster and lastly the Watermelon Bin Miscellany. Recipes and Carvings - Ratings and Comments Watermelon.org s recipes and carvings are the most visited pages on the site, and as such we have developed a more robust tool for communicating with the people visiting those pages by implementing ratings and comments. The user experience while visiting a recipe page has gone from simply viewing the recipe, photos and video to now including an I Made It option as well as an option for leaving comments. This helps users see if other people liked it, and what other people may have thought about the recipe or any adjustments they made. We are not only increasing engagement but also creating new advocates for watermelon s taste and versatility properties! Watermelon.org Contest Engine Another significant enhancement to the website user experience is the back-end contest engine, allowing for NWPB to host contests (such as the Carving Contest and Retail Display Contest) and to capture and collect entries via the website (and even coordinate consumer voting!). Staff curate the content for the contest page and promote that page along with the entry form. We are able to dictate custom form fields, allow picture uploads, and other categories to collect data on. With this new skeletal structure built, customizing for different contests in the future will be efficient, simple and secure.

Watermelon Comes to Life for Foodservice Operators at Flavor Experience In an effort to get more watermelon on menus, the NWPB sponsored the invite-only Flavor Experience to reach marketing and

The Flavor Experience is a two-day flavor and trend immersion. As a sponsor, watermelon was featured in multiple dayparts and in many different applications throughout the menu.

6 Watermelon Comes to Life for Foodservice Operators at Flavor Experience In an effort to get more watermelon on menus, the NWPB sponsored the invite-only Flavor Experience to reach marketing and culinary personnel and other decision-makers from various foodservice outlets such as regional and national chains, hotels and universities. The Flavor Experience is a two-day flavor and trend immersion. As a sponsor, watermelon was featured in multiple dayparts and in many different applications throughout the menu. On-trend recipes featuring watermelon were highlighted as a part of general sessions and breakouts. Additionally, the Board has a stake in the attendance list, inviting operators targeting for menu placement. The Flavor Experience is a unique event because the operators really enjoy the content and networking and are thrilled to receive the invitation. In addition to the great connections at the conference, the Board co-hosted a dinner with other community boards to further those relationships. Some chains reached throughout the event include Fleming s Prime Steakhouse, Marie Callender s, Black Angus, Cheddar s, Applebee s and more. We are already moving forward to support some chains with best handling and menu ideation including BJ s Restaurant & Brewhouse, Rubio s and Culver s, to name a few! The Produce Mom (TPM) is a produce industry veteran and advocate who provides recipes and cooking tips for the busy mom. TPM created numerous watermelon resources to promote watermelon during back to school campaigning in the month of August including the following: Partnership with The Produce Mom Recipe video How to use every part of a watermelon featuring 4 recipes in one: pickled, appetizer, entree and dessert Demonstrated watermelon recipes live on TV on Power Up with Produce segment Created infographic So now you bought a giant watermelon that offers usage ideas under the categories Cut It Up, Get Crafty, Toss a Salad, Blend It Up, On a Stick and It s Happy Hour. Social media promotions including Facebook shares for National Watermelon Day and releasing of watermelon content. Where will NWPB be next? Food and Nutrition Conference and Expo Boston, MA October Produce Marketing Association Orlando, FL October 16 Marine Corps Marathon Washington, D.C. October 27 31

WATERMELON UPDATE NATIONAL WATERMELON PROMOTION BOARD IF A CRISIS SITUATION ARISES, CALL IMMEDIATELY.

WATERMELON UPDATE NATIONAL WATERMELON PROMOTION BOARD IF A CRISIS SITUATION ARISES, CALL IMMEDIATELY. WATERMELON UPDATE IF A CRISIS SITUATION ARISES, CALL 877-599-9595 IMMEDIATELY The Hunt for Advertisements and Products Featuring Watermelon Begins! Watermelon is an iconic summertime staple that is enjoyed