Last week I went to the Natural Products Expo West in Anaheim, CA and checked out a ton of new food and beverage products. There were over 1,500 exhibitors and over 50,000 people attended the show. Here are my Top 5 Takeaways from the show...

1. Nutrition industry sales in the U.S. are booming. Sales totaled $110 billion in 2009, up from $10 billion in 2008. That's an increase of $100 billion in just one year. (Source: Nutrition Business Journal). NBJ defines this industry by 4 main product categories: Natural/Organic Food, Functional Foods, Supplements, and Natural/Organic Personal Care Products.

2. Social media is exploding as a means to market natural products. One year ago Facebook had 80 million users. Today there are 400 million. You Tube currently has 173 million users. Small and medium sized companies are finding that social media is a very cost effective way to help market their products. Consider this example shared at the "Best Practices in Social Media" workshop. This "Will It Blend" video received nearly 8 million view and their sales increased over 600% after people started viewing this. Everyone knows that an iphone can make calls, play movies and surf the web. But Will It Blend?





3. Of course we all know moms are a critical target audience for natural food and beverages. I heard a lot of buzz at the show around the phrase "word-of-mom," which is a viral marketing term use to describe online opinion-sharing between moms, often done regarding product recommendations. Used frequently in mommy blogging circles, word-of-mom has become a recent focus of marketers. It could in fact, be the most powerful marketing tool you have!

4. Consumer demand for gluten-free products has been growing at exponential rates. This category was a huge focus for manufacturers at Expo West. Consumers have come to believe that a gluten-free diet will provide some relief for celiac disease, autism, ADD and even MS.

5. Exotic Super Fruits continue to be all the rage. And, they are a personal favorite of mine when cooking. I like to think of them as mini vitamin bombs! In addition to Pomegrante and Acai, the latest super fruits on the rise include Goji, Mangosteen and Noni, all filled with potent antioxidants.

I can't wait for Expo West 2011!

Labels: food and beverage

I recently went to the Natural Products Expo West show in Anaheim, CA, and tried a lot of new food and beverage products, and also checked out some cool marketing campaigns. When I came back to Boise I was reminded how much I long for a Whole Foods store to open in the Treasure Valley. Having lived in California for years I became a huge fan. I love their website and Facebook fan page, they always have tons of great natural food information and tips. Today they have a fun blog post on their site in honor of St. Patrick's Day. Why not eat something green today? It's never too early in the day...


Check out their "Get Your Greens Smoothie" and other green recipes here.

Labels: food and beverage

TV: United Dairymen of Idaho Milk Campaign

Labels: creativity, food and beverage, TV

It's a unique pastime in the south to throw a 'hurricane party' if there's a Gulf storm brewing and about to hit. Or, if the storm has hit and folks need to grill up all the meat that's thawing in the freezer because there's no electricity and everyone needs an excuse to get together, eat and drink (not that anyone ever needs an excuse for that in the south).

But tonight, in support of Idahoan Jeret "Speedy" Peterson's much anticipated Olympic performance in aerial skiing, I recommend reinventing the 'hurricane party' with an Idaho twist.

This 'hurricane party' should include basic elements like friends, food, and a big screen TV with the Olympics turned ON.

Don't fight the stereotype: cook up some potato fries on the grill (simply toss potato slices in olive oil & sprinkle a little Tony Chachere's Cajun Seasoning or rosemary and salt on top). If you have additional cravings, just make sure you buy Idaho Preferred.

It won't be an authentic hurricane party unless there are some libations. Instead of serving up hurricanes - the drink, mix up a pitcher of Doc Hollidays, which is simply 44 North Mountain Huckleberry + Red Bull + ice = deliciousness.

Indulge, imbibe, and gather 'round to watch as the Hurricane unfolds!

P.S. If you want a little multi-media to entertain your hurricane party guests with, visit http://www.soulofskiing.com/, where you can watch a video of Speedy P. and even get a phone call from him. Seriously. Okay, so it's recorded. It'll still get you in the mood for a Hurricane.

Labels: food and beverage, Jeret Speedy Peterson, Olympics, skiing

The other night I was watching the Olympics with my kids, and my 5 year old son saw one of the Diet Coke TV Ads that are part of their 'Heart Truth' campaign. And then he said something that literally made my heart stop: "Mom, if you drink a lot of Diet Coke everyday your heart will get really strong and healthy from it, right?" (Whaaaattt?)



But now that I keep seeing the ads night after night, I can see where he got that. The Heart Truth campaign is for a great cause, don't get me wrong. I love the idea of supporting the awareness of women's heart health programs. I'm just not sure Diet Coke is the right partner.



I've been marketing food and beverages for over 15 years now, and have come to know there is a fine line with marketing product claims and associations, and having facts to back it up. When I worked at Beringer Wine Estates we thought about putting a heart symbol on one of our bottle hangers for a Valentine's day promotion. When I worked at Litehouse Foods we thought about doing the same for a dressing promotion. In both cases we checked the regulatory guidelines and decided not to. Not because our products were proven NOT to be healthy for one's heart, but because we could not prove they actually WERE healthy for one's heart. It's a subtle difference, and yet has such huge implications.

According to Coke..."We’ve used our communications and marketing expertise to reach millions of people with this important heart health message," the company said in its statement. Yep, and you've reached my 5 year old son and my 9 year old daughter and they now believe Diet Coke helps make your heart strong. I guess I'm not sure if the communication plan is working?

Maybe the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute is rethinking this partnership too, based on this article from CBS News.

I love to drink Diet Coke once in a while. Love the fizz, the sweetness, and the sugar high. But one thing I know for sure is it's not going to help make my heart strong and healthy. Now my kids know that too. Because I made that perfectly clear to both of them. Then I gave them each a big glass of milk, and put them to bed!

Labels: food and beverage

United Dairymen of Idaho Yogurt TV

There was a time when the english language looked like this:

Whan that Aueryłł wt his shoures soote,
The droghte of Marcħ, hath perced to the roote*

Back then, the word diet meant "way of life." While these days people associate a diet with losing weight with soul-crushing deprivation strategies, we wanted to educate people that good health begins with smart choices. Yogurt offers a nutritious and delicious snack alternative, has awesome pro-biotic benefits, and helps fulfill the "3-A-Day" dairy recommendations.

This TV Spot for the United Dairymen informs that with all the no's that come with our food choices, there is a tasty and healthy "yo" just around the corner. The bottom line is that people are empowered to make their own choices and yogurt makes it just that much more rewarding.

*Chaucer. Trans: "When in April the sweet showers fall, And pierce the drought of March to the root, and all"

Shout out: Jennie Myers, Joe Quatrone, Mona Teffeteller, Dylan Amundson, NXNW Production, John Eames, John Nance

Labels: chaucer, creativity, Dairy, food and beverage, TV, yogurt

Ever wonder where the best beers brewed in America come from? I bet you have. Well guess what you're in luck because I've found the answer.

Over the past 22 years the Great American Beer Festival has awarded 2,978 brewing medals and now there's a niffty infographic to go with it.

3 Reasons you should be interested in this:

1. It's beer (duh)
2. The northwest is kicking arse.
3. Did I mention its beer?

Cheers,
DRA

Labels: Beer, food and beverage, Idaho, pacific northwest lifestyle

This new information on milk just surfaced a day ago:


Drinking Milk While Pregnant May Lower Kids' MS Risk

“Children born to mothers who drink lots of milk and have a high dietary intake of vitamin D during pregnancy have a much lower risk of developing multiple sclerosis later in life, researchers say.”

And this is the data that backs it up that I found truly amazing....

"The risk of MS among daughters whose mothers consumed four glasses of milk per day [during pregnancy] was 56 percent lower than daughters whose mothers consumed less than three glasses of milk per month," Dr. Fariba Mirzaei, of the Harvard School of Public Health in Boston, said in a news release from the American Academy of Neurology.




What great news and reaffirms what I have believed my entire life, that milk is so incredibly healthy (not to mention tasty). I grew up in Wisconsin and couldn’t be more passionate about milk and dairy products. I now have two kids of my own, and our family drinks about 3 gallons of milk a week. I’m proud to say that it’s the primary beverage of our household.

Labels: food and beverage

This is a bit of a belated announcement but it’s about time we update everyone on how excited we are about our new partnership with WyattZier, LLC and their spirit brand 44 North Vodka!

44 North is a brand that DC is very passionate about because of its Idaho roots, the quality of the product and the great people behind the brand. It’s also a very exciting challenge for us to work on a national spirit brand that’s located in our own back yard.

As far as what we’ve been in the kitchen cooking up…you’ll have to hold your breath a bit longer. As a matter of fact why don’t you grab a 44 North and soda or maybe a Doc Holiday to kill the time. Keep you posted on when we expect to roll the new work out.


Cheers,
DRA

Labels: 44 North Vodka, Drake Cooper, food and beverage

TBWA\Chiat\Day just keeps on cranking out weird/great stuff for Skittles. So good in fact I just can't help but share it. Skittles could quite possibly be my favorite brand based on their consistent ability to come up with creative, outside the box thinking. Check out the crazy new spot here. And the website here.

Cheers,
DRA

Labels: creativity, food and beverage

Labels: food and beverage

Be on the lookout for some seriously cheesy television spots Drake Cooper recently developed for our client The United Dairymen of Idaho. All five of the fifteen second spots began running last week and are part of an integrated campaign for cheese. The spots are very short and simple but at the same time "hero" cheese while positioning it as a healthy snack alternative. Each block of cheese in the five spots was painstakingly hand carved to perfection and the film and animation effects were handled by North by Northwest Productions right here in Boise. Check out the rest of the spots on YouTube and remember if you need a healthy tasty snack "Say Cheese!"

Labels: creativity, food and beverage

Idaho's gold medal winning cyclist Kristin Armstrong loves chocolate milk. Armstrong is an active proponent of chocolate milk as a refreshing and refueling choice for post-workout thirst quenching or general enjoyment.

Last Thursday, Armstrong worked with Drake Cooper, United Dairymen of Idaho and North by Northwest to shoot a commercial promoting chocolate milk as her beverage of choice. Armstrong is sponsored by the United Dairymen of Idaho (Drake Cooper's new client.) Check out the pictures for a sneak peak.

The commercial will soon be appearing on a TV near you, but feel free to check out the finished product below.

Labels: Advertising, Chocolate milk, Dairy, Drake Cooper PR, food and beverage, United Dairymen of Idaho

I drank a bottle of Idaho wine Saturday night with some friends. It was good. Really good. It was Snake River Winery's 2003 Merlot. I'm not a wine expert. If it's red and bold, I'll drink it. But perhaps I have been a bit of a geography snob. At a time when I still hadn't given Australia much credit (or business), here comes the Idaho thing—an American Viticultural Area designation from the federal government; a noteworthy designation that I helped introduce to local and national media. But, truth be told, I had tasted only a few Idaho wines up to that point and had made some poor selections. Now, a year later, I can say that I have enjoyed several good Idaho wines. They include a 2003 Merlot from Parma Ridge; 2004 Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon and a Chardonnay (can't remember the year) from Sawtooth Winery; and a lovely, delicate ice wine from Ste. Chapelle. I never would have dreamed I like desert wine but I do.

Labels: food and beverage

A new restaurant is on its way to BoDo and the Boise cultural district. Bonefish Grill will open its doors at Broad and 9th streets at the end of the month. As a way to join in our local community and truly become a part of the cultural district, Bonefish is kicking things off with a benefit for Boise performing arts. Proceeds from the April 25 event will significantly boost the Boise Arts & History Anchor Fund which is split among Boise Contemporary Theater, Ballet Idaho, Opera Idaho, Idaho Shakespeare Festival and Boise Philharmonic. Pulling this off has taken a great deal of time, effort and cooperation between the City of Boise and the various organizations involved. Yet the Bonefish Grill team has not swayed in its commitment to good local citizenship. They have actively been involved in planning the event, even going as far as to pay for postage for the more than 800 invitations that went to membership lists. If you didn't get an invitation but want to go, you can. Tickets are available at http://www.cityofboise.org/forms/artsbenefit/

It's not often that you get the opportunity to work with people who truly care and actively seek out ways to give. The first assignment we had from local Bonefish owner John Aemmer was to send him a list of all the major non-profit events going on in the city this year. He was interested in donating auction items and providing chefs for local events. He's followed through, giving more than a dozen "excursion-style" dinners for 8 and 16 as silent auction items for fundraisers and committing one of his chefs to help prepare the meals for the Idaho Foodbank's Chef's Affaire. These are not self serving acts. He wants to be part of the community and he sees the restaurant as an extension of himself. So, he says, "It's the natural thing to do."

This, and the fact that John and the guys from the corporate office hug us rather than shake our hands each time we meet, has been refreshing. There is such a thing as goodness in the corporate world and we are glad it’s just around the corner from us.

-Joanne

Labels: food and beverage, Public Relations