In a consumer survey, 74% of respondents stated that yogurt was the first item to come to mind when thinking of the dairy aisle, but only six percent said potatoes. This June Dairy Month, the National Frozen & Refrigerated Foods Association (NFRA, NFRAweb.org) will partner with celebrity chef Aida Mollenkamp to show consumers that they may be missing out on the most exciting and convenient aisle in the supermarket. Aida’s exclusive recipes developed for NFRA including Peaches and Cream Popsicles and Loaded Potato Nests use refrigerated products such as yogurt and potatoes to show consumers that the dairy aisle is full of creative and unexpected ingredients that can be customized to fit within a well-balanced lifestyle and lead to endless mealtime possibilities.
During June Dairy Month, NFRA will capitalize on the trend toward smaller meals and redefine snacking by raising awareness of the refrigerated dairy aisle as “the new snack destination.”A Cool Food Panel of partner bloggers will develop a “snack-size” series of visual content and recipes to raise awareness of the refrigerated dairy aisle as a go-to destination for snacking. Bloggers will create mini main entrees, bite-sized finger foods and darling side dishes and desserts that will help consumers ignite a healthy new passion for refrigerated dairy.NFRA will also partner with online hub, Bakespace.com and their #KitchenParty on Google Hangout, to host two live video chats with a celeb spokesperson and influential blogger to engage consumers with recipes and how-to’s in the kitchen.
NFRA will support the June Dairy Month promotion nationally with a two-page FSI dropping on June 1, 2014, to a 20 million circulation. The ad will feature coupons and product images of the 18 participating manufacturer brands and will encourage consumers to “Discover the Cool Possibilities” that can be found in the refrigerated dairy aisle. In addition, sponsoring manufacturers can offer online coupons on Coupons.com, and NFRA will promote June Dairy Month with banner ads throughout the month. A $10,000 consumer sweepstakes will drive visitors to NFRA’s website, www.EasyHomeMeals.com, as well as to NFRA’s social media channels, including Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and YouTube where a multitude of “snack-size” content will be featured. Additionally, the Mr. Food Test Kitchen will focus on June Dairy Month with a special TV spot broadcasting to more than 4 million households on June 6, 2014.
An Idea Book and POS catalog is available from NFRA to help companies create in-store events that encourage traffic in the refrigerated dairy aisles and increase industry sales. During the June promotion, retailers, manufacturers and sales agents will have the opportunity to enter their most creative June Dairy Month displays and marketing campaigns in the prestigious Golden Penguin Awards competition. The winning entries showing the best in marketing and merchandising will be recognized at the Awards Reception & Banquet on October 14, 2014, during the annual NFRA Convention in Orlando, FL.