Key points:
1. It may be a response to the globalization of the food supply, but locally-produced foods are a growing trend.
2. Following the same broad strategy as organics, local food producers use emotional appeals as well as raw facts to convince us to pay more.
3. In the end, however, globalization (and resulting efficiencies) may be too powerful a force for anything but a niche market presence for “local” foods.
I had every intention to buy Gold’n Plump chicken.
My wife and I were at the grocery store (which shall remain nameless) last weekend. And I was ready. I had seen the “local chicken” ads on television and on billboards during my (some days, too many) trips around town. They made sense to me. I was ready to “take a stand.”
When we arrived at the meat counter, I noticed a competing national brand on sale for 20 percent less money. But I was prepared. Locally-produced food was important to me. I put it in the cart anyway.
That’s when I noticed the I-can’t-take-you-anywhere look.
My wife removed the two packs of skinless chicken breasts and replaced them with the other brand. (This was the same woman who made our children stand in line in the Mall of America rotunda and do the chicken dance in order to get a four-inch plush chicken.) I decided not to make a scene in the store, but resolved to make my case on the drive home.
I mentioned why I thought it was important that we source our food locally whenever we can. It saves transportation costs, and it supports the local Minnesota economy.
My wife countered that “local” meant “neighbors,” not people on some farm she didn’t know. And what’s more, our food comes from all over the world. That’s why we can get blueberries in January and pumpkins in May. Global food sourcing isn’t all bad.
Makes sense.
But what did it really come down to? Price. The other chicken was cheaper. Chicken is chicken. It might be a bit of a brash assessment, but I can’t imagine she’s alone.
“Buy American” didn't really pan out; globalization is simply a more powerful force. The food industry may be one of the last industries to really globalize in the true sense of the word, but that day is coming. Fast.
But all that aside, I still think it makes sense for Gold’n Plump to keep working at it.
Strategically, playing the local angle makes sense.
A 2008 U.K. study found that 49 percent of respondents wanted to eat more local food, and 66 percent wanted to return to a certain “seasonality” of food options. U.S. studies tend to find numbers in the same range. Call it a bit of a “backlash” against the global food supply chain, but producers like Gold’n Plump are betting that will translate into a willingness to plunk down an extra 10 to 20 percent.
Why should they think so?
Organics, for one. A trade association study found the market growing at an annualized 18 percent clip. That blasts through just about any other grocery category and gives many retailers hope that they can reclaim margin dollars lost in the last 20 years. But the trend seems to be leveling off; new people are not jumping on board as fast as they once did (although organic sales are holding up reasonably well during this latest recessions). It seems as though the trend has maxed out the “easy-switch” consumer and now will face a tougher slog to convince more cost-conscious consumers to take the plunge.
But “local” foods—as a category—hasn’t quite picked all the low-hanging fruit. It’s got room to grow.
That takes us back full-circle to “local chicken” and our local friends at local Gold’n Plump and the selection of a creative strategy.
The trick organics were able to pull off is not related to the “facts” surrounding health benefits. Information and education played a role, of course, but not the central one. Organic producers were able to get us to connect emotionally to our food. With many of us at least one generation removed from working in food production, that was no easy feat.
Gold’n Plump, and its locally-produced chicken angle, works to capitalize on the same emotional connection. Advertising paints the company as a “co-op” of sorts, featuring real farm families who produce food under the Gold’n Plump brand name. Another campaign (the “take-a-stand” series) featured consumers instead saying why they felt locally-produced food was important. The latest outdoor ads use a similar concept but dispense with the real human and move to the crime-scene chalk outline. Okay, those aren’t so good, but their heart’s in the right place.
All the logic makes sense. The broad creative strategy is sound. They just haven’t reached my wife. She's a tougher sell.
Good luck.
Related links:
Gold'n Plump Company Site
Minnesotachicken.com
Get Vocal About Local Facebook Page
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