British asparagus growers have managed to drive uptake for their product despite some of the toughest trading conditions for a generation.
“There was a huge amount of PR activity planned for the start of the season at the beginning of May, but weather conditions meant that there were lower volumes than we would have liked, and growers were not able to take full advantage of the activity,” said British Asparagus Group spokesman Adrian Barlow.
The media campaign was run by Pam Lloyd PR and took a theme celebrating the crop’s growers but also emphasising their skill and investment required. This theme moved the PR effort into business news sections and away from just the food pages of the broadsheets. The result was almost four pieces of coverage for every day of the season, equivalent to more than £1.2 million of advertising.
“Our goal is always to keep driving household penetration upwards and to increase purchase frequency by continually raising awareness and enhancing demand,” said Ross Baker, chair of the seven-strong British Asparagus Group, which funded the campaign. “We seek each year to sell more asparagus, but not at any price, so for the 2010 season it was more vital than ever that we maintained our message that British asparagus is a seasonal, premium crop.”
Household penetration has now climbed to 16 per cent compared to just three per cent when the campaign began nine years ago.
With increased grower confidence, plantings are on the rise and the group reports that all its members have increased their acreage for the 2011 season and beyond.
