|  It’s getting harder to find a brand that doesn’t claim to be green. But, do they have a solar power factory? Is the rest of their energy use offset by energy credits? And, are they rebuilding a town that was virtually wiped out by a tornado? Not likely.
Sun Chips is different. The Frito-Lay product has rooted its brand in environmental causes as well as health-forward thinking. This strategy has paid off handsomely as Sun Chip sales are up 17.6%, totaling $201.8 million for the 52 weeks ending June 15, per IRI.
A recent Earth Day ad proudly proclaimed “We are living up to our name” as it recently added solar energy to its plant in Modesto, Calif. Whatever energy that isn’t used to produce its 145,000 bags of whole grain chips a day is offset by energy credits under a companywide program instituted by parent company PepsiCo.
Consumers are responding to the messaging as well as the product which boasts 18 grams of whole grain, low sodium and no trans-fat. To keep the heat rising for the brand, Sun Chips’ media spend the first four months was boosted to $15 million. This already eclipsed last year's total of $11 million (not including online), per Nielsen Monitor-Plus. Juniper Park, Toronto, is Sun Chips' agency.
Frito-Lay vp-marketing Gannon Jones talked to Brandweek news editor Kenneth Hein about why really being green is healthy for sales. | | | | Tuesday, July 15, 2008 | Brandweek |
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Frozen is fashionable again. That appears to be the industry message as rising food prices force consumers to cut back on wastage and choose products that can be kept for long periods of time.
The same recent browsers of the organic aisle now find their attention drawn to the freezer section.
Coming in from the cold has been McCain Foods, whose frozen food empire has seen a rise in profits in recent years.
With one in four of Britain's chips being produced at the UK's biggest chip factory, in Whittlesey, the nation's favourite dish looks set to be at home in the area for some time to come.
McCain Foods, known for its range of frozen chips, wedges, roast potatoes and rustic chips, has had to undergo a major re-branding and re-education of customers during the last few years
Corporate affairs director Bill Bartlett said: "We had an awareness campaign in 2006, following misinformation in the media about so-called junk food.
"Our message was literally, we take a potato, we wash it, we cook it in sunflower oil and then freeze it, which is nature's preservative."
The £20 million It's All Good campaign for healthy eating, launched in September 2006 helped it became the first company to use both the Guideline Daily Amounts percentage system and the Traffic Lights scoring scheme on the same packaging.
With a turnover in 2006 of £182.2 million and an increase of 7.8 per cent to £196.4million in 2007, the campaign was a fruitful exercise for the company, which then had to turn its attention to other key areas.
Soaring fuel costs have meant the business has needed to take a long hard look at the distance its food travels to get to the supermarket.
As the company uses 600,000 tonnes of potatoes per year, more than 12 per cent of the national consumption, McCain Foods is proud of the links it has forged with the local agricultural economy and stresses the importance of UK-based products.
| | | | Tuesday, June 17, 2008 | Peterborough Today |
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