Organic Processing Vo1.6 #1

college campuses. It’s become quite popular. An OTA intern, who’s a student at Colgate University, facilitates the blog. There’s been great coverage of the blog from other publications. It’s emerging as a real place for discussion on college campuses about sustainable choices, with representatives from at least 25 different universities that regularly post comments and articles onto the blog about efforts that they’re undertaking on their campuses.

One of the neat things about blogs and having this kind of ongoing stream of conversation is that they’re focusing on creating change on their campuses. They highlight what works and what doesn’t work in terms of getting support

“Marketing is not an option;
marketing is a line item in your budg”et.”

for the introduction of organic products into the cafeterias, or in the form of organic t-shirts and sweatshirts for the university stores. The blog is going to spin off into a guide for how to go organic on college campuses, which is going to be published very soon.

show this June. Before the trade show, we will be doing consumer events and sampling in the Chicago market.

There are three potential elements to the program. One is a standalone event that is fully focused on organic. Families can experience organic products and kids can learn about organic production in an interactive, fun agricultural area.

The second option is to provide organic sampling and education at existing attractions in Chicago like the zoo or other places where families gather.

The third component would be guerilla sampling, which would be mobile and targeted, featuring street teams with backpacks and such.

Bushway: College students, of course, are our future, long-term consumers. They’re young and many of them will have children. We know their interest is key for us, so it’s great to be reaching them this way. It also gives organic another voice of authenticity.

OP: You’ve also mentioned something
called an “input almanac.” Can you
please tell us about this?
OP: You plan on reaching 25 million consumers in 2009 alone; how do you plan to
maintain this momentum?

Bushway: One of the things I said when I was being considered for this position is that marketing is not an option; marketing is a line item in your budget. Coming from an advertising and marketing background, I have seen how campaigns like this can dramatically help the agricultural and food industries. Plus, our membership has told us this is a huge issue for them. I think the important message here is that this marketing effort isn’t a one-time thing, this is just getting our toe in the water.

OTA is looking at marketing as a strategic priority going forward. It needs to be a part of the way we do business as a trade association.

OP: OTA is also planning to reach out through in-home consumer parties and large-
scale demonstration events. Can you talk about this more?

Batcha: We’re looking at ways to create an opportunity for organic products and the organic message to be experienced in a more intimate environment and to take advantage of the power of the word-of-mouth.

For example, with the back-to-school program, we’re looking at working with parent groups and providing information packets or guides to get them engaged in authentic choices in their children’s schools. We want to provide that information to small groups of people with a high level of interest and give them an opportunity to take action.

On the other end of the spectrum, we are also planning large-scale demonstration events in Chicago in conjunction with the All Things Organic trade

Batcha: This is a tool the industry can use to educate consumers. The almanac is a compilation of data regarding the chemical inputs that have not been released into the environment as a result of organic production and product sales.

For example, it might say something like, “As a result of the sale of X organic products in the U.S., X number of tons of pesticides and fertilizers have not been released into the environment in 2008.”

Because it’s going to be linked to our Manufacturer Survey, it can be broken up by category. It can also be forecasted into the future. We’re starting with basic inputs, focusing the first year around pesticides, and then we can expand that to include other practices related to organic that people care about, like carbon sequestration or animal welfare.