March 7, 2008

DELIVERING THE “POTATO COOKING CONVENIENCE” MESSAGE

Armed with the convenient potato cooking story, the USPB Public Relations team visited the kitchen staffs of food and lifestyle magazines in New York last June. Bruce Weinstein and Mark Scarbrough, authors of the Ultimate Potato cookbook, demonstrated the recently developed convenience microwave cooking techniques. The USPB team also presented information on the International Year of the Potato and potato research.

This attachment, showing a great looking baked potato and the tip not to poke their potatoes before microwaving, ran in Everyday with Rachael Ray as a result. Other consumer pick-ups of this information include Relish, a newspaper insert on food, Food and Wine magazine, Martha Stewart radio, and Bon Appétit magazine.   

R R Potato.pdf

THERE’S STILL TIME!!! EXCELLENT OPPORTUNITY FOR TABLE-STOCK GROWERS INTERESTED IN EXPORTING TO SOUTHEAST ASIA

The Food & Hotel Asia Show is being held at the Singapore Expo, April 22-25, 2008.  The United States Potato Board (USPB) will have a US potato booth at the show and invites all interested US table-stock growers, shippers and their importers to join the USPB pavilion. Food & Hotel Asia is Asia’s largest international food and hospitality event. This biennial show had over 37,000 trade visitors and exhibiting companies at the April 2006 show. For more information, please visit www.foodnhotelasia.com.    

Located in the USA Pavilion, table space in the USPB booth is limited, so respond as soon as possible to ensure your place. This is a great opportunity to meet potential customers in person and represent the United States among companies from all around the world. 

If you are a new exporter to Southeast Asia, this is a great opportunity for you to learn about the market and meet the trade that is interested in purchasing US potatoes. If you are a current exporter to Southeast Asia, we encourage you to attend with your local importer. If you do not attend and your local importer is still interested, they are welcome to participate for only $250.00. 

For only the cost of your hotel and airfare, you receive many benefits including:

• The USPB’s representatives from Singapore will decorate the entire booth.
• The USPB will provide several different US potato varieties to display at the booth
• Translation will be provided
• You’ll receive table space to display your company information and materials
• The day before the trade show, the USPB will present our programs, overview the market and visit retail outlets.

2007 RESEARCH PROJECTS

Tuesday, March 11th, on the front end of the 2008 USPB Annual Meeting, Domestic Marketing staff will be providing the summary top-line for the 2007/2008 National Eating Trends (NET) Consumer Study, along with the Attitude & Usage (A&U) Consumer Study. Additionally, we’ll be covering 2007 Frozen Foodservice Performance and Nielsen Supermarket Performance. If you are not able, or planning on attending, CD’s of this important consumer and sales performance will be available approximately four weeks after the meeting. Contact Mac Johnson, Vice President, Domestic Marketing, at the USPB, 303-369-7783 or macjohnson@uspotatoes.com, if you’d like to receive a copy.

Additionally, Sterling Rice, our new ad agency, will be providing an update of the New “Potatoes…Goodness Unearthed™” campaign.

US FROZEN POTATOES ARE POPPING UP EVERYWHERE IN KOREA

January saw the launch of a number of different US frozen potato products on menus and in retail stores in Korea. GS 25, the biggest convenience store chain in Korea, with about 1000 stores nationwide, launched Bennigan’s baked potato. GS 25 tied in with Bennigan’s in October 2007 selling two pasta menus. They found this co-marketing very successful and decided to launch five additional menus that included baked potatoes at their convenience stores.

Home plus, the 2nd largest hypermarket in Korea with 66 stores nationwide, launched glazed crunch fries at their deli shop in 10 selected stores.  This is a ready to eat product served hot in plastic containers. 
Homever, a major hypermarket with 35 stores in Korea, launched crunch fries in their deli section at 14 selected stores in the Seoul metropolitan area. Consumers are able to serve themselves these battered and coated fries from the warming trey.

Costco Korea, with six stores nationwide, launched Mashed Potato & Meat Loaf as a ready to eat meal that just needs to be reheated. The mashed potatoes are frozen mashed from the US.

E Mart, the largest hypermarket chain in Korea, recently launched US frozen potato products on its online mall. US frozen potatoes are now on three major online shopping services in Korea.  The US frozen potato products listed in the E Mart online mall are shoestring fries, red skin dices with two different flavors, baby bakers, crunch wedges, spudsters, hash browns, and frozen whole potatoes. E Mart is also considering adding these products to the frozen section in its over 100 off line stores nationwide.  Click here to view the E Mart online shopping homepage.

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