Peruvian Avocado Commission kicks off 2015 season with monumental marketing campaign and a salute to the men and women of the historic U.S.S. Cole.

A RECORD 150 POUND OF AVOCADOS TO BE IMPORTED INTO THE UNITED STATES THIS SUMMER.

Washington D.C., June 1, 2015 — The Peruvian Avocado Commission (PAC) kicked off the 2015 season by serving a super food breakfast to the men and women on board the famed USS Cole Navy ship during Fleet Week in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. This salute-the-troops event was a first in the history of the avocado category and jump starts a powerful five-month long marketing campaign that includes high-profile events and sponsorships, increased trade and consumer advertising, an expanded menu of retailer support programs and more opportunities to engage directly with consumers through social media initiatives.

Avocados from Peru (AFP) are the only avocados that will be at the peak of their season this summer, and a record 150 million pounds of AFP are projected to be imported into the United States between May and September.

“In the past three years, Avocados from Peru exports to the United States have tripled from 50 million to 150 million pounds making Peru one of the largest suppliers of avocados during the summer months,” stated Enrique Camet, PAC Board Chairman, “This growth is especially significant because the Avocados from Peru season is much shorter than any other major avocado growing region in the world.  Additionally, Peru is also a consistent supplier of large size fruit because of its climate conditions.”

Building on the success of last year’s campaign, AFP’s 2015 marketing program is designed to whet consumer’s appetites for the nutrient-dense super food and provide retailers with innovative incentives to prominently showcase AFP in the produce aisle.  “The 2015 campaign involves a variety of events and promotions similar to the breakfast served to the sailors on board the USS Cole that are firsts for the avocado category,” explained Xavier Equihua, President and Chief Executive Officer, PAC. “We want to reach consumers through a variety of media channels, constantly reminding them to make Avocados from Peru a part of their daily diet.”

The breakfast event on board the USS Cole will be featured as a special July 4th segment on the nationally syndicated Mr. Food Test Kitchen show on July 1.  The segment will air on more than 100 television stations across the country and reach millions of viewers.

Leading up to the July 4^th holiday, one of the highest avocado consumption periods during the year, AFP will host a series of high-profile media events on the east coast.  Internationally renowned chef, Martin Morales, the author of the award-winning cookbook Ceviche: Peruvian Kitchen, which was awarded the London Sunday Times Cookbook of the Year, and the founder and Managing Director of Ceviche Soho, Old Street, and Andina, three of London’s best new restaurants, will help generate excitement for AFP in New York City to help ramp up the season.  Chef Morales will act as the global ambassador for AFP at the Fancy Food Show; host a private dinner at the Peruvian Ambassador to the United Nation’s residence for top media and key customers; be featured as a guest chef at the renowned James Beard Foundation House, and conduct a special cooking demo at Condé Nast – the prominent media company and producer of high quality content.

In mid-June, the 48th Annual Smithsonian Folklife Festival in Washington D.C. will be co-sponsored by the Republic of Peru’s Ministry of Foreign Trade and Tourism. During the two-week long festival, which is expected to attract up to 1.1 million visitors, AFP will partner with the popular Peruvian Brothers, one of the official food suppliers of the event. Throughout the summer the Peruvian Brothers’ food trucks will be wrapped in beautiful images of Peru and fresh, ripe avocados and they’ve added AFP’s signature Quinoa and Avocado Salad to the menu. The event allows AFP to honor the U.S. at one of the largest events in the country.

All AFP events and promotions will be supported by an aggressive social media campaign. Contests, promotions, partnerships with high-profile bloggers and live chats will engage consumers and encourage them to try the fruit in new and different ways. Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest and Twitter will provide the growing AFP fan base with hundreds of reasons to select AFP, including new recipes and photographs and opportunities to share cool avo-tips.  Consumers will also have a chance to enter the “Summer Avocados Sweepstakes” and win a once-in-a-lifetime trip to Peru.

AFP’s popular website, which is more engaging and informative than ever, is designed to incentivize consumers to add more avocados to their diet:

• Unique visual approach, a first in the category, including increased use of video, which will also be shared on Instagram, Vine and on all social channels.
• New photos of mouth-watering dishes and pictures of life in Peru.
• Introduction of video capsules that creatively and artistically tell the story about AFP from the perfect growing conditions of Peru, to the country’s culturally rich heritage to the industry’s deep commitment to social responsibility and sustainability.
• Promotion section on the homepage that highlights AFP social media initiatives, videos and special topics.
• A downloadable free cookbook available on the website and on iBooks, promoted with a dramatic ‘movie-trailer’ style video on all AFP’s social channels.
• AVOMAG: the launch of the first in the category online magazine focusing on exciting news from the world of avocados.

ADVERTISING SUPPORT
Radio remains an important advertising channel for AFP. The successful thirty-second spot radio campaign that ran in 24 markets in 2014 will continue in 2015 with expanded reach and also air in select Spanish-language markets. The customized attention-grabbing spots that promote Peru’s fertile farmland and the fruit’s impressive nutritional profile will be available to all retailers in both English and Spanish.  In select markets the spots will be supported with value-added promotions.  Popular Internet music streaming service, Pandora, will run the spots.

To further promote the availability of the summer fruit, consumers in Washington, D.C., Philadelphia, Boston and visitors to the Aspen Food & Wine Classic may see their city buses wrapped as a larger-than-life full-color billboard featuring the picturesque landscape of Peru and of course, delicious Avocados from Peru.

AFP is known for making a splash in trade publications and 2015 won’t disappoint. To kick off the season, several trade publications will run special AFP editions in June. Print and online advertising has expanded to include several more media vehicles and the number of insertions will increase.

With increased marketing support and a large volume of fresh avocados imported from Peru, AFP has expanded its retailer program and is offering produce managers a greater variety of tools to merchandise the popular summer fruit.

• Co-branded newspaper ads and bus wraps.
• Bins with bold graphics featuring the signature AFP Machu Picchu brand image.
• New RPC wraps with a joint “Monumental Flavor” and “Summer Avocado” slogans and new recipe ideas that go beyond guacamole.
• Sesame Street “Eat Brighter” Campaign bins for retailers wanting to reach a younger demographic.
• Branded PLU stickers and mesh bags.
• Funding for IRC’s.
• Funding for demos taking place during the summer including the weeks leading up to the Fourth of July and Labor Day.
• New content for social media.

AFP will be engaging food service operators for the first time through a unique summer promotion with Restaurant Associates, one of the nation’s premier hospitality companies, operating over 100 prestigious locations on the East Coast and beyond.  During July and August, all Restaurant Associates’ high profile corporate locations such as New York Times, Morgan Stanley, HBO, and the NBA, will feature fresh menu offerings from AFP.  Restaurant Associates chefs will be encouraged to create innovative avocado-centric recipes during the promotion along with showcasing specialty Avocados from Peru recipes. Each corporate location will receive AFP signage, recipe cards, nutritional information and colorful posters.

The totality of all the 2015 initiatives, each complementing each other, will continue to strengthen AFP’s position as the peak summer avocado for consumers and retailers across the country.

ABOUT THE PERUVIAN AVOCADO COMMISSION

The Peruvian Avocado Commission (PAC) is headquartered in Washington, D.C. It was established in 2011 to increase the consumption/demand for Avocados from Peru through advertising, retail promotion and public relations. The PAC’s promotional activities are conducted under the guidelines of the Federal Promotion Program for Hass Avocados which is under the oversight of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

For more information about the PAC please visit www.avocadosfromperu.com or email info@avocadosfromperu.com.

Contact:
Sue Kennedy
EvansHardy+Young
302.547.3625
skennedy@ehy.com