Brand enhancement | Label can be used on fresh fruit to tell consumers it is locally grown
Prairie fruit growers hope the image of a strawberry can do for their industry what a green leaf did for tree fruit growers in British Columbia.
Growers in those provinces now have a logo to call their own, thanks to a partnership of the three prairie producer groups called the Canadian Prairie Fruit Federation initiative.
The logo, which features the image of a strawberry and the word “local” in large letters, is available for growers to use for free in U-pick and farmers markets.
“I guess the hope is that it’ll be as identifiable as … the old B.C. (Tree) Fruits logo with the green leaf,” said Blaine Staples, vice-president of the Alberta Farm Fresh Producers Association.
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It was first rolled out last year, but the group hopes the image will be more widely used this season.
“I’m hoping that we’re able to develop it across the Prairies as a bit of a brand,” he said.
“As individual farmers, we’re all trying to develop our own brand, but I think it would also be of great benefit to develop a prairie wide brand that identifies what we’re doing really quickly to the consumer and makes it visually appealing.”
A marketing company was hired in 2011 and focus groups were held to help the industry attract business from buyers interested in locally grown food.
“The urban population, some are surprised that we can even grow strawberries on the Prairies, for example,” said Anthony Mintenko, the provincial fruit crops specialist in Manitoba.
“Just to get that awareness out there, I think, is important.”
The label has been used on packages for fresh products such as strawberries, but it could have other uses as well.
“There’s definitely potential to be using it in wholesale through a conventional retail chain type situation,” said Staples. “There isn’t a huge amount of that kind of fruit marketing being done across the Prairies right at the moment. That’s kind of a growing industry, and I think as the industry grows, the logo may be used more.”
