A Ukrainian heritage rich in language, dance and food serves Luanne
Lashyn well in her job selling prairie products to the world.
The executive director of the Saskatchewan Food Processors Association
will follow this day of food merchandising and marketing with an
evening of teaching Ukrainian dancing to children.
One of five children in her family, she grew up celebrating events like
Easter and Christmas with a wide variety of special food. Picking up
bits of the Ukrainian language spoken by her baba and gido would later
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help her learn the Czechoslovakian language while working as a
marketing director in Prague.
“One of the best parts of Canada is that we are multicultural and we do
take pride in where we come from,” said Lashyn, who serves on the board
of the Vesna Festival, a Ukrainian cultural event.
Since 1996, she has helped Saskatchewan producers and companies access
markets, trade shows and conferences, while advising on labels and
packaging.
A team of four full-time staff work with retailers to carry
Saskatchewan-made tags that flag home-grown goods for consumers. It
takes creativity to do this job, she said, citing a wide variety of
clients and products.
Attired in a tailored blue business suit, she said it’s important to
convey professionalism in the association and its displays. The
association is a presence at many trade shows, with its black and white
pavilion flogging Saskatchewan goods.
A newsletter further promotes the group, which is also developing an
interactive website for consumers to learn more about what is produced
in the province.
To showcase products and increase market share for Saskatchewan goods,
the association hosts annual shows like A Taste of Spring wine and food
show April 25-27 in Regina and the Premiere wine and food show April
26-28 in Saskatoon.
Lashyn said there is little food manufacturing in the province relative
to the amount of food produced. For example, more than 80 percent of
Canada’s mustard seed is grown in Saskatchewan but hardly any is
processed here.
Her current project is assembling a product evaluation team by summer
to help members be better prepared to enter the marketplace with a new
product. It would bring together experts, including a food scientist, a
chef and a retailer to evaluate the product, its marketing,
presentation and distribution.
“One of the biggest stumbling blocks in marketing is we are very
product focused,” she said. “It’s important for companies to understand
how important it is to have proper marketing.”
Lashyn said growth areas include ready-to-eat and ethnic foods. There
are also opportunities for high protein pulses as people incorporate
more vegetarian dishes into their meal plans.
“Even though they want it faster, they still want it to be high
quality.”
