TALLAHASSEE – Shoppers in England will have the opportunity to “taste the warmth of Florida sunshine” during January and February when Florida pink grapefruit are featured in 220 Waitrose stores in and around London. The promotion builds upon a multiyear marketing relationship between Waitrose and the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS).
“We are very happy to again partner with Waitrose so that shoppers can enjoy Florida’s world-famous pink grapefruit,” Florida Agriculture Commissioner Charles H. Bronson said. “In addition to helping brighten the winter for many Londoners, the increased sales generated by this retail marketing campaign will be good news for Florida’s growers.”
As part of the Waitrose promotion, the upscale chain will feature in-store product signs produced by the department touting the theme “Taste the Warmth of Florida Sunshine.” Recipe cards for Florida pink grapefruit will also be available to Waitrose shoppers. In addition, the Florida pink grapefruit promotion will be featured in a half-page ad in “Waitrose Magazine.”
The promotion was originally planned for the month of January, with FDACS providing marketing and advertising dollars. However, Waitrose marketing executives decided to extend the promotion through February, absorbing all costs for the second month, to help maximize the exposure of the Florida pink grapefruit marketing initiative.
Over the years, promotions with Waitrose have generated an additional $6 million in farm gate receipts for Florida growers, based on export increases reported by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and FDACS marketing staff analyses. Those increased sales generate additional jobs and tax revenues for the state. The University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences estimates that each $1 million in gate receipts produces approximately 34 full-time jobs and over $130,000 in indirect tax revenues.
Since 2000, the Department’s Division of Marketing and Development has partnered with grocery chains around the globe to feature Florida-grown agricultural products in numerous retail promotions as part of the “Fresh from Florida” campaign. Over the years the number of retail partners has increased from two grocery chains and 298 stores, to 40 chains and more than 10,000 stores.
The marketing campaigns have featured more than two dozen Florida products. Participating grocery chains agree to include ads for Florida products in their advertising circulars. On average, about one-fourth of the ads are in Florida, half are in the continental United States, and one-fourth are in Canada, the United Kingdom, Central America, the Caribbean and South Korea.
Department marketing analysts estimate that last year’s retail marketing campaigns generated $142.8 million in farm gate receipts, resulting in 4,834 jobs in Florida and $17.9 million in indirect tax revenues.