Black Gold Farms is helping retailers spread the message that this year, red is the new color of St. Patrick's Day. While the color green may be synonymous with the holiday, red potatoes are already part of many people’s St. Patrick’s Day feast, regardless of whether they’re Irish. The sales numbers show it: Red potato volume is 40 percent greater in March than the average of other months, according to Nielsen FreshFacts data from 2015.
The only thing that could make red potato sales even stronger this March is to make St. Patrick’s Day celebrations last longer than the holiday hangover. That is just what Black Gold Farms is going to do by promoting red potatoes as the lucky charm for turning leftovers into a week of great meals.
“We will help retailers tantalize their shoppers and drive greater red potato purchases with delicious corned beef and red potato hash leftovers that can be turned into [recipes such as] top o’ the mornin’ muffins or O’Leary’s leftover pizza and even Irish egg rolls,” says Don Ladhoff, director of fresh marketing and sales for Black Gold Farms. “Even better, by encouraging shoppers to enjoy more St. Patrick’s Day-themed leftovers, we will help retailers not only move more red potatoes, but also to sell more of other produce categories such as cabbage, carrots and onions.”
For a limited time, Black Gold Farms will be packaging its red potatoes in custom 5-pound poly bags that urge shoppers to “make magic this St. Patrick’s Day” and highlight a recipe for corned beef and red potato hash on the back of the package. Retailers can drive sales further by merchandising red potatoes using promotional materials including attention-grabbing posters that showcase three different leftover recipes, as well as shelf talkers and special Kwik Lok tags that encourage shoppers to “see how red potatoes turn leftovers into great meals.” Pallet bin displays are also available, and social media efforts will bring even more awareness of red being the new color of St. Patrick’s Day.
Source: Fresh Plaza