Shipping Reports

Monthly Shipping Report | January 2014

January 27, 2014

COUNCIL UPDATE

  • A call for nominations for 3-year terms beginning January 1, 2015 will be mailed no later than February 3, 2014. The regions with a position opening up are Region 1; all states except CA & PA (one position), Region 2; PA (one position) and Region 4; Importer (one position). Please consider being a part of the Council. USDA and the Mushroom Council encourage all eligible producers, including women, minorities and individuals with disabilities to participate in the nominations and seek nomination to serve on the Council.
  • The next Council meeting is being held on February 27-28, 2014 in Orlando, FL. If you are interested in attending, please contact [email protected] so we can make sure that you are accommodated.
  • As a courtesy, Exemption Applications for 2014 have been mailed to those who currently hold an exemption number. Exempt producers must apply each year for exemption; 2013 exemption numbers are no longer valid and a new numbers are needed for 2014.


School Nutrition Sales Webinar – Fresh Sales Opportunity Opens Now. Will YOU be ready?

Schools throughout the country have heard how fresh mushrooms and mushroom blendability can tremendously benefit their meal plan. More schools than ever have incorporated salad bars, farm to school programs, fresh fruit and vegetable programs and scratch cooking opening up an immense and time sensitive opportunity for fresh mushroom sales.

Click here to read about how mushroom blended products in schools are among the top trends of 2014 to meet new nutrition standards.

Close the loop on demand by learning how to directly reach school nutrition customers NOW!

The 30 minute webinar will include:

  • Update on USDA regulations & USDA Mushroom availability
  • School Nutrition Ordering Cycle
  • Mushroom Council 2014 School Nutrition Advertisement Plan
  • 2014 School Nutrition State Shows
  • New Resources and Materials

Date: Friday, January 31, 2014

Time: 2:00PM EST – 1:00PM CST -11:00AM PST

To register:  https://www3.gotomeeting.com/register/193249182 – After registering you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the Webinar

 

SHIPMENT SUMMARY

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To see current charts click here.

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MARKETING SUMMARY

Mushroom Council Marketing Summary – December 2013

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  • NYT-Mushroom-RagoutMedia in 2013 was capped off by a week-long feature of mushrooms in the New York Times “Recipes for Health” column. The series started with a recipe for Mushroom Ragout and used that base in five different recipes throughout the week (One Mushroom Ragout, Five Meals). The following excerpt celebrates mushrooms’ versatility:
  • “I serve it [ragout] on its own, as a side dish, as the base for a risotto and a filling for a pie, taco and quesadilla, as a sauce for pasta and an omelet filling… Make this big batch and use it for lots of other dishes throughout the week.”
  • The Council’s ability to leverage mushrooms’ nutrient profile has been instrumental in securing media coverage and awareness of mushrooms. The arsenal of mushroom research established at the Mushrooms and Health Summit continues to crop up in media conversations. In December, with most of the country in the thick of cold (weather and flu) season, numerous media placements touted mushrooms for vitamin D and immunity, citing recent Council research. Additionally, weight management stories for the New Year included mushroom nutrition messaging as well.
  • The Council’s ability to leverage mushrooms’ nutrient profile has been instrumental in securing media coverage and awareness of mushrooms. The arsenal of mushroom research established at the Mushrooms and Health Summit continues to crop up in media conversations. In December, with most of the country in the thick of cold (weather and flu) season, numerous media placements touted mushrooms for vitamin D and immunity, citing recent Council research. Additionally, weight management stories for the New Year included mushroom nutrition messaging as well.
  • In 2014, the Council is continuing its partnership with Taste of Home Cooking Schools (TOH) to drive trial of fresh mushroom usage and build mushroom advocacy among consumers. The partnership will show consumers why the “Trend is to Blend,” by showcasing the numerous culinary and taste benefits of Blendability at the Cooking School events. More information will be shared in the coming months about TOH activities and opportunities to attend the events, which run from March through June.
  • 2013 Social Media Overview: The Council’s Facebook community doubled since Jan. 1, 2012, growing to surpass 100,000 fans (now nearly 125,000 to date). The Council also gained 1,300 new Twitter followers in 2013(5,114 in total).  Additionally, the Council’s Pinterest account, which launched in 2012, has experienced a 246% follower growth, totaling 6,926 followers in 2013.
  • Implementing paid support of Council messaging, promotions and outreach is a great way to reach new audiences with mushroom content that is already well received. In December, the Council initiated paid support to extend a Blendability blog post celebrating why “In 2013, The Trend Was To Blend!” This post received some of the highest engagement the Council has seen, reaching 268,800 people and garnering 7,065 likes, 2,070 shares and 102 comments.

Post by The Mushroom Channel.
  • The Mushroom Channel participated in two #HealthyHoliday Twitter parties in December: one hosted by Fruits and Veggies More Matters (PBH) and the other by Cooking Light. The Mushroom Channel shared 20 tweets leveraging the #HealthyHolidays hashtag, sharing Blendability tips and seasonal recipes. Combined, the #HealthyHolidays Twitter parties reached 294 participants.

Foodservice-Social-Posts-Dec13

  • In December, the Council hosted a Pin Party titled #AMushroomGathering – a first for the Council on the Pinterest platform. The Council partnered with two food bloggers with extensive reach on Pinterest (more than 125,000 followers combined) – The Little Kitchen and A Spicy Perspective – to reach new audiences with mushroom messaging. This virtual “party” ignited inspiration and conversation among a community of Pinterest users who were encouraged to share mushroom recipes and ideas during the hour-long pinning session. The host bloggers shared 86 mushroom recipes, which generated more than 942 repins. The Council gained 28 new followers, saw a 227% increase in referral traffic from Pinterest to Mushroominfo.com, and saw a site increase from an average of 70 visits in one day to 229 visits the day of the Pin Party.

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  • Search Engine Marketing drove approximately 15% of total visits to MushroomInfo.com.
    • Top performing keywords included “stuffed mushrooms,” “mushroom recipe,” “sausage stuffed mushrooms,” “crab stuffed mushrooms,” “mushroom soup” and “holiday recipes.”
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On the Horizon

  • The Council will be attending and exhibiting at the third annual Partnership for a Healthier America (PHA) Building A Healthier Future Summit on childhood obesity (March 12-14).

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FOODSERVICE SUMMARY

Industry Tools

Flik-ebookWorking with Flik Independent School Dining, the Council is creating its first E-Recipe book containing 12 recipes created by schools to use in their cafeterias.  As these are upscale preparatory schools on the East Coast, the recipes are different from the School Meal Patterns, but do indeed show how students love mushrooms.  The Council continues to work on other case histories and collateral to showcase the broad application and versatility of mushrooms.

Marketing Summary

Dec-Colleges-MushroomsWhile we continue to work with colleges like Stanford, USC, Yale, Harvard, UMass (now the top college foodservice in the nation), we are beginning to work with University of North Texas, University of Texas, Kansas State, University of San Diego and others.  Blendability is the focus, but meatless remains a hot button.

While we ended the year strong with chain LTO’s, the beginning of 2014 is just as strong, if not stronger.  A number of chains launched LTOs including California Pizza Kitchen’s Mediterranean Egg Rolls with wild mushrooms, eggplant, sun-dried tomatoes, caramelized onion, Mozzarella and Parmesan.   Outback Steak House introduced a Tilapia stuffed with crabmeat, sliced mushrooms in a Chablis butter sauce.

The Council completed a chef recipe contest at University of Southern California where 10 chefs competed for prizes.  We are getting those recipes presently, and will consider using them in publicity and potentially another E-Recipe Book.

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Zaxby’s, Stir Fry, Coco’s, Houlihans and Acapulco all introduced ethnic mushroom dishes on their promotional menus.  And Denny’s featured a “Build Your Own Skillet” promotion that featured mushrooms prominently and included them on the Philly & Egg Skillet, Chicken Chorizo Skillet and Sausage Supreme Skillet.

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On The Horizon

Upcoming will be more collateral, more LTOs and chains that want to get into new dayparts with mushrooms, At the end of the month we are launching major promotions at Stanford and USC, with others following.  CIA’s Worlds of Healthy Flavors is coming up, and The Council just completed a breakfast photo shoot in partnership with American Egg Board.  Those photos will be put into an E-Recipe book as well, and the industry can have access to the recipes.

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SCHOOL NUTRITION SUMMARY

  • Mushroom Council sampled blended meatballs at the California School Nutrition Show and met with several school meat processors to further product development
  • Three new school nutrition recipes including a mushroom flatbread were added to the mushroomsinschools.com. Ten more recipes are set to be completed by January
  • USDA mushroom shipments for January 2014 were closed. The states of Maryland and Pennsylvania split a truck to use in meals this spring. Districts in Colorado and Florida are also testing commodity mushroom blended entrees this spring. Orders for School Year 2014/2015 will open in February/March 2014.
  • A memo was shared with the industry notifying them of school nutrition progress and opportunity for mushroom sales in schools. An industry webinar is planned for January 31, 2014. Register here.
  • JTM Food Group of Cincinnati, OH has added six new mushroom blended products to their school nutrition product guide including two new burgers, meatball, meaty marinara, taco blend and pasta.
  • Initial advertising design for print and digital ads was created for 2014 school nutrition ad campaigns to appear in School Nutrition Magazine and CSI Food Pro.
  • Mushrooms have been officially added to the USDA Available Foods Catalogue for SY 2014/2015. They are listed as catalogue # – 110421. If you are interested in supplying mushrooms to the USDA for the National School Lunch Program and have questions about the Approved Vendor Process please contact Katie Preis. Orders for January have been placed and districts will be placing their orders for SY 2014/2015 in March to the USDA. It is imperative to be an approved vendor before March to take part in this opportunity!
  • Council School Nutrition resources can be found here.

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RETAIL SUMMARY

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The Topline report week ending 12/01/13 was sent to the industry on 1/15/14; click here to access the report online.

Spotlight – Notable and Newsworthy

  • The 4 week dollar growth rate (+8.2%) for total mushrooms was more than double the 52 week growth rate (+3.5%) in Total U.S. See below for more information on the increasing category momentum
  • White mushrooms posted a second consecutive positive dollar gain during the current 4 week period at +6.4%

 

Total Mushrooms – 4 Weeks

  • Total U.S. dollar sales increased +8.2%, with all Regions posting gains
  • The South Central Region led in dollar growth rate at +16.0%. Plains came in second, at +14.7%
  • On a Market basis, Omaha posted very strong dollar growth at +41.7% (a large gain on a smaller base). Only two Markets posted decreases, Philadelphia, down -2.6%, and Raleigh/Greensboro, down -2.4%
  • Volume in pounds for the Total U.S. increased by +6.6%. Plains led with the largest Regional increase in volume at +15.0%. No Region posted declines, but California was flat at +0.3%
  • At the Market level, Omaha showed the largest increase in volume at +36.9%

 

Segment/Variety – 4 Weeks

  • Total U.S. dollar sales of the White segment grew +6.4%, while Brown mushrooms grew +9.6% overall
  • Creminis showed an increase at +1.1%, while Portabellas posted strong growth, up +37.8%
  • On a Regional basis, Plains and South Central showed the largest White segment gains at +11.9%.
  • No Region posted a decline, while Midsouth was the only Region to post flat growth
  • The Brown segment saw double digit dollar sales growth in six of eight regions with South Central leading at +27.3%. California was the only Region to decline at -7.2%
  • At the Market level, White segment dollar trends were generally positive with 37 of 50 Markets posting gains. Omaha posted the largest gain at +42.4%, while Raleigh/Greensboro posted the largest decrease at -8.1%. Similarly, in the Brown segment, 41 of 50 Markets posted strong gains, including Denver (+46.9%) and Omaha (+41.6%)
  • Total U.S. volume in pounds for the White segment increased +5.1%, while the Brown segment saw overall volume growth of +9.1%, driven by Portabella mushrooms at +50.1%
  • On a Regional basis, the White segment delivered strong volume gains in the Plains and Great Lakes at +14.2% and +8.8%, respectively. Midsouth had the only White segment volume decline at -2.1%. In the Brown segment, South Central led the Regions at +19.8%. California showed the only decrease at   -13.6%

 

Total Mushrooms – 52 Weeks

  • Most Regions witnessed volume growth, led by Plains at +7.9% and West at +6.4%. Midsouth was flat
  • Total U.S. Dollar sales increased +3.5%. While six Regions posted gains, Midsouth and Northeast were flat
  • Plains (7.0% share) led the Regions with the top dollar sales trend of +8.6%, while Northeast holds the largest dollar share (20.8%)
  • Most Markets experienced dollar growth, notably Milwaukee (+18.3%), Omaha (+11.2%), and Cincinnati/Dayton (+10.6%)
  • Total U.S. mushroom volume in pounds grew +3.6%
  • Only nine of 50 Markets saw downward volume trends, including Harrisburg/Scranton (-3.6%), and Cleveland (-3.1%)

 

Segment/Variety – 52 Weeks

  • Total U.S. dollar sales for the White segment were flat, with Midsouth (-4.6%) and South Central (-2.4%) posting losses.  In the Brown segment, dollar sales were up +10.0% in Total U.S. Six Regions posted positive trends with five Regions in the double-digits
    • Brown segment dollar trends were driven by Portabella mushrooms, which hold a 30.1% dollar share of Browns and delivered sales growth of +32.5%
  • At the Market level, dollar sales trends in the White segment varied, ranging from an increase of +14.5% in Milwaukee to a -7.7% decline in Raleigh/Greensboro
  • The Brown segment saw very strong dollar sales gains across 43 of 50 Markets, with Denver leading at +34.9%. Hartford/Springfield showed a decline of -9.6%
  • Total U.S. volume in pounds of White mushrooms grew +1.0%, with gains seen in Plains (+5.4%), California (+4.1%), West (+2.4%) and Northeast (+2.4%). Total U.S. volume in pounds of Brown mushrooms grew +11.0%, led by South Central, with growth of +27.1%
    • Brown segment volume growth trends were driven by Portabella mushrooms which have a 27.5% volume share of Browns and delivered volume growth of +36.8%
  • As with dollars, the Market level volume trends for the White segment were mixed, with 26 Markets trending upward including Milwaukee (+18.2%) and Minneapolis/St. Paul (+9.7%)
  • The volume trend of Brown mushrooms fared better, with only six Markets trending downward. San Francisco (-16.7%) and Hartford/Springfield (-9.8%) posted the largest losses.
    • Strong volume increases in the Brown segment occurred in these Markets: New Orleans/Mobile (+34.5%), Dallas/Ft. Worth (+33.3%) and Salt Lake City (+32.7%)

 

Industry Tools

The Market Insights Retail Sales Tool and Updated Blueprint for Profit are now available for use.

 

Marketing Summary

  • Communications surrounding mushroom foodservice promotions was shared with the Packer for the January Mushroom Marketing Issue.
  • Mushroom marketing update was shared with Produce Business for the January Issue.
  • A press release on mushrooms in foodservice and Swap It Or Top It Retail Display contest will be shared with the trade press in January.

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