Monthly Shipping Report | January 2016

COUNCIL UPDATE

The Council office has moved! Our new address is 303 Twin Dolphin Drive, Suite 600, Redwood Shores, CA 94065; (650) 632-4250.

The next Council meeting is February 3-4, 2016 in Austin, TX. If you plan on attending, please email [email protected] so we can make sure you are accommodated.

Regional Meetings:
- CA: Tuesday, February 23 – Hilton Garden Inn, Gilroy
- PA: Thursday, February 25 – Hilton Garden Inn, Kennett Square
- Webinar: Thursday, February 26

At the Council meeting held on September 16, the Council voted to increase the assessment rate from .005 to .0055 starting January 1, 2016. The last time the assessment rate was increased was 2008.

Exemption Applications for 2016, as a courtesy, were mailed to those producers who are currently exempt. If you did not receive an application and believe you may be exempt email [email protected].
Nominations for the 2017 open Council positions will be mailed on or about February 1, 2016. Positions opening up are Region 1 (one position) Region 2; PA (one position) and Region 3 (one position). Please consider being a part of the Council.

SHIPMENT SUMMARY

To see current charts, click here.

MARKETING SUMMARY

Industry-ChartsThrough-Oct2015

Mushrooms appeared in a variety of holiday inspired recipes in local and national outlets, with some articles also speaking to their superfood qualities, namely their anti-cancer properties and their ability to help with seasonal affective disorder (SAD) thanks to their vitamin D content.

The Mushroom Channel published five blog posts that garnered 339 page views and accounted for .55% of all website referral traffic in December.

Print Media Placements

12/31/2015 – It’s time to give the veggie main dish its overdue credit, BONITA DAILY NEWS
12/31/2015 – Menu planner, ORLANDO SENTINEL
12/31/2015 – Menu planner, ORLANDO SENTINEL
12/30/2015 – “Help me dodge winter colds!”, WOMAN’S WORLD
12/30/2015 – 7-Day Menu Planer, WISCONSIN STATE JOURNAL
12/29/2015 – Creative Conservation, LAGUNA BEACH MAGAZINE
12/28/2015 – Hawaiian harvest: An exotic bounty, GREEN BAY PRESS-GAZETTE
12/28/2015 – Sunday Shopping, MIAMI HERALD
12/24/2015 – Menu planner, ORLANDO SENTINEL
12/23/2015 – Protect your precious memories from Alzheimer’s using these powerful natural extracts, NUTRITION & HEALING
12/23/2015 – New Year, New You (Minus the Meat), RICHMOND MAGAZINE
12/21/2015 – The Mushroom Council, AGRI MARKETING
12/17/2015 – Munch Mushrooms To Lose Weight, NATIONAL EXAMINER
12/16/2015 – Diets That Work, LIFE & STYLE WEEKLY
12/16/2015 – Reinventing vegan cuisine, MILWAUKEE JOURNAL SENTINEL
12/16/2015 – The Benefits of a Semi-Vegetarian Diet, CONSUMER REPORTS ON HEALTH
12/16/2015 – Do Immunity Boosters Work?, CONSUMER REPORTS ON HEALTH
12/1/2015 – Make room for mushrooms, Great Falls Tribune
12/1/2015 – Nigel Slater’s sautéed mushrooms and butterbean mash recipe, The Guardian
12/1/2015 – Holiday samosas? Indeed! Just add mushrooms and walnuts, The Columbian
12/2/2015 – Chestnut Mushroom Pie, Fox46
12/2/2015 – Roasted Wild Mushroom Lasagna, ABC The Chew
12/2/2015 – Bring stuffed mushrooms into the modern era (and to a party), Daily Republic
12/3/2015 – No-Bread Stuffing Croquettes With Wild Mushroom Gravy, HuffPost Taste
12/8/2015 – Recipe for cilantro-roast chicken with mushroom grits, The Boston Globe
12/9/2015 – Holiday samosas? Indeed! Just add mushrooms and walnuts, The Gazette (Associated Press)
12/9/2015 – Mushroom Barley Soup, The Forward
12/14/2015 – Make-ahead spinach and mushroom strata feeds a crowd, BlogHer (Garlic and Zest)
12/15/2015 – Mushroom Cocktails Are Officially a Thing—Here’s How to Make One, InStyle
12/15/2015 – 30 Veggie Stuffings and Sides for Your Holiday Dinner, One Green Planet
12/16/2015 – A New Year’s Eve kebab inspired by classic steakhouse foods, My SanAntonio (Associated Press)
12/16/2015 – The 6 Cancer-Fighting Superfoods You Should Eat Every Day, MindBodyGreen (mbg)
12/17/2015 – Recipe: Mushroom and Goat Cheese Tamales with Mole Verde, The Kitchn
12/17/2015 – Beurre Blanc is Butter Sauce for Adults, a Blessing, Food52
12/17/2015 – Meals on the Run: Cheesy Polenta with Caramelized Mushrooms, Runner’s World
12/18/2015 – Rosemary Chicken with Mushrooms and Endive, ABC’s The Chew
12/17/2015 – The Year in Fungi, The New Yorker
12/21/2015 – 5 Foods That Fight Seasonal Affective Disorder, eat Clean
12/22/2015 – Entertaining this holiday season? You need this cheese puff recipe, The Salt Lake Tribune

Digital Metrics

FOODSERVICE SUMMARY

Burger Promotion

While the Council begins to plan for BBP in 2016, we are still finalizing the work from last year. We continue to poll those who put a Blended burger on their menu, and numerous chefs continue to promote it. Found Social, the restaurant owned by Amy Morton of Morton’s Steakhouse fame, is one that says they will always have a Blended burger on their menu. The winning chefs continue to menu as well, and The Mushroom Council will be running an ad in Plate magazine to congratulate them.

New plans including our next generation partnership will be finalized next month.

Other Restaurants and Chains

Menu development with chains continued in December. There are a number of new mushroom items that are being advertised on TV, while the Council continues to work with chains on new potential dishes. Several menu development sessions and meetings with “new” chains are coming up, and we are working with Firebird’s Wood-Fired Grill on their next Blended burger. One chain that just prominently introduced a new item is Johnny Rockets, which launched a Portobello Chicken Sandwich with all- natural chicken breast topped with Gouda cheese, Portobello Mushrooms, Applewood Bacon and Spring Mix on a Brioche Bun.

The Council will be participating next year in the NRA’s Dietitian education group providing information on The Blend.

The Council is preparing for a number of meetings with chains at the Culinary Institute of America, including one with the top restaurants and another with the top retail chefs in the Prepared Deli segment.

Colleges and Universities and FSMs

The year ended with a demo and tasting of The Blend at UCLA. The chefs from that top school and a number of other chefs attended as we showcased how The Blend would work on campus.

The Council is preparing for the Culinary Challenge at USC and other events. NACUFS planning still continues with the Council speaking at several different regions this spring.

A major test is continuing at a major chain, with the Council supplying staff and other support to pilot the Blend.

SCHOOL NUTRITION SUMMARY

Following up on leads gathered at the Culinary Institute’s Healthy Kids Collaborative. Contacts in Nashville, San Diego, Maine, Sonoma CA and more expressed interest in testing the Blend in their districts.
The Montana Farm to School test is underway with product development for the three test districts. A session proposal was submitted to the farm to school conference summarizing the test which partners USDA mushrooms and local Montana beef.
Advertisements are currently being designed for 2016 School Nutrition magazine. The advertisements will continue to focus on promoting direct delivery of IQF diced mushrooms to enhance student meals.
The Sesame Street materials developed for Sodexo elementary schools were completed and shipped out to the school districts for a January launch. A follow up survey will be sent out to districts to ask whether the posters affected produce consumption.
The Council will be hosting a presentation on The Blend and a Blend sensory exercise at the School Nutrition Industry Conference in San Diego in January to a group of 60 school nutrition directors from across the country.
San Diego Unified is once again featuring mushrooms as their Harvest of the Month program. They are using a virtual farm tour, salad bar clings and posters to promote mushrooms to students.
All recipes on mushroomsinschools.com are currently being updated to meet changing meal pattern requirements. You can view the updated recipes and resources here.

NUTRITION

Distributed the winter issue of Nutrition News About Mushrooms to over 8,000 supermarket dietitians. This issue included an article on successful sodium reduction/umami by spokesperson and chef, Jackie Newgent, RD, an update on the dietary guidelines scientific advisory committee report, and a new client education handout on sodium reduction/umami in mushrooms. This newsletter was the first of our new format and style – thank you to Brittany for her design work on creating a more visually appealing, streamlined newsletter.

The Council is also working to finalize a new nutrition resource on weight management, which will be promoted in the Spring issue of Nutrition News About Mushrooms (March).

RETAIL

Supermarket RD

Planning for 2016 is well underway – The Council finalized its sponsorship of Oldways Supermarket Dietitian Symposium and submitted a proposal for a presentation to over 40 retail dietitians. We also confirmed a partnership with Retail Dietitians Business Alliance for 2016 – aligning ourselves with this organization will help us expand our supermarket dietitian database and develop new leads to explore retail Blend pilots with. With this partnership, the Council will reach its 1,900+ members with multiple touchpoints throughout the year, including a newsletter article, e-blast, webinar, and event sponsorship at FNCE. The Mushroom Council logo is also now featured on the sponsor page of their website.

The Council is working toward a March launch date for our new, comprehensive supermarket dietitian toolkit, which will be promoted at Oldways Supermarket Dietitian Symposium and via our partnership with Retail Dietitians Business Alliance.

Kroger’s retail dietitians are including three mushroom recipes in their pilot digital circulars (late January – March). We will share examples once they launch.

Weis dietitian is including mushrooms as part of their superfoods program, which includes 4×6” signs that will be displayed in stores with nutrition information and usage tips (similar to the avocado example displayed here).

Working with Kroger dietitian to provide a testimonial for MushroomsAtRetail.com

Retail Summary

The Council continues to target small to mid-sized regional retailers (on both coasts) for the introduction of The Blend in the grocery chain’s deli, foodservice, produce and meat departments.

We continue to reach out to to retailers as well as start our 2016 year with newly updated sales information and co-marketing plans that promote mushrooms and The Blend at retail.

Shippers/Growers

The Council is working with shippers on programs, promotions and materials to generate awareness and sales of The Blend at retail. The Council provides hands-on marketing consultation to assist shippers in increasing their sales of The Blend and mushrooms. Please contact Fusion Marketing if you would like marketing assistance with your Blend or mushroom programs. Contact information can be found at MushroomsAtRetail.com.

Mother’s Market and Kitchen is a regional chain which features the largest selection of certified organic fruits and vegetables in Orange County, California. The store specializes in many categories including vegan, organic, gluten-free, low –carb, and kosher plus others. They also serve food and have healthy menu items in their stores. It is a great way to get consumers to try The Blend in their kitchen and at their market. The Council is meeting with this retailer and their shipper in January to discuss how they can sell and promote The Blend to meet their customer’s needs.

Co-Marketing

The Council is lining-up opportunities for 2016 retail co-marketing promotions.

The Council has a meeting scheduled for late January with the Beef Checkoff to discuss details of the 2016 Retail Summer Grilling promotion. This promotion may include on-pack labels, TV spots and social media. During the meeting, a new CIA developed Blend recipe will be discussed for the promotion. The Beef Checkoff is excited to work with The Council again this year for another successful promotion.

Promotional Materials

The Blend presentation deck that can be utilized by your sales force is being updated and greatly simplified. The new deck will be posted to MushroomsAtRetail in January.

The Council has been working with Kara Lydon on developing SRD plans and programs. Steven and Kara will attend the Oldways Symposium March 22-24 at the Ritz Carlton in New Orleans. Although later in the year, planning for the FNCE Food & Nutrition Conference and Expo is underway. The FNCE Conference is scheduled for October 15-18 in Boston.

Retailer Data Information

The Council continues to deliver The Tracker Suite on a monthly basis. Additionally, ad hoc retail data information is provided to the Council’s staff whenever needed. The Council provides assistance for category managers and staff to better understand data assets. Be sure to track your market to see how your region and markets are performing.

Industry Tools

Boards Cater to Foodservice – The Packer
Eat Brighter Marketers Note 3% Sales Gain – The Packer
Eat Brighter Boosts Sales of Branded Products – The Produce News

TOPLINE REPORT

Tracker Highlights from 11/29/2015

Spotlight – Notable and Newsworthy

In the 4-weeks – Mushrooms Category Surges -Total U.S. Up +6.6%
In the 52-weeks – Cremini Mushrooms Drive 100% of Brown Dollar Growth – Portabella Sales Slide

Click here for the full report