Wild Blueberry Association launches "colourful" marketing campaign

The Wild Blueberry Association of North America (WBANA) is launching a consumer marketing campaign to educate the consumer about the potential health benefits of "blue" fruits, such as wild blueberries. The campaign highlights recent research showing the benefits of a diet including fruits and vegetables of different colours, and follows the recent publication in the US of The Color Code​, written by nutritionists who promote the "colour story".

"We see the colour story as the greatest opportunity in the marketplace for educating the consumer about the inherent benefits and value of fruits and vegetables,"​ said John Suave, executive director of WBANA, an international trade association of growers and processors of Wild Blueberries from Canada.

He added that the campaign, using the slogan "The Power of Blue", will encourage consumers to put WBANA product Wild Blueberries at the top of their shopping lists. He said : "It's no longer okay to have just a few servings of one fruit or another. Research is telling us that we need all the colours in our diet - including blue."​

The WBANA is also pointing to the convenience of their Wild Blueberries, which are sold frozen. With the FDA claiming that the nutritional value of frozen produce is as good as fresh produce, and in the UK, news of the re-labelling of tinned Heinz products as "healthy", consumers may indeed be more willing to opt for frozen products.

In The Color Code​, a collaboration between Dr James Joseph, Chief of the Neuroscience Laboratory at the USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University, the endocrinologist Dr. Daniel Nadeau, and Newsweek health and nutrition writer Anne Underwood, the potential health benefits of phytochemicals, the natural compounds that make Wild Blueberries blue, tomatoes red and spinach green are examined.

Blueberries are rich in anthocyanins (from two Greek words meaning "plant" and "blue"). It is these compounds that are responsible for the their blue colour and antioxidant activity. Antioxidants are known to help fight cancer, heart disease and ageing, and the WBANA notes that blueberries are ranked number one in antioxidant activity by the USDA.

Sauve added: "We hope to work collaboratively with the Produce for Better Health Foundation's 5 A Day program as they step up their efforts to increase America's daily consumption of fruits and vegetables."​

According to Suave, just a half-cup of Wild Blueberries satisfies one of the recommended 5 A Day servings of fruits and vegetables.

The Power of Blue campaign message will appear in national women's health magazines in both the United States and Canada. In addition to the consumer print campaign, the Association will utilize Internet marketing, trade advertising and public relations to reach its target audiences.

The campaign's principal target is women, aged 35-plus with an interest in health and nutrition. The WBANA will also target ageing baby boomers and work with the ingredient trade to stimulate the development of new consumer products made with wild blueberries.