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New Jersey’s growers harvest about $ 220 million of fresh fruits and vegetables each year. Local access to large affluent markets has long been an advantage for the marketing of those products, and while our markets are still there, competition for those markets has become tougher. New Jersey’s produce industry must work to continue to rediscover its competitive advantage – access to nearby markets and consumer loyalty.
In 2003 over 2,500 retail supermarkets, community and farmer’s markets received Jersey Fresh point of sale advertising materials. On a national level the Department begun working with such national organizations as Wal-Mart, Dole, Melissa’s Produce, Ready-Pac and Fresh Express to explore ways that New Jersey can improve it’s position within the national 52-week supply cycle dominating an increasingly consolidated produce industry. Working with the Department of Corrections, and the School Lunch Program, purchases of New Jersey produce for those institutions were increased in 2003. The Department also worked to open ten new community markets providing growers greater access directly to their consumers.
The new 2004 produce industry economic development strategies will focus on agri-tourism and improving marketing efforts to the hotel, restaurant and institutional industry. The Department also seeks to expand the Jersey Fresh program to include other industry groups such as horticultural, aquaculture and seafood products. Efforts to work with value-added produce processors, state operated institutions and local schools will also be continued in 2004. The Department will also be continuing to provide affordable third-party food certifications.
1.1 Jersey Fresh Hospitality Industry Program
1) STRATEGY - Develop a “Jersey Fresh Hospitality Industry Program.” The program would work closely with the industry and include many elements to strengthen the marketing of “Jersey Fresh’ produce to hotel, restaurant and institutional food service industries. The program will;
- Involve members of the N.J. Restaurant Association, Slow Food of Central New Jersey and local chapters of the Professional Chef’s Association.
- Promote participating restaurants to the public via the Internet and other means, including the NJDA website.
- Provide suppliers directories and point of sale advertising to the industry.
- Promote “Jersey Fresh” produce and menu themes to restaurants and culinary contests.
1.2 Increase Produce Branding
2) STRATEGY –The Department will promote the use of twist ties, rubber bands and other banding material that identifies Jersey Fresh produce at the point of sale by coordinating the distribution of six million Jersey Fresh twist ties.
1.3 Promote Vertical Integration
3) STRATEGY - Encourage New Jersey producers to become more involved in the distribution channels that serve the needs of consolidated buyers seeking full service, year round, suppliers. Work in conjunction with Rutgers University and Farm Bureau to facilitate the search for strategic alliances and new methods to better integrate New Jersey’s produce industry into the year-round supply model.
4) STRATEGY - Promote centralized packing and marketing and increased participation in marketing cooperatives. This will provide better economies of scale to meet the packing, storing and regulatory requirements of big buyers, seeking quality standardization and better customer service.
1.4 Continue to Seek New Markets
5) STRATEGY - Continue working with the Department of Corrections to facilitate state Treasury purchases of over-produced and under-valued New Jersey farm products. Seek to have 2004 produce purchases by the Department of Corrections in excess of
$ 250,000. Continue seeking increased purchases of New Jersey farm products for school lunch and school breakfast programs.
6) STRATEGY - Continue supporting New Jersey agriculture in Canada. Though a joint New York and New Jersey study of the Canadian marketplace, the Department will move forward to better understand the market opportunities for New Jersey agriculture in Canada.
1.5 Strengthen Existing and Seek New Community Markets
7) STRATEGY - Maintain a list of existing and new community farm markets that are seeking increased farmer participation. Identify and promote the existence of community farm markets to the public and within the agricultural community.
1.6 Expand Jersey Fresh Program
8) STRATEGY - Develop a proposal to expand the NJDA's “Jersey Fresh” program funding based upon the results of the “Jersey Fresh Economic Impact Study.”
9) STRATEGY - Work to strengthen the appeal of the “Jersey Fresh” brand to retail supermarket chains. Over the past five years, increased retail use of the “Locally Grown” product claim has been causing gradual erosion in the use of the “Jersey Fresh” advertising message at the point of sale. The NJDA will develop a re-education and public relations campaign targeting food retailers to reinvigorate interest in marketing “Jersey Fresh.” The value added to the “Jersey Fresh” program by the Department’s leading third party food certification program will be promoted to retailers as a part of the renewed brand promotion.
10) STRATEGY – Re-evaluate the awards criteria for the Jersey Fresh matched funds program to better reflect applicant’s past performance and better gauge the impact of new applications.
11) STRATEGY – Continue to broaden the “Jersey Fresh” promotional program to be more inclusive of all New Jersey produced fruits and vegetables, especially herbs and hydroponically and greenhouse produced fruits and vegetables and update “Jersey Fresh” Quality Grading standards to include non-traditional produce items if necessary.
1.7 Continue Third Party Food Certifications
Continue providing affordable third-party food certifications required by the produce industry. As consolidation continues in the retail produce industry, so will the trend toward third-party food certifications. In addition to high quality controls, consolidated retailers will be requiring the improved trace-back ability third-party certifications offer.
12) STRATEGY – Seek to provide cost effective and affordable third party food certifications and seek improved methods to communicate the benefits of the Quality Grading Program and Third Party Food Certifications.
1.8 Improve Retailer Coordination
13) STRATEGY – Continue weekly dialogue involving Department representatives, growers, producers, wholesalers and retailers of New Jersey agricultural products.
1.9 Explore Contract Growing
14) STRATEGY – Continue working to identify the economics of contract growing to enable growers to establish a market price prior to production thereby reducing their exposure to market and price volatility.
15) STRATEGY - Assist growers in identifying local and regional fresh market processors and determining the needs of those processors. Create a list of area fresh
produce processors and the products they need.
1.01 Identify Alternate Crops
16) STRATEGY - Expand the search for alternate crops that can be produced in New Jersey and identify channels of distribution for those crops. Support the “Demographics and the Marketing of Ethnic Produce in the Mid-Atlantic States” research project that will identify new crops that can be grown in New Jersey and targeted at specific communities.
1.02 Value-Added Produce
17) STRATEGY - Evaluate Ethanol Plant Flash Freeze Co2 applications for Value-Added Products. As part of 2003 Value Added Grant to study a possible ethanol plant flash freeze facility, conduct marketing research to evaluate flash freeze applications for vegetable & fruit products grown in the Garden State. In particular, marketing research will be conducted to evaluate the implications of flash freezing products for the school, institutional and foodservice markets.
18) STRATEGY - Promote the availability of value-added grants and develop new proposals for the Value-Added Grant Program.
