Foundation For Fresh Produce gears up for National Fruits & Veggies Month 2023 in September

August 29, 2023 – With September just a few days away, The Foundation For Fresh Produce (FFP) is gearing up to celebrate the fifth annual National Fruits & Veggies Month (NFVM).

Launched alongside the Have A Plant Movement in 2019 as an opportunity to elevate fruit and vegetable consumption to a national priority, the annual month-long observance has reached more than 260 million impressions collectively since its inception.

This year’s 2023 Theme: Every Time You Eat, Have A Plant, explores all the ways we celebrate fruits and veggies throughout the consumers’ consumption journey, the journey they make from the fields to our tables and the joy they bring us along the way. While shopping, dining out, enjoying a meal with family, snacking, hosting or brunching, every time you eat, Have A Plant!

“We are super pumped for this year’s theme and the buzz we’re hearing from the industry for this year’s celebration,” said Katie Calligaro, director, Have A Plant Marketing & Communications, FFP. “Backed by our army of Have A Plant Ambassadors who provide us content in-kind through their amazing work, this year is sure to reach consumers in a powerful way! We encourage everyone to leverage our events on social and traditional media to promote your own products and brands – only together, can we create appeal to inspire consumers to eat and enjoy more fruits and vegetables for happier, healthier lives.”

Here are some of the activations FFP is supporting that everyone should be engaging in throughout the month:

• Have A Plant Cook Alongs on Facebook Live: Join and engage with our 1 million followers on Facebook!
  • August 31^st at 5:00 PM EST: National Fruits & Veggies Month Kickoff Celebration: #ThirstyThursday With Nicole Rodriguez
  • September 13^th at 4:00 PM EST: Have A Plant® Cook Along: Family Fiesta With Meghan Sedivy
• Weekly Instagram Series: Follow our Every Time You Eat, Have A Plant® social media campaign featuring various Have A Plant® Ambassadors every Friday in September
• Weekly TV Segments on AZTV with Have A Plant® Ambassador Kristen Carli
  • September 5^th: Every Time You Pack, Have A Plant® sponsored by SunBelle
  • September 11^th: Every Time You Order, Have A Plant® sponsored by BakoSweet
  • September 18^th: Every Time You Eat, Have A Plant® sponsored by POM Wonderful
  • September 25^th: Every Time You Prep, Have A Plant® sponsored by Envy Apples
• September 26^th at 2:00 PM EST: Register for our Health & Wellness Webinar sponsored by U.S. Highbush Blueberry Council. Exploring the Power of Flavonoids: The Latest Research, Health Benefits and Practical Applications

For other ways to get involved, visit The National Fruits & Veggies Month Toolkit, available FREE for download HERE for inspiration on your social channels, activations in retail or ways to implement fun menu ideas in food service.

Looking to do more?

• Post weekly on your social channels. Find sample social media posts as well as downloadable graphics on the Point Of Inspiration page in the toolkit. Or, click to download the National Fruits & Veggies Month logo below and create your own! Use the hashtags #haveaplant and #NFVM2023

• Highlight NFVM in a consumer-facing newsletter with one of the images from our Point Of Inspiration section as an ad or promo graphic. Link it to www.fruitsandveggies.org/NFVM.
• Drive awareness about NFVM on your personal or company LinkedIn pages to increase awareness and show your personal commitment to improving fruit and vegetable consumption in America.
• Leverage NFVM as a media hook for your consumer-facing print or broadcast media opportunities this month.
• Share stories from farmers and growers that demonstrate the journey and care that goes into growing them (e.g. A day in the life of an onion) and how produce gets from the field to the table. The emotional connection and the eagerness to learn about where food comes from continues to inspire purchase behaviors.
• Educate consumers with fun facts and quick stats on how to best select, store, savor, and share your favorite produce. Get tips from our Fruits & Veggies Section on fruitsandveggies.org.
• Stay inspired and share creative tips, tricks and all-around impressive food hacks and stories by following along on Have A Plant® social media channels: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn.

For more information about how to get involved in NFVM, and how to customize your integrated marketing plans with FFP now and beyond September, contact Sharese Roper, Director, Industry & Partner Engagement for Have A Plant® programs.

About the Foundation for Fresh Produce (FFP)

The Foundation for Fresh Produce’s (FFP) vision is to grow a healthier world by changing the trajectory of human health. We believe the produce industry has the potential to provide solutions for many of the world’s greatest health and economic challenges – especially those surrounding nutrition and hunger. The Foundation focuses on improving the appeal of fruit and vegetables as an integral part of people’s diets, supporting the development of infrastructure and supply chain solutions that provide easier access, and establishing strategic alliances that enable children and families to form healthier eating habits. To galvanize the industry efforts to increase consumption of fruits and vegetables, the Foundation for Fresh Produce merged with the Produce For Better Health Foundation (PBH) in January 2023. PBH programming (inclusive of the Have A Plant® Movement) continues under FFP, dedicated to helping consumers live happier, healthy lives by eating more fruits and vegetables every single day.

CONTACT:

Katie Calligaro

Director, Have A Plant® Marketing & Communications

Foundation For Fresh Produce

412-848-1644