Ready to Try Certified Organic Soup? Walnut Acres to Conduct Large Sampling Effort.

Business Editors & Health/Medical Writers

BIOWIRE2K

NEW ROCHELLE, N.Y.--(BW HealthWire)--Oct. 2, 2001

As part of a national product rollout, Walnut Acres is kicking off its first major sampling effort of its 56-year history.

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"In the wake of recent tragedies we will continue with our plan to bring the comfort and convenience of our certified organic foods to more people than ever before," said Mark S. Rodriguez, CEO of Acirca, Inc., Walnut Acres' parent company. The organic food & beverage industry is growing quickly: North America retail sales of the $8 billion industry have grown an average of 24 percent per year over the past decade. "As America's original organic food brand Walnut Acres will be the first to introduce the benefits of organic foods to literally hundreds of thousands of Americans," said Rodriguez.

The sampling campaign features a mobile chef's organic garden with a 12-foot greenhouse and eight-foot sampling kitchen converted from a 20-foot trailer. Visitors can examine certified organic produce, taste certified organic soups and salsas, and take home a kit with "All the Good Stuff," including a full 15-oz. jar of Walnut Acres certified organic soup or salsa, a "Guide to Certified Organic Foods and Beverages" and a Walnut Acres coupon. A Walnut Acres "organic veggie brigade" --one carrot, one tomato and one ear of corn--will accompany the mobile chef's organic garden to selected events and festivals wearing costumes made entirely of organic materials.

The mobile chef's organic garden will travel throughout New York City from October 2 through November 18 before making a planned appearance in conjunction with the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade on November 22.

In Seattle, a radio promotion and children's coloring contest will support the sampling, which began on September 15 and will run until October 14. The mobile chef's organic garden visits throughout locations throughout Seattle include Pioneer Square, Bellevue Square, Seattle Center and Pike Place.

In both cities, dedicated sampling teams will distribute "All The Good Stuff" sample packs at locations not visited by the vehicle. A full sampling program will also be launched in other cities in late-2001 and into 2002.