Jul 6, 2023

Michigan asparagus group counts 2023 season successes

As the Michigan asparagus season ends, retail promotions, a new website, social promotions and a giveaway collaboration mark key highlights of the 2023 season, according to the Michigan Asparagus Advisory Board (MAAB).

The season kicked off with the launch of a new website that offers a more user-friendly experience, providing visitors the opportunity to access additional content that is interactive and informative, including recipes and grower highlights.

Throughout the season, online food influencers were part of the hype machine developing new recipes for breakfast, lunch and dinner to provide meal inspiration to promote purchases. The MAAB worked with three influencers who created 17 recipes and helped yield more than 308,000 impressions across the advisory board’s Facebook and Instagram accounts.

The buzz around the flavorful and tender nature of asparagus was apparent through over 45.03 million impressions generated through national food media and regular content on social channels.

New this year was a social giveaway collaboration with American Kitchen, “Cooking the American Dream Giveaway,” to highlight the American-grown and American-made products perfect for kitchens and family meals. That storytelling also included a new video series highlighting the delectable attributes and benefits of Michigan asparagus.

If online engagement created the inspiration, retailers did their part with the promotions that included digital promos, in-store displays and demos to incentivize purchases.

“As we end of the season, we are proud that our marketing efforts played a role in driving sales,” Jamie Clover Adams, executive director of the MAAB, said in a news release. “But looking ahead we know we still have work to do for the 2024 season and beyond to help buyers and consumers understand the quality opportunity in Michigan asparagus and lock in sales that support our domestic growers.”