The latest £2.5 million phase of the AHDB ‘Pick Pork’ advertising campaign will hit TV screens from next Monday (September 17).
The adverts build on earlier calls to ‘break-up with boring’ with consumers enticed to try pork loin steaks and medallions, to increase their culinary confidence with these quick and easy-to-prepare cuts.
To encourage younger people to purchase pork, the campaign will also harness the power of social media influencers.
Research has shown that only one in five people know how to cook more than three pork dishes. To change that, influential cooks including Indian food specialist Hari Ghotra, Asian food experts The Dumpling Sisters – Amy & Julie Zhang, and family orientated foodies Taming Twin’s Sarah Barnes and A Mummy Too’s Emily Leary, will share recipes and cooking tips to inspire shoppers.
Liam Byrne, AHDB’s head of meat marketing, said: “We’re out to change shoppers’ perception of pork, putting more on plates through the week. We know if people don’t have the confidence to cook pork, with easy recipes to choose from, they simply won’t. We’re using a number of methods to change that.
“The new Pick Pork campaign runs from TV screens through to shops, with retailer support recognised as an important step early on. As shoppers browse, they will see on-pack recipe inspiration and promotions as they shop online. To encourage more retailers to back pork, we’ve also used front page trade advertising and we’re pleased that major supermarkets and independent butchers are supporting.”
The latest phase of the campaign has expanded from promoting just pork medallions into loin steaks and fillets as well. AHDB pork strategy director Angela Christison told the NPA producer group this week the campaign had received excellent buy in from all major the retailers, including Tesco, which is moving to 100% British on the promoted lines.
Research from Kantar Worldpanel showed the first campaign delivered incremental revenue of £13.2 million, with £6.43 of extra retail sales generated for each £1 of marketing media spend.
But Ms Christison was not just about boosting short-term sales but transforming the long-term image of pork on the eyes of consumers.
The adverts will run during some of the country’s most popular programmes, including Coronation Street, X Factor Auditions, Jonathan Ross, the Simpsons, Come Dine With Me and a showing of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire on September 29.