Me want cauliflower!

Getting kids to eat more fresh produce: a look inside the eat brighter! movement

The eat brighter! movement offers the fresh produce industry royalty-free access to Sesame Street character images, and was forged by the Partnership for a Healthier America (PHA), which works with the private sector and PHA Honorary Chair First Lady Michelle Obama, to inspire children ages 2 to 5 and their families to eat more fresh fruits and vegetables. To learn more about the movement and how you can join, visit pma.com/eatbrighter.
 

A message from Cathy Burns, president, Produce Marketing Association

For the first time in 200 years, American children will face a shorter expected lifespan than their parents. Many reports, including one published by The New England Journal of Medicine, are emphasizing what we all know to be true: childhood obesity is crippling our nation’s children and something needs to give. As produce marketers, we have the power– and the responsibility– to help. Already, some of children’s favorite furry friends from Sesame Street including Big Bird, Elmo, Cookie Monster and five other character images have begun finding their way into retailers’ produce departments (independent, regional and national) throughout the United States and Canada.

Now, as we march forward with the mission to change the conversation around healthy eating and inspire young children and their families to eat more fresh fruits and vegetables, we are seeing a build of powerful momentum and we’re reaching exciting milestones. More than 40 retailers representing more than 25,000 stores are supporting the ‘eat brighter!’ movement. To date, more than 100 product lines and commodities are available with ‘eat brighter!’ packaging, including watermelon, carrots, celery, pineapple, citrus, grapes and blueberries.

A series of updates has been added to the program and marketing to allow produce industry members to incorporate the Sesame Street character images, royalty-free, into their marketing strategies.

Seasonal promotional tools found in the marketing toolkit offer a means to keep the ‘eat brighter!’ campaign lively and relevant on pack and in stores. The Autumn/Back to school, Winter/Holiday and Spring Grow options are simple ways to refresh.

‘Eat brighter!’ by the numbers:

0 The amount participants will pay in royalties for use of the program

9 The number of Sesame Street characters that can be used in a single marketing plan

14 The average number of days it will take you to complete the marketing agreement and get approved to use Sesame Street characters on product or on in-store display.

5500 The number of junk-food commercials children see in a single year, compared to 100 for healthy foods