Marketing Your Produce - Marketing to diverse tastes
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In China, wearing a green hat means your wife has been unfaithful. As Michigan State University Ag Extension Agent Ron Goldy explains, you need to know these cultural cues when marketing to different ethnics groups. (As Goldy explains in the video, an orchard owner who gave his workers green hatsfiinallly figured out why his customers would not talk to them.) The opportunity for success can be great in targeting specific ethnic groups, but so is the possibility of garbled communication. In this video, Goldy talks about why it is the farmer who must learn and adapt.
The Tohono O'odham people live on 2.5 million acres outside Tucson. In this video, Tristan Reader and Karen Blaine talk about how returning to a traditional diet helps tribe members deal with issues of obesity and diabetes. The Kellogg Food & Fitness initiative supports the effort with technical assistance from Michigan State University's C. S. Mott Group for Sustainable Food Systems.
British gardener Joy Larkom offers tips on growing these exotic vegetables, as well as sources for seeds. She also offers information on everything from Asian culture to building a hoophouse.
A promising strategy to boost the profits of a sustainable agriculture enterprise is to raise foods for specific ethnic communities in your area. People from other cultures will often pay a premium for fresh vegetables, fruits, meat, milk and eggs that echo foods from home. Finding ways to serve their needs offers an opportunity to build a customer base that will remain loyal.
However, building that relationship requires more than just producing the right foodstuffs. It also means demonstrating an understanding of and respect for diverse cultures and customs. So this ever-expanding section not only offers information on the foods that various ethnic groups love, but also on the cultural issues you should know and respect.
Visit us again and again for ideas, tips, techniques and advice on everything from how to grow unique vegetables to recipes to share with your customers to advice on training workers to be culturally sensitive. Please e-mail us to suggest cultures you would like us to feature and please also join our forum to exchange information and ideas.
