Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
Branding in the food industry can become complicated.
A producer can, and in our opinion should, set out to establish their own
brand and make that brand recognizable as a sign of quality. Around the
world there are many examples of where the brand has become a household
name. Chiquita, for example, the banana supplier in the USA, is still recog-
nized as one of the top brands of all time.
Brand reputation can also be influenced by law.
The European Union has established three unique categories, 32 which is
a form of branding, for specific food that should be mentioned here, as they
add value to the produce and encourage culinary tourists to visit the desig-
nated regions.
PDO: Protected Designation of Origin. This applies where the produce is
a traditional produce and the whole process takes place within a designated
area. Products within this group include cheeses such as Gorgonzola,
Piave, Asiago, Camembert, Roquefort-sur-Soulzon and Parmigiano-
Reggiano; pies such as Melton Mowbray pork pies; cider from Somerset
and Champagne from the designated region.
PGI: Protected Geographic Indication. The PGI is the name of an area,
a specific place or, in exceptional cases, the name of a country, used as a
description of an agricultural product or a foodstuff, which comes from
such an area, place or country and has a specific quality attributed to its
geographical region and whose production, processing or preparation
takes place within the determined geographical area. An example is new
season Comber Potatoes. Under the regulation only immature potatoes
grown in a restricted geographical area surrounding the town of Comber
in Northern Ireland and harvested between the start of May and the end
of July can be marketed as Comber Earlies.
TSG: Traditional Specialities Guaranteed. This applies to traditional food
of a specific character but does not certify that the traditional food has a
link to a specific region. To qualify for a TSG a food must be of 'specific
character' and either its raw materials, production method or processing
must be 'traditional'.
Although the regulations can be confusing to the layperson, they are
mentioned here as a marketing opportunity where the produce has been
given an added value status and a region, a food tourism opportunity.
Adding value with customer service
Added value can be provided by businesses that deliver better customer ser-
vice than anyone else who does what they do. This is a difficult challenge, as
a business relies on people and all our perceptions as customers of customer
service are different. Having said that, a well-trained team in customer ser-
vice can soon build loyalty as well as increase the average sale to tourists.
Adding value by providing benefits
Added value can be achieved by providing benefits that other producers
do not provide. This may include processing the product to another level
 
Search WWH ::




Custom Search