The biggest highlight of the marketing campaign for Happy Dirt sweet potatoes this spring is education around the product and the growers, said Taylor Meadows, marketing coordinator for the Durham, N.C.-based marketer.
“We are working to build educational assets that our customers can use to educate their customers,” she said.
Happy Dirt seeks to communicate the story of the grower to the customers, Meadows said.
“Consumers in the local and organic space want to feel connected to the food that they are consuming,” she said. “By bridging that gap and finding a way to directly link consumers to the farms that produce the food they are consuming, we believe that this naturally increases sales.”
The company also has been working on tertiary certifications such as the Fair Food Program to highlight the significant work its grower and farmworker partners are doing to plant, grow, harvest and pack Happy Dirt sweet potatoes in a safe and just working environment for farm workers, Meadows said. “Communicating the value of the Fair Food certification to consumers through our retail partners has been a primary goal for us in 2023.”
One of Happy Dirt's farmer owners is the first sweet potato farmer in the country to receive the Fair Food Program certification, Meadows said. The program provides a premium from each case sold that goes directly back to the farm workers on the participating farm, she said.
With the certification, a rigorous audit is conducted annually that ensures improved working conditions (for example, guaranteed protections around shade, water, bathrooms, pesticide exposure, excessive heat and other health and safety issues), educates farmworkers about their rights under the Fair Food Code of Conduct and allows farmworkers to report any issues to the Fair Food Program through the 24/7 toll-free line, she said.
“The Fair Food Program is a holistic program that benefits not only the farm workers but also benefits buyers and consumers because we all feel the positive impacts when the supply chain is secure and ethical,” Meadows said. “We are excited to build out this program with our farm partners in North Carolina and beyond in the coming years.”
One of Happy Dirt's farmer owners, Randall Watkins, shows off his organic covington sweet potatoes. (Photo courtesy of Happy Dirt)
Packaging update
Happy Dirt recently launched its 3-pound Happy Dirt-branded sweet potato bag, as well as a collaborative bag with a major retailer.
“The bags have been a huge hit with both our customers and our growers, as they have allowed our grower to utilize their smaller-sized sweet potatoes where in the past the farm wouldn't even pick them up during harvest,” Meadows said. “We are happy to offer this alternative market for our farms, reducing the food waste that is so prevalent in our food system."
In 2021, the company released its Happy Dirt-branded 40-pound organic sweet potato boxes.
“We designed them to stand out on their journey from the farm to our customers,” she said.
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Demand uptick
The sweet potato market has picked up steam in March, Meadows said.
“The mild winter that we have seen in North Carolina coupled with promotable volumes from our suppliers has yielded an uptick in demand across our East Coast customer base,” she said. “There is often a slump after New Year's and a rebound as temperatures warm up, and that's what we have seen this year."
Sweet potatoes are a hearty, cheap source of calories and provide consumers with a full array of vitamins and nutrients, she said, adding that they are a perfect item to promote as an "inflation fighting" alternative to more processed foods.
Meadows said many Happy Dirt customers are wanting to purchase regional, local sweet potatoes due to the higher cost of product and freight out West. Sweet potatoes thrive in the Southeast, specifically in North Carolina. And, with its growers being able to meet the demand and offer competitive, sustainable pricing, North Carolina has become an attractive option, she said.