Three grand prize winners are grilling in style this summer, after taking home Traeger meat smokers and smoking kits in the 2024 Idaho Potato Lovers Display Contest.
For the first time ever, the 33rd annual Idaho Potato Commission competition presented a sweepstakes prize to one random winner in each region of the country as part of the $150,000-plus in cash and prizes awarded through the contest, Ross Johnson, vice president of retail and international for IPC, said in a news release.
The number of retail display entries jumped by nearly a third this year, as produce managers nationwide let their creative juices flow in support of stellar spuds, Johnson said.
“We’re spreading the wealth with three grand prizes instead of one, but everyone who enters the annual display contest is a winner,” he said. “Each entrant this year received a free barbecue grill toolkit, and every year these imaginative Idaho potato displays generate sales lifts for produce departments across the country.”
In fact, IPC said research has found that test stores with secondary displays of Idaho russets deliver a nearly 10 times growth advantage, while comparison stores with no secondary display achieve an average category growth of only 2.5%.
Retailers competed with other same-size stores in one of three categories: 1-5 cash registers, 6-9 cash registers, or 10 or more cash registers. Within each store category, entrants were eligible to win these cash prizes:
- 1st place — $1,500.
- 2nd place — $1,000.
- 3rd place — $750.
- 4th place — $500.
- 5th place — $250.
- Honorable Mention — $100 (100 selected from remaining entries).
The Category Manager Match Program awarded equivalent prizes to corporate category managers for stores that qualified for a first- through fifth-place prize or the sweepstakes Traeger set.
In-store displays were required to incorporate fresh Idaho potatoes, bag, bulk or both, with a clear label showing the Idaho name and the Grown in Idaho seal, along with a clearly marked Idaho dehydrated potato product, according to the release.
The display also had to use IPC 2024 special themed POS materials: two double-sided Idaho Potato Lovers logo display signs, one large and two small double-sided signs with an appetizing photo, and three inflatable Mylar Idaho potato balloons. Displays were required to be in the store’s produce section for at least one week between Feb. 1 and March 31, 2024, the release said.
See the 2024 winning displays at IdahoPotato.com/retail.