French spread good word on healthiness of milk and meat
French spread good word on healthiness of milk and meat
Consumer communication is
the name of the game in
France, whether it is about
local branding or BSE.
Marianne Curtis reports
from the SIA agricultural
show in Paris last week
PROMOTING health benefits of milk and meat is seen as imperative by the French farming and food industry.
Children as young as five are being educated about the safety of beef in the wake of the recent Continental BSE crisis.
Those at the SIA agricultural show sat transfixed as a representative from Frances Meat Information Centre used visual aids to explain why beef is safe. Commenting on the presentation, secretary of the organisation, Mylene Sookahet stressed the importance of educating young children.
"Some children are afraid to eat meat because they have heard about BSE from their parents. But meat supplies protein and iron and we teach children that it is good to eat. We explain that the spinal cord and brain, connected with BSE, are removed and that the remaining muscle which they eat is safe."
A TV advertising campaign last August is also credited with maintaining McDonalds beef burger sales at near normal levels in the country, according to one of its managers Eric Gravier.
"Although we saw a 10-15% switch from beef to fish and chicken burgers when the BSE crisis began, sales of beef burgers have now returned to near normal levels. The TV campaign helped reinforce the message that we use quality beef and no offal."
Communication of positive health messages about dairy products and good marketing have contributed towards a buoyant milk market in France, said Phillipe Jachnik, president of the International Dairy Federation.
"Promotion 20 years ago was about advertising milk as a product, but now it emphasises nutritional advantages and health benefits."
Marketing of milk and milk products is further ahead in France than in the UK, believed Mr Jachnik. "In France we eat rather than drink milk, so the emphasis is on marketing milk products and developing regional brands.
"Liquid milk accounts for a much higher proportion of consumption in the UK, so when milk prices were high there was no incentive to aggressively market milk products. This became evident when German company Muller secured 30% of the UK yogurt market over a short time." *
FRENCH COMMUNICATION
• Children targeted early.
• Emphasis on health promotion.
• Improve marketing methods.