by Veronica Wade, Branded Program Coordinator, Food Export – Midwest
The frozen food market is increasing rapidly and growing in popularity domestically and internationally. This growth can be credited to a number of factors including convenience, accessibility, and the change of the consumer’s perception towards frozen food. Additionally, due to ever increasing busy lifestyles, finding time to grocery shop, keep fresh food, and cook at home daily is difficult for many.
The Frozen Food industry consists of many large food and consumer goods companies that offer a wide variety of products from ice cream to pizza. However, while they may be among the world’s largest companies, they aren’t always the biggest players in the Frozen Food sector. Small- to midsize- companies are becoming a very significant part of the industry and offering a lot of competition to the larger companies.
Food Export’s Branded Program recognizes that marketing support is crucial for small and medium sized companies to grow their international sales. The program helps make international sales possible by reimbursing qualified U.S. companies 50% of their international marketing expenses. Utilizing the Branded Program is how many small and midsize agricultural suppliers in the Midwest and Northeast compete with big conglomerates.
In this blog, we feature unique ways how frozen food companies can utilize the Branded Program and maximize their reach across the world!
We can reimburse for a variety of creative international promotions in the Branded Program, and promotion of frozen foods is no exception. Below are a few popular types of promotions that frozen food companies can benefit from.
Trade shows (in-person and virtual)
The most common Branded Program reimbursement expense submitted by frozen food companies are the costs related to exhibiting at a tradeshow.
This can include the following:
Advertising
A variety of traditional forms of marketing are popular for Frozen Food companies including:
Their creation, placement, and translation costs are all eligible for reimbursement through the Branded Program. Also the costs to advertise your product on B2B online marketplaces may be eligible if directed toward a foreign audience!
Website Development
We’ve seen that companies in all industry segments can benefit from having an importer or international business focused website, and frozen food is no exception!
The Branded Program can reimburse for a variety of the costs of an international website including:
See below for an example of an international website crafted for the Korean market by Bassett’s Ice Cream.
Social Media
Social media is becoming a more popular way for frozen food companies to expand the reach of their products around the globe.
From influencer marketing to digital advertising, content management, and international (in-market) dedicated accounts, the Branded Program can support your company’s social media presence overseas and help you reach new online audiences.
Below are two Success Stories from companies in the Frozen Food industry who’ve successfully utilized Food Export’s programs to help support their international sales:
In February 2021, in the midst of the global pandemic, Cherry Central Cooperative participated in our Virtual Buyers Mission for Frozen Food in conjunction with the 2021 AFFI-Con. As a direct result of their participation in the event, Cherry Central met virtually via Zoom with a South Korean Buyer who placed an initial order of $30,800, with another $120,000 in projected sales reported for this market. Cherry Central also met virtually with buyers from several other markets, and as a result projected additional sales to Mexico and China.
Rosina Foods developed a marketing strategy to focus on introducing their products to the consumers in Nicaragua. After major research they concluded that the market size and demographics indicated a good fit for their product offerings to the country. Using their funding from the Branded Program they held in-store product promotions and did extensive online advertising. Rosina Foods was able to report that they completed a first-time market sale to Nicaragua through their efforts and utilization of their Branded Program funding.
Are you promoting frozen food products in foreign markets? We’d love to work with you! Get started today with a pre-qualification here.
We’d also encourage you to reach out to the American Frozen Food Institute (www.affi.org) a partner of Food Export for over 10 years. A trade association that advances the interests of the frozen food and beverage industry
Looking for a way to do flexible, customized research in International Markets? Be sure to check out our Market Builder service. This one-of-a-kind program offers custom packages designed to each exporter’s needs and provides valuable expert feedback about their product’s potential in new international markets within all industry segments. Market Builder has two components: Market Scan and Rep Finder, which can be purchased together or separately.