The Seeds of Success

Two organisations very dear to our heart and also very significant within the New Zealand primary sector have celebrated 100 year milestones recently. These being the Pukekohe Vegetable Growers Association (PVGA) and the New Zealand Grain & Seed Trade Association (NZGSTA).

100 years in any business or organisation is a significant milestone and should be treated as such. We therefore congratulate both organisations on the tireless representation of their members and the work they have carried out for the greater good.

The Seeds of Success book that has been created to tell the story of 100 years of the New Zealand seed industry is an incredible testament to those whom contributed their stories and those who have made this collection of stories a possibility.

Likewise the video put together by the PVGA to document the past changes and current issues the local growing industry has covered in the 100 years left me feeling incredibly proud to be associated with the industry. These milestones obviously provide an opportunity to reflect on the past and the history of the organisation and associated industry, but they should also be an opportunity to consider how the future 100 years may play out.

From my involvement and association with both organisations and the celebrations of these milestones I believe there is a common point – that being that we all need to do much better at telling our story. Emotional advertising is a technique of the current time and seems to serve its purpose in drawing us in. How many of you like me have watched the Sealord ad having no idea that the story of the little girl practicing her swimming and the Dad that can’t swim had anything to do with fish products!!! Tugging at the heart strings is a sure way to gain a connection with our audience and hopefully evoke some empathy for the product, company or cause.

We in the vegetable and seed industries are not very good at using these tools currently being used by our friends at Fonterra, Zespri and other such organisations. Perhaps we wouldn’t be continuing to talk about our issues of the urban rural divide, reverse sensitivity, prices paid for our produce, lack of willing workers and a manner of other issues if we were better at telling our story.

Telling our story needs to come with an inclination to share what is great about our industry but also a commitment to investing industry money in marketing. I really hope that in the very near future there is a conversation in both the vegetable industry but also the seed industry about how we can tell our story as an industry rather than an individual and how this may be funded to ensure the end result is professional, engaging and evokes empathy and interest from our customers.

Wishing you all a safe and happy holiday season.