REGISTERED DIETITIANS: RETAILERS’ ‘SECRET WEAPONS’ TO BOOST PRODUCE SALES & CONSUMPTION

Originally printed in the January 2020 issue of Produce Business.

Retailers find myriad ways to incorporate healthy messaging and hands-on learning via on-the-ground practitioners.

Registered dietitians hired by supermarkets are now becoming an integral component in the arsenal of talent utilized “in the field” to encourage shoppers to purchase more fruits and vegetables. And savvy produce marketers are keen to reach out and develop partnerships that incorporate full-scale strategies to promote their products with the RDs taking a lead role.

If you walked into the produce department of a prominent Midwest retailer during the third week of July in 2018, your attention would have been immediately drawn to an eye-catching taste-tempting display. Here, California Walnuts and four varieties of Stemilt Grower’s Lil Snapper-brand apples were paired with the ingredients to make the featured recipe: Sliced Apples with Greek Yogurt Walnut Caramel Dip.

Growers/shippers partnering with retailers to promote fresh produce isn’t anything new. However, in this case, there was much more than these two elements.

Specifically, this was one of the turnkey Produce Pairings pilots spearheaded by the Brentwood, MO-headquartered Produce for Better Health Foundation (PBH). The point-of-purchase (POP) and online program not only featured creative displays spurred by produce manager contests, special signage and price promotions, but also manned recipe demos and health-and-wellness features called out by the chain’s retail Registered Dietitians (RDs) in their blogs, Facebook live segments and a ‘hands and pans’ video. The result? Compared to the same week the year prior, sales of California walnuts increased more than 1,000% and apples nearly 100%.

There’s no doubt today that retailers recognize education of health and wellness to shoppers presents a huge opportunity. In fact, nearly all (90%) of the 39 food retail companies (representing 20,000-plus stores) surveyed for the December 2019 released report, Retailer Contribution to Health & Wellness by the Arlington, VA-based Food Marketing Institute (FMI), had established programs of this type.

What’s more, nearly three-fourths (70%) of the retailer respondents cited business growth followed by meeting consumer expectations (63%), building customer loyalty (54%) and offering a ‘one-stop shop’ (54%) as the reasons they valued these programs. The FMI report further states that of the entire supermarket, nowhere resonates a well-being vibe more so than in the produce department. Thus, produce executives are ideally positioned to advocate for and reap the benefits of an RD or several RDs on the supermarket’s team.

“At ShopRite, our in-store dietitians are truly our best produce ambassadors as they represent health and wellness in our stores in so many ways,” says Derrick Jenkins, vice president of produce/floral at the Keasbey, NJ-headquartered Wakefern Food Corp., and a retailer-owned cooperative with nearly 280 stores.

The company has a robust social media program utilizing the dietitian team on both a local and corporate level. “Not only do they help consumers discover and buy more fruits and vegetables during their daily interactions with shoppers, they also make our produce offerings come alive by holding in-store demonstrations, store tours and other interactive events.

Additionally, by providing recipes that feature fresh produce items and creating social media posts and campaigns that highlight seasonal produce week after week, they do a phenomenal job of driving customer awareness about our fresh offerings. Their combined efforts make it possible for us to give our consumers the best possible shopping experience in the produce aisle, and further our success in this category,” notes Jenkins.

THE MANY ROLES OF RETAIL DIETITIANS

There’s no one-size-fits-all when it comes to an RD’s duties and job descriptions. Indeed, one of the real benefits of the profession is a single-minded passion for encouraging healthier eating and employing a myriad of creative out-of-the-box ways to accomplish this. Here are some examples:

DEMOS. There’s nothing like tasting to believe in buying. RDs put this concept on steroids. For example, the RD team at Hannaford Supermarkets, a 182-store chain based in Scarborough, ME, hosts monthly in-store manned demos of a simple recipe. The themes, incorporating produce and other ingredient sponsors, are lined up a year in advance by the chain’s healthy living marketing team. Then, the in-store dietitians collaboratively create the demo recipes, key talking points and perhaps a fun feature such as an interactive contest.

“By implementing nutrition literacy in primary education, students and families learned about how fruits and vegetables are grown…”

— Andie Lee Gonzalez, H-E-B

“We have a feature we call our ‘movable classroom’; it’s a table that rolls, and this is where we do our demos, says Hannaford dietitian, Marilyn Mills, MS, RD, LD, CDE. “Most often, the demo is set up in the produce department because this is an area where customers often linger or meander, and we’re able to catch them for a conversation. Plus, even when produce isn’t the featured item that month, fruits or vegetables are almost always a recipe ingredient.”

A far-reaching example is the RD Demo program created by Elaine Magee, MPH, RD, Wellness Services corporate dietitian for the Albertsons Companies, a 2,300-plus store chain headquartered in Boise, ID, that operates under a dozen banners. Magee designs monthly omnichannel promotions, including recipe development, handouts, in-store demos in two stores in each of the company’s regional divisions and a social media component to reach the largest audience possible. She works with sponsors to make sure demos are budget-neutral or positive. Approximately one-third of these sponsors are produce organizations, most recently including the California Fresh Fig Growers Association, USA Pears, Avocados from Mexico, California Avocado Commission and The Mushroom Council.

“No matter what the generation, people are open to being inspired. We provide that inspiration, and that’s why it’s a demo, not just sampling,” says Magee.

SUPERMARKET TOURS. During the Weis Mystery Tours and Explorers Field Trips for kids, organized and led by the dietitian team at Weis Markets, a 198-store chain based in Sunbury, PA, groups stop in the produce department to learn about the nutrition benefits and how fruits and veggies grow, says Kathryn Long, RDN, LDN, Healthy Living Coordinator. “The kids also get the opportunity to sample fresh produce; usually kiwi or pineapple.”

In the past, the in-store RD’s employed by Kroger Health, the healthcare arm of The Kroger Co., a 2,700-plus store chain headquartered in Cincinnati, have teamed up with produce organizations such as Avocados from Mexico and USA Pears to provide 30-minute personal shopping sessions.

“These enable shoppers to learn the specific benefits of these produce items, how to prepare and store them, along with food pairings to make a meal or snack that’s easy, fresh and nutrient-dense,” says Bridget Wojciak, RDN, LD, senior nutrition coordinator. “Shoppers typically choose to take a cart along for the session to grab items.”

KID’S COOKING CLASSES. Each month, Coborn’s Petersen teaches a Kid’s Creation class at one of the chain’s locations. For this, she partners with a produce company to provide product and resources for those that attend. The recipes are no-bake, no-cook and are appropriate for ages 3 to 10 years. After the class, Petersen says 90% of the kids and their families will purchase the produce and other ingredients to make the recipe again at home.

IN-STORE & COMMUNITY MEDIA. The HealthyBites Magazine is the primary vehicle for nutrition, health and wellness content in our stores, says Beth Stark, RDN, LDN, Nutrition + Lifestyle Initiatives Manager for Weis Markets. “We partner with various produce brands and commodity boards to be featured in the magazine with ads or recipe solutions, as a sponsor for in-store dietitian activities and for monthly Facebook Live videos.”

Each week, retail RDs at Big Y Foods, Inc., an 83-store chain based in Springfield, MA, tape ‘how-to’ television and social media segments around the use of produce items. Similarly, the RDs also contribute a nutrition article for the local newspaper and its online platform.

“Whether it’s an article on broccolini, with information on how to select it, its health benefits and what to do with it, or a feature on making homemade soup loaded with fresh vegetables, this platform allows us to reach a large number of people at once to encourage fresh produce consumption,” says Andrea Luttrell, RDN, LDN, RD for the chain’s Living Well Eating Smart Program.

ONLINE & SOCIAL MEDIA. ShopRite, the registered trademark of Wakefern, has a robust social media program that utilizes the dietitian team on both a local and corporate level, says Shelbi Thurau, RD, retail dietitian supervisor. “We afford each dietitian the freedom to creatively integrate produce items into their posts and online recipes. Our ongoing health and wellness and #wellnesswednesday campaigns are some of our most popular and engaging online campaigns.”

Similarly, at Skogen’s Festival Foods, a 32-unit chain headquartered in De Pere, WI, the retailer RDs consistently utilize a variety of social media channels to promote fresh produce. The chain’s website served as the platform for the RD-designed Head Over Meals program, a 100-day campaign that ran in the first part of 2019 and featured a new challenge each week.

“The cooking challenges were designed to get participants back in the kitchen to make homemade meals. Some of the produce-specific challenges included trying veggie fries/tots, plant-based desserts, plant-based protein, new ways of eating avocado and veggie noodles/rice,” explains Casey Crevier, RDN, CD, nutrition communications specialist.

In 2019, Giant Food’s RDs, a 163-store chain based in Landover, MD, launched a podcast, called Nutrition Made Easy.

“Through Nutrition Made Easy, we are able to share clinical information, but also highlight our favorite produce items in an on-the-go format that provides customers with nutrition inspiration no matter their location,” says Jillian Griffith, MSPH, RDN, LDN, in-store nutritionist.

PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT. Retail RDs, especially those with culinary training, have ventured into the area of developing menu items for retailers’ in-store foodservice operations. For example, Ashley Martinez, MFN, RD, LD, NASM-CPT, is an expert member of Kroger’s new Culinary Innovation Center team. In this role, she works with other team members to develop selections for Kroger’s Kitchen 1883 Café and Bar as well as for its Prep+Pared Meal Kits. She also plays a unique role as a subject matter expert for healthier creations. This has included everything from the development of produce-forward smoothies to a Colorfall Salad made of roasted sweet potatoes, roasted beets, corn and black bean salsa, grape tomatoes, purple cabbage and dried cranberries.

COMMUNITY INITIATIVES. Partnerships with schools, public sector programs and non-profit organizations are some of the ways RDs use fresh produce to powerfully connect their retailer with the community.

A few years ago, the Nutrition Services team at H-E-B, a San Antonio-headquartered retailer with some 340 stores, partnered with the Dole Food Company and a local school district to host a curriculum called ‘Let’s Get Growing.’ The 12-week bilingual program, designed by the RDs, aimed to teach second graders about the fundamentals of agriculture in modern day society and create excitement around the consumption of produce. Ultimately, the program reached more than 50 elementary schools within a two-year period.

“By implementing nutrition literacy in primary education, students and families learned about how fruits and vegetables are grown, and how to implement healthy foods in their everyday intake habits. The partnership between Dole and H-E-B also allowed us to distribute coupons to families to encourage fruit and vegetable consumption,” explains Andie Lee Gonzalez, PhD, MPH, RDN, LD, FAND, nutrition services medical sales representative, who was named a Supermarket Dietitian of the Year by PBH for this initiative.

Customers enrolled in SNAP, or the UDSA’s Supplemental Food Assistance Program, can benefit from the Double Up Food Bucks program at SpartanNash, a Grand Rapids, MI-headquartered distributor that operates 157 corporately-owned supermarkets. The program helps SNAP customers increase their access to fresh fruits and vegetables.

“Double Up is currently offered in 43 SpartanNash stores in Michigan and allows SNAP customers in the state to earn free produce, with a focus on purchasing locally grown fruits and vegetables. I often work closely with the company’s community engagement team to connect with and leverage nonprofit partners to promote these and other initiatives,” says Stephanie Edson, MS, RDN, LD, LMNT, nutritionist and wellness specialist.

In March 2019, Giant Food partnered with non-profit DC Greens and AmeriHealth Caritas to offer a Produce Rx program, notes Griffith. “Through the program, customers who are Medicaid beneficiaries through AmeriHealth Caritas DC and who are currently experiencing a diet-related chronic illness can receive a prescription for fruits and vegetables from their healthcare provider and fill the prescriptions at the Giant pharmacy in my store. When filled each week, our pharmacist provides the customer with a $20 coupon to be used to purchase fresh produce and connects them with my nutrition services, such as classes and/or an individual consult.”

THE FUTURE: RD’s ROLE CONTINUES TO GROW

An expanded presence in the broader retail arena, a move into managerial positions and a greater online presence are some of the ways RDs’ roles will expand in the future.

“We’ve moved away from the term Supermarket to Retail Registered Dietitian because more RDs are being hired by retailers such as convenience stores and pharmacies like Walgreens and CVS,” says Annette Maggi, MS, RDN, LD, FADA, executive director of Retail Dietitians Business Alliance, Santa Monica, CA.

A big opportunity for retailers and RDs on the horizon is online shopping. Consider that 70% percent of U.S. shoppers could be buying groceries online as early as 2022, according to data from Farmington Hills, MI-based consulting firm, Invesp. Several RDs are already working in this area, including Ellie Wilson, MS, RDN, CDN, senior nutritionist at Price Chopper, a 134-store chain that along with the Market 32 banner is owned by the Schenectady, NY-based Golub Corporation.

“Our Family Meals page, located under the Shop Online button on our website, enables me to engage and influence consumers right as they are doing their shopping online. For example, Meal Maker ideas are tied into specific selections, many of which are fresh produce, and some of which are on sale,” says Wilson.

Finally, tele-nutrition services, one-on-one nutrition appointments provided via 2-way video chat, are ways Kroger Health RDs capitalize on the shifting retail trend toward more digital services. During an appointment, an RD can guide participants to use kroger.com to build an online basket for pick up or delivery.

“There may be shopper hesitation in trusting someone else to select their produce. In the process of building a nutrient-dense basket with a shopper, the RD builds trust in fresh produce selections. RDs are a trusted resource to teach which produce items are best for the shopper’s needs and lifestyle,” says Kroger’s Wojciak.

WHAT IS A RETAIL RD?

Home economists in the 1920’s were the first professionals employed by supermarkets for tasks such as product testing, recipe development and answering consumers’ questions. The modern-day retail RD emerged four decades later, according to Barbara Ruhs, MS, RD a Phoenix-based former corporate dietitian for Bashas’ and now a consultant for Irving, TX-based Avocados from Mexico. Considering that most, if not all RDs today have or will have a master’s degree, it makes sense to see a move into marketing managerial roles and for an RD to be on a pathway into executive management at the retail corporate level, says Ruhs.

“Originally, [brokerage] companies hired dietitians to work at retail,” says Annette Maggi, MS, RDN, LD, FADA, executive director of the 800-member Santa Monica, CA-based Retail Dietitians Business Alliance (RDBA) and PBH retail account manager. “After several years working in this format, many of the dietitians went internal to the retailers. Today, we know that retail RDs report through varying departments, with the most common being marketing or communications.”

Retail RDs are highly trained health professionals. To become an RD or RDN (Registered Dietitian Nutritionist) requires a 4-year bachelor’s degree, completion of an accredited internship of 1200 or more hours and passing a national exam administered by the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics to become registered. RDs are also required to maintain their credentialing by obtaining 75 continuing educate credits every five years. Starting in 2020, all new graduate RDs will require a master’s degree.

Currently, there are approximately 1,000 RDs employed by or consult with retailers in North America, according to the RDBA. Results of the recent FMI survey reveal that 85% of retail respondents reported employing RDs. Of these, 70% employ RDs at the corporate level, 27% percent hire them to work regionally and a small percentage retain RDs as consultants.

“As a retail RD, it is important to learn the retail language and share with my retailer how our team can be a value-added asset to the company and help improve the bottom line. Retail RDs need to be able to track and share return on investment (ROI) data in everything they do and how their involvement helps to increase sales and increase guest engagement,” says Amy Petersen, RD, LD, supermarket registered dietitian for Coborn’s, a 120-plus store chain based in Hastings, MN.

HOW THE PRODUCE INDUSTRY CAN LEVERAGE THE SALES POWER OF RETAIL DIETITIANS

There are many ways grower/shippers and commodity boards can tap into the power of retail Registered Dietitian (RD) to promote sales and consumption of fresh fruits and vegetables.

“We are extremely fortunate to work with a great many produce vendors that truly appreciate and understand the value that an in-store dietitian brings to the table,” says Shelbi Thurau, RD, retail dietitian supervisor for ShopRite, the registered trademark of Keasbey, NJ-headquartered Wakefern Food Corp, a retailer-owned cooperative with nearly 280 stores. “Where produce is concerned, our vendors support our dietitians in innumerable ways, from providing tool kits and handouts, to recipe books and other items that our team can share with our customers. It’s a win-win for everyone.”

1. PROVIDE PRODUCT & INFORMATION. In October 2019, Stemilt Growers, in Wenatchee, WA, helped RDs at Coborn’s, a 120-plus store chain based in Hastings, MN, provided more than 2,000 apples for four elementary schools within a local school district, says Amy Petersen, RD, LD, supermarket registered dietitian. “This was the perfect way to help our dietitian team kick off a Healthy Eating School Challenge in collaboration with other community organizations. This giveaway, along with several other social media Stemilt promotions, resulted in more than a 2,900% increase in tonnage sold from prior year and a more than 1,700% increase in sales from the prior year.”
   
   Beyond this, Stemilt worked with several RDs this fall to promote its Rave apple, according to Brianna Shales, Stemilt’s senior marketing manager. “We had an East Coast RD utilize Rave in a fresh-chopped salad that the store sold in their food to-go section. We had a robust program with a Midwest retailer to feature Rave in educational sessions to their internal staff, to kids at local schools and even on a local television segment in a fresh salad recipe. We’ve found RDs make great extended brand ambassadors for our products. They know their shoppers and that serves suppliers like us well in ensuring that promotions are well-executed and the fruit sells through quickly.”
   
   Duda Farm Fresh Foods promoted its Dandy-brand celery as a sponsor of one of the Produce for Better Health Foundation’s Produce Pairings. The August promotion featured a back-to-school theme where both celery and a ready-made tuna salad product were used to make a quick snack idea. Cross-displays, recipe tear sheets, coupons, plus the Midwest chain’s RD’s FB live, media segments and recipe information in the retailer magazine lifted sales up to 150%.
   
   “We found the promotion was effective in driving trial, an incremental lift and continued sales,” says Nichole Towell, senior director of marketing for the Oviedo, FL-based grower/shipper.
   
   On the information front, the Los Angeles-headquartered Wonderful Company, via its pistachio products have, for example, partnered with Kroger RD’s on an important pilot initiative for a diabetes solution kit as well as worked with the RD team at Weis Markets each February for American Heart Month to share heart-healthy snack solutions for the Big Game through broadcast and online.
   
   The Irvine, CA-headquartered California Avocado Commission’s Superfood Spotlights feature avocado usage ideas and nutrition information, providing RDs with ready-to-use handouts that can be shared with shoppers at cooking classes, demos and other in-store and community events.
   
   The Dole Food Company, based in Westlake Village, CA, supports retail-level RDs with a variety of education materials including its Dole Health and Wellness brochure series, the Dole Nutrition Handbook and custom recipes for every occasion.
   
   “These materials are used during hands-on nutrition classes, consultations, in-store demos, blogger giveaways and hosted promos, new product showcases, and TV appearances to communicate the health and nutrition benefits of produce consumption and a plant-based diet,” says Bil Goldfield, director of corporate communications.
   
2. TAKE RETAIL RD’S OUT INTO THE FIELD. The California Strawberry Commission staff invited the 20-plus influential retail RD’s attending PBH’s 2019 Education2Action Retail Dietitian Event, held alongside the Produce Marketing Association’s Fresh Summit in October, into the field — specifically, into a strawberry field.
   
   “Sponsoring an experience is how we help those who educate consumers how to incorporate more fresh produce into their diets to have a personal connection. To see first-hand how strawberries are grown, picked, packed, interact with the harvest crew, the grower and finally how they taste via a dinner in the field hosted by a local caterer,” says Christine Christian, senior vice president of the Watsonville, CA-based commission.
   
3. HIRE AN RD. There’s a real value-add for produce companies to have an RD consultant or on staff. In fact, it can be a competitive advantage especially when selling to retailers that don’t have an RD.
   
   “Costco doesn’t have a corporate RD. However, they like to change their private-label avocado bags once or twice a year, and I work with them on that content,” says Barbara Ruhs, a Phoenix-based former corporate retail dietitian for Bashas’ and now consultant dietitian for Irving, TX-based marketing group, Avocados from Mexico.
   
   Three years ago, the Michigan Apple Committee named Shari Steinbach the ‘Official Dietitian of Michigan Apples.’ Steinbach, who worked as a retail dietitian first at Spartan Stores and then Meijer for nearly 30 years before starting her own consultancy, created a kit for RDs that provides information and resources about Michigan Apples.
   
   “For us, any time we can assist a retailer or provide resources to them, it reinforces our position as a good partner,” says Diane Smith, executive director of the Lansing, MI-based committee.