The Hass Avocado Board Actively Engages
in the Heart Health Month
HAB’s marketing and communication program focused on nutrition contributed to make health benefits of avocado a hot topic in the food-health front. Heart health is one of HAB’s strategic health pillars and this month is promoting the nutrition message to support Heart Health Month in February.
Avocado plays an important role in cardiovascular health. The American Heart Association advises that replacing saturated (bad) fat in the diet with healthier unsaturated (good) fat can result in similar to cholesterol-lowering drugs effects. Fresh avocados are heart-healthy fruit. They have naturally good fats and are cholesterol, sugar and sodium free. The Hass Avocado Board has invested millions of dollars on its nutrition research program to better understand the unique benefits of eating avocados on human health and nutrition, as well as to communicate them to health professionals and consumers.
Gina Widjaja is Director of Marketing & Communications. Since 2012 her role is to plan, develop and implement the organization’s marketing strategies. She is responsible for developing and executing a strong nutrition marketing program targeting health professionals and their clients as well as the food and wellness-involved consumers that led to having “good for you” and “nutritional benefits” as primary reasons for purchasing avocados. This effort has also contributed to increase per capita consumption of Hass avocados in the U.S.
For the Heart Health Month, HAB has an important agenda addressing this topic and showing the relationship between fresh avocado consumption and risk factors for cardiovascular disease. We will be promoting a new cookbook “Fresh Swaps for the Heart: featuring fresh avocados” that includes heart-healthy recipe makeovers, as well as meals under 500 calories and vegetarian dishes. Limited prints will be available for health professionals while the digital version will be available for consumers to download. This promotion will be accompanied by display advertising and PR campaigns helping people make healthy choices when it comes to their eating habits.
In addition, HAB is kicking off in February a year-round campaign partnering with Walk with a Doc, a non-profit organization dedicated to educating and empowering patients through exercise led by health experts. Through its 423 chapters locally and an estimated 10,000 volunteers, this global health movement reaches an estimated 200,000 consumers in the U.S. annually.
Other Happenings
Regional Category Research Reveals Key Actions and Opportunities To Grow Avocado Sales Across the United States
Latest “Regional Category Development Drivers” study identifies Key Drivers of Category Development by Region to Maximize Retail Sales of Hass Avocados.
Fresh Avocados – Love One Today® Connects with Hundreds of Health Professionals Advocating for Healthy Food and Lifestyle Changes
Annual conference aims to give health professionals the tools to discuss food choices that are both healthy and delicious with their patients, with support from Love One Today.
New Online Process is Now Accepting Nominations for Open Seats on Hass Avocado Board
If you have a passion for the future of the avocado industry, consider getting involved in the 2023 nomination and voting process to fill ten board member seats. Read for the key dates and information on the new online system.
While the concept of data sharing is as old as HAB itself, in the early days, the quality was hampered by the pervasive mistrust among the HAB partners. Yet, over time as collaboration and cooperation evolved, so did the credibility and quality of the data inputs. The key players saw the value and built the Avocado Volume and Inventory System (AVIS) which became a widely successful global industry intelligence engine providing invaluable information related to U.S. avocado supply, inventory and sales.