"Save the Food," a public service campaign which broke Wednesday 20 April, from the Natural Resources Defense Council, uses strawberries to make a powerful statement about food waste.
Developed pro-bono by SapientNitro through The Ad Council, the initiative focuses on a sad reality: Some 40 percent of all food purchased in the U.S. each year goes uneaten, wasting money, water and energy to the tune of $162 billion.
To illustrate the problem, a remarkable two-minute online film (with TV commercial edits) from Partizan director Martin Stirling follows a single strawberry from its salad days on the vine through its packaging odyssey and purchase by a typical American family.
Forgotten at the back of the fridge, the hero (and his increasingly funky bunch) fall into a sorry state, and we get the feeling things won't end well.
Moms are a primary target here, because "no one makes more of the decisions around food—planning, shopping, cooking and disposing," Gary Koepke, North American chief creative officer at SapientNitro, tells AdFreak. "We know that moms are compelled by facts that tie food waste to household finances, so the campaign emphasizes this information."
Millennials are also a key audience, says Koepke, because they are "engaged and idealistic about helping the environment" and show an interest in "life hacks that help them experience more and waste less."
Ending food waste can save consumers money, an outcome wisely played up by the campaign, which maintains that throwing away less food can save an average family of four about $1,500 a year.
Appealing to consumers' pocketbooks is always a smart tactic. After all, saving money has no sell-by date.
Source: adweek.com