National Pecan Shellers Association (NPSA)

Growing Influence and Awareness


Challenge

The National Pecan Shellers Association (NPSA) wanted to generate awareness of pecans among major food corporations and educate their research and development departments on the many flavors, food pairings, and health benefits of pecans. NPSA looked to Kellen for strategic guidance to drive pecan adoption, market pecan consumption directly to the consumer, and engage leading companies with informative, experiential learning opportunities to understand and drive demand for pecans.

Solution

Kellen leveraged extensive expertise in serving food and nutrition groups along with culinary industry contacts to create the NPSA Pecan Chef Summit, a series of exclusive events designed to immerse influential culinary R&D chefs into the world of pecans. Chefs participated in educational sessions about the pecan industry, had an opportunity to get hands-on in developing new recipes, and were acquainted with the many uses, tastes, varieties, and nutritional benefits of pecans. By hosting these unique events, national food suppliers and manufacturers developed new programs to integrate pecans, and directly increased sales. In addition, Kellen created new, original content — including more than 80 recipes, chef and influencer testimonials, videos, and baking tips — to help consumers incorporate pecans into their daily diets. Kellen launched a series of social media pages designed to build a branded conversation around the nutritional benefits and uses of pecans. We helped NPSA repurpose content for these social channels, its website, membership brochure, and other marketing materials.


Results

  • Raised profile of pecans among major, multinational food service corporations with volume purchasing operations
  • Secured a place for pecans in the products and menu selections of restaurants and food distributors including
    • Delta Airlines
    • High Road Ice Cream
    • McCormick
    • Outback Steakhouse
    • PeachDish
    • Sysco
  • The “I Love Pecans” Facebook page grew from 83,000 followers in 2014 to 135,000+ in 2020