EAT MORE FRUIT.

Auckland Star, Volume LVII, Issue 143, 18 June 1926, Page 5

EAT MORE FRUIT.

i BIG CAMPAIGN XECESSARY. j Xear the main entrance to the Winter Show is a postcrgraph Machine by means of which Messrs. J. L. Shepherd and Co., of Xo. 302, Xew Zealand Insurance Buildings, are displaying a number of trade advertisements. This is the machine which the Xew Zealand Government employed at Wembley Exhibition to draw attention to our products. At the Show to-day tbe prominent feature of the continuously moving screen is the appeal to "eat more mitt."' The posters shown include the "Sports Girl.'' "Meal lemons make real lemonade." and "Oranges for health." These posters are being displayed with the object of pushing the "eat more fruit campaign, and Mr. W. W. Rogers, recently arrived from England, is responsible for the display. His wish is to organise the fruitgrowers of Xew Zealand upon tbe lines existing in Englnnd. Mr. Rogers, who 'is well known in advertising circles in i England, shows some of the most interesting literature which is being circulated iin the Old Country. He suggests that ■ there should be a strong campaign j launched in Xew Zealand to induce the people to eat more fruit nnd facilitate its marketing. To accomplish this work it is necessary to have the co-operation of all branches of the trade. Tbe basic idea of the campaign is to cultivate 'amongst the people the habit of eating I fruit, and the results achieved at Home indicate that fruit has been given its I rightful place in the national diet. Due |of the big features of the campaign was j the work done by tlie I,'eiailcrs' Propaganda Association. This organisation has now 10.0(10 members, contributing an annual payment, tor which they receive specified free samples of advertising matter and (he opportunity of obtain- . ing at favourable rates many forms of shojp advertising. For example, no fewer than forty million j printed bags have been disposed of at no j cost to the general fund: 300.000 "eat more fruit" balloons were purchased, anil .similar arresting figures apply to recipe books, price tickets, e'.c. li is also inter- ; esting to note that over 1000 valuable : sites have been given free by retailers throughout Britain for the display of i the 10-sheet coloured poster. A book- | let, "The Way to Bigger Business" was 'also dispatched to till retailers outlining | the activities of the Association. The 'Press advertising campaign was a prinI eipal feature of the Association's opera- | lions. The advertisements wove mainly directed to the health value of fruit as |an article of diet, but many appeals .were devoted fo the charm of fruit in j general Colour advertisements were

also used largely upon the covers of ! popular magazines with excellent results. Full advantage was taken of the' Press campaign to meet market conditions and to strike a topical note. Never a week passed without "eat more fruit" announcements appearing in the papers giving a nation-wide circulation, running into many millions of readers. These advertisements were largely backed up by editorials, which abundantly proved that the "cat more fruit campaign was widely approved. i Beautifully reproduced posters were displayed on lilll'Ml sites, carrying the message to hundreds of thousands of people daily, and the results have fully justified the operations of the associa- j tion. What Mr. Rogers aims at is to create a similar organisation in New . Zealand, whereby the fruitgrowers may be able to push their products under a ■

scheme of, publicity which has proved its efficiency in the Old Country. The object is to popularise the use of fruit.! and it is one which can be heartily com- i mended. One of the mary methods I adopted in England was to supply aj chca]) recipe ' ook showing ninety-nine ways of enjoying fruit. To illustrate, how this action was appreciated it may be said that 250.000 copies were purchased, showing tiie increasing interest taken in frui' as a result of the campaign. What has been done at Home can certainly be done here on a smaller scale. The taste for good fruit should be cultivated. The possibilities of acquiring fruit should be made widely known, and it is evident that organised effort at publicity is a vital feature of success. Visitors to the show who are interested in the fruit trade should not fail to consult Mr. Rogers on the subject.