California Walnut Board launches D2C marketing campaign for the holidays

The new campaign strives to remind shoppers of the different ways California walnuts can be used in holiday recipes.

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This year, the California Walnut Board & Commission is launching a new direct-to-consumer marketing campaign to highlight the integral role walnuts play in the holiday season. This new campaign aims to remind shoppers of the many ways they can enjoy California walnuts throughout the holiday season—from appetizers to desserts, and everything in-between. Through an integrated approach, retail promotions, digital ads, influencer partnerships and recipe collections, among other tactics, will be featured.

A new digital video that features the walnut’s spokespeople, Nutcrackers, is now running online and on connected TV through December 31 on major streaming services such as Roku and Sling. Additionally, a custom recipe collection on Walnuts.org offers consumers new and innovative ways to add a twist to holiday recipe favorites—and get the most value by using their entire bag. Digital integrations on leading recipe search and e-commerce sites, including Ibotta and Instacart, work to drive purchases at the point of consideration.

“California walnuts are synonymous with the holidays and family traditions. This holiday season offers a distinctive sales and merchandising opportunity for our retail partners to benefit from our investment in consumer marketing,” said Robert Verloop, CEO and executive director for the California Walnut Commission (CWC) and Board (CWB). “Walnuts are an appealing and adaptable ingredient, and their versatility can make them the unsung hero of the kitchen all holiday season long. It’s the perfect opportunity to inspire new uses that can lead to incremental sales year-round.”

For the holiday campaign, California Walnuts is also partnering with popular food influencers to provide recipe inspiration directly to consumers. Monique Volz (@Ambitious Kitchen) will be a featured ambassador, demonstrating seasonal recipes featuring walnuts and creative ways to use the entire bag this holiday season. Isabel Orozco-Moore (@Isabel Eats) and Gal Shua-Haim MS, RD (@Something Nutritious) will showcase creative new holiday recipes crafted with walnuts on Instagram and TikTok.

The California Walnuts retail team has noted strong demand for the current crop of walnuts. The recent 2023 harvest season has delivered the quality walnuts consumers expect and are eager to purchase when displayed prominently. Traditionally, the fourth quarter drives the largest share of annual total walnut category dollar sales. According to Circana, 33% of annual walnut sales in 2022 were made in Q4. Retailers nationwide are participating in promotion campaigns with California Walnuts during November and December. Retailers interested in California walnut promotion opportunities are encouraged to connect at walnuts.org/retail.

Liz Parker Kuhn is the senior editor of Candy Industry and Snack Food & Wholesale Bakery, and has worked at BNP Media since 2012. She has written for CBS Detroit as well as for her own blogs. She earned a Bachelor of Arts in Creative Writing from the University of Michigan. Liz can be contacted at (248) 839-7156 or at parkere@bnpmedia.com.

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