“THIS is the vegetable that conquered the world: the peasants’ staff of life, the gourmet’s delight, nutritious, delicious, lauded and maligned- the paradoxical potato, the amazing spud!”

I would like to suggest that the current crisis with the Tasmanian potato industry, with Simplot cutting its demand for our local product could be a dangerous opportunity.

If we could concentrate on creating a new market with an innovative marketing strategy we could take what Tasmania “takes for granted” and sell it to the wholesale industry in Sydney and Melbourne. We brand and package the amazing pink-eye potato. We have the capacity and the know-how already.

1. Using television advertising we launch a campaign of promotion, using a national identity, my suggestion would be Glenn Robbins cracking a joke standing in gumboots digging spuds or a Michael Caton (The Castle) , a Mr Everyman. Our product lends itself to humour.

2. The packaging is a beautiful piece of modular design. Imagine a cardboard container that takes 2kg of product that is designed to fit a standard shipping container without a ml. to spare. that is leggoish in design. When it gets to the supermarket shelves, kids will want to play with it , interlocking units, primary colours, that when the contents are used you can then use the leftover container as a mold for construction. a reason to repeat purchase!

3. This idea requires a cooperative approach between all parties, from farmers to advertising executives. If we go back a generation, co-ops were the common way to get produce from the farm to the city. If the farmers take control of their own destiny and take a punt on the pink-eye, excite the market about it. 148000 tonne, this year’s shortfall, is quite achievable if we stimulate the demand ourselves. Distribution can be direct into Sydney and Melbourne with TT Line. The State Government subsidy of the idea can be the freight component, also using excess capacity.

4. What is required is a lateral approach to the problem. Everything changes, it’s how we manage that change that makes a community strong. Let’s not try to penetrate an existing market but create a new one; not with a new product, but one we are all familiar with, that’s eaten over the whole community.

5. The challenge is for us to sell 15 million kilograms of product into a market of 8 million people who on average eat 500-800 grams of potato per week or 35 kilograms per year.

6. Finally , if there are people out there in the readership who would like to form a working group around this idea, lets try to realise it. This idea lends itself to modern communication methods.

James Williamson Klektik
Salamanca Place (6224 4703)
[email protected]