Wheat Foods Councils ramps up its ‘all things wheat’ message

These are just a few of the interesting facts provided by the Wheat Food Council (WFC_ to change the consumer’s view on one of America’s most consumed staples.

Since founding in 1972, the WFC has established itself as a leading source of science-based info on wheat, nutrition and all the wonderful foods made from wheat (bakery, cereal, crackers, pretzels, pasta … the list is endless). It coins itself as a one-stop resource for everything related to the American wheat supply chain, zeroing in on target audiences with messaging priorities developed through dialog with industry stakeholders, including producers, millers and bakers.

Dynamic work

The Council has developed a five-pronged strategy that underscores its operation:

• Influencers

WFC works to educate the key influencers about the positive nutrition in wheat foods and the fallacy of fad diets.

Personal trainers are of particular interest due to their strong relationship with consumers as a go-to source for health, weight loss/weight management and nutrition information.

As these influencers become better informed, the advice they provide supports wheat foods consumption reaching millions of consumers every day.

• Enriched wheat

Educating key influencers about the significant health contributions of enriched wheat products; demystifying the milling process; and taking a closer look at the science around enrichment.

Development chefs remain a priority influencer target audience as they, too, reach millions of consumers and set culinary trends. As such, the WFC has partnered with the Culinary Institute of America (CIA) to provide chef education programmes.

• Modern wheat and breeding

Provide up-to-date wheat facts and debunk misinformation.

Initiate proactive measures to get in front of anticipated issues whenever possible.

• Registered dietitians

Utilise its long-established relationship to provide RDs with the most current scientifically-backed nutrition updates.

• Market research

Learn how a changing business environment and consumer trends shifts impact the wheat foods value chain.

Share learnings with the industry.

Getting the story out

To bolster this message, the Council has enlisted Sterling-Rice Group (SRG), a Boulder, Colorado-based creative collective that has dep experience in consumer insights, brand strategy, positioning, new product innovation, culinary, advertising and design.

“SRG brings a truly distinctive approach and strategy to help us increase the use of wheat foods among consumers, foodservice operators and manufacturers,”​ said WFC president present Tim O’Connor.

“We see great potential in educating consumers and the industry on the benefit and value of wheat foods, and we’re excited for SRG to lead this dynamic work.”​

SRG is ideally positioned to push the WFC’s mission, having already worked with associations like the Almond Board of California, Avocados From Mexico, Potatoes USA, the US Highbush Blueberry Council and the National Honey Board.

In fact, SRG has its own inhouse culinary arm, which has developed thousands of innovative products on behalf of its clients.

“There is tremendous opportunity for the Wheat Foods Council to tell their extraordinary nutrition, sustainability and innovation story across various channels and among key stakeholders,”​ said Amy Shipley, partner and MD at SRG.

“Our experience in both B2C and B2B marketing and linking the two will help move the needle on increasing usage and volume of wheat products at retail and away-from-home.”​