BENSON, NC - Last month, the North Carolina Sweetpotato Commission (NCSC) hosted its #SweetHarvestTour2024, where both domestic and international creators, trade media, and journalists learned all about how sweetpotatoes are grown, packed, and shipped. The goal was to educate partners on the farm to table process and highlight how this superfood is available year-round.
“For 63 years, the commission has worked with allied industry partners to expand the category and spread the message that NC sweetpotatoes add the perfect touch to making a well-balanced meal,” remarked Michelle Grainger, Executive Director of the NCSC. “To reach new audiences, this harvest tour presented a great opportunity to brag about our humble root vegetable and discuss how it has not only been a major contributor to the state’s number one industry of agriculture, it has also allowed our state’s producers to create an international following.”
The four-day farm tour was full of key insights with visits to local restaurants, research stations, and farming operations, a press release stated. Each experience provided a deeper dive into the North Carolina lifestyle fueled by passion, local pride, and a connection to tradition. Participants walked away feeling inspired to dig into these sweet roots and understand what makes sweetpotatoes, particularly the North Carolina native Covington variety, so special.
The NC Sweetpotato Harvest Tour’s purpose was to create new ambassadors who would take their new sweetpotato knowledge and share it with their followers.
On the domestic front, five creators joined with backgrounds in recipe development, dietetics, and nutrition education. Participants had niche focus areas including infant feeding, baby health, mental health awareness, food struggles, sports nutrition and more. As a whole, the group represented over 1,317,500 followers, reaching 297,148 total overall engagements from their tour posts. All content focused on educating consumers on sweetpotatoes and the steps it takes for products to get from the field to retail stores and ultimately to the plate.
On the international front, four individuals participated with backgrounds in food media, fresh produce and blogging/lifestyle content. These writers will soon release articles documenting the sweetpotato’s journey and the many hands involved in the field, storage, and warehouses. Videos and stories were shared on the tastings, varieties, and key personnel pivotal to categorical growth. The international guests boasted a combined 317,400 followers, reaching 40,101 impressions and garnering 5,127 likes during their time in NC.
The commission wrapped up this sweet journey as it hosted the 5th annual NC Sweetpotato FarmHER luncheon partnering with the Pretty In Pink Foundation. The money raised this year will be sent to breast cancer patients in Western North Carolina who were impacted by Hurricane Helene.
Cheers to North Carolina sweetpotatoes!
