Food Export-Midwest’s 50% cost-reimbursement Branded Program helps small to medium-sized companies in the Midwest gain brand awareness for their U.S.-produced agricultural products internationally.
Valley Popcorn Company used Food Export-Midwest’s Branded Program to gain brand awareness for its flavored popcorn products. The Neenah, Wisconsin-based supplier, used their allocated funds to exhibit at the Natural Products Expo West Show and the National Confectioner’s Association (NCA) Sweets & Snacks Expo. The program helped Valley Popcorn defer the expenses associated with exhibiting at these trade shows.
Valley Popcorn’s attendance at these shows and with the assistance of the Branded Program helped them gain $120,000 in sales with their 6 new foreign buyer contacts and 3 newly established distributorships. The company also projects to complete $1.5 million in sales over the next twelve months.
Jim Labas, Vice President of Valley Popcorn, added, “Without the assistance of the Branded Program, growth would have taken much longer to materialize. As a small, growing company we benefit from this support to expose our brand to more markets than we possibly could on our own. The organization makes it easy to administer and they are there every step of the way to help.”
During their first year of participation in the Branded Program in 2021, Valley Popcorn Company used the Program to gain brand awareness in Canada. Using their allocated funds to gain distribution in retailers and complete targeted promotions and activities helped the Neenah, Wisconsin-based supplier gain $7,000 in sales to Canada. They also project to complete over $85,000 in sales in the next twelve months while also gaining 7 new foreign buyer contacts and establishing 1 distributorship.
Valley Popcorn Company is the producer of ready to eat popcorn utilizing a tender white American-grown popcorn kernel and no artificial ingredients. Established in 1992 by Carl & Carol Freundl, the company finds the best seed, grown by Americans, and deliver directly from the farm to their facility in Wisconsin.
Valley Popcorn Company has participated in Food Export programs since 2021 taking advantage of the Branded Program, the Online Product Catalog, seminars, and has attended multiple Buyers Missions.
Food Export uses funding from the Market Access Program (MAP) to help America’s small businesses increase their exports of food and agricultural products. As these exports increase, these small businesses are creating jobs and improving the strength and stability of our agricultural economy. Food Export-Midwest and Food Export-Northeast are non-profit organizations that work in collaboration with their member state departments of agriculture and the USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service. They offer a wide range of programs and services that help boost America’s agricultural exports.
