In April-June 2024, the Organic Fest festival of organic products was held. The event was organized and hosted by the national supermarket chain Silpo in cooperation with the Organic Initiative with the support of Switzerland within the framework of the Swiss-Ukrainian Programme “Higher Value Added Trade from the Organic and Dairy Sector in Ukraine” (QFTP) implemented by the Research Institute of Organic Agriculture (FiBL, Switzerland) in partnership with SAFOSO AG (Switzerland).
The goal of the Organic Fest is to help raise awareness of organic products among Ukrainians and stimulate demand and sales of Ukrainian organic products.
The festival included fairs and a communication campaign to raise awareness and popularize organic products among consumers, as well as special discounts from organic producers for Silpo customers. The Organic Fest was attended by 13 organic producers from different parts of Ukraine, namely:
- Bonner, LLC (Bonner TM, Kyiv region)
2. Brancho Ukraine, LLC (Brancho, Zhytomyr region) 3.
3. Domashnya Kurochka, private farm (Zhytomyr region)
4. Danube Agrarian, LLC (Odesa region) 5.
5. Molfar Eco, LLC (Molfar TM, Zakarpattia region)
6. Organic Milk, LLC (Organic Milk TM, Zhytomyr region)
7. Organic Original, LLC (Ecorod TM, Kyiv region).
8. Organic meat product, LLC (Organic Meat TM, Zhytomyr region)
9. Panfruit Ukraine, LLC (Panfruit TM, Kyiv region)
10. Skvyra Bread Factory, LLC (Skvyryanka TM, Kyiv region)
11. Staryi Porytsk, LLC (Staryi Porytsk TM, Volyn region)
12. Ukroliya, LLC (Garna TM, Poltava region)
13. Diamant LTD, LLC (Kozub TM, Poltava region)
In May and June, Silpo supermarkets in three major Ukrainian cities, Lviv, Odesa and Kyiv, hosted four two-day markets. During these events, producers presented their organic products to consumers, telling them about their beneficial properties and the complex production process, thus popularizing organic products. Visitors had the opportunity to taste organic products made in Ukraine, buy them at a special price, and learn about the specifics of labeling for their further recognition on store shelves.
The Organic Fest has proven to be an effective marketing tool for attracting consumer attention to organic products and finding new consumers and partners for producers. As part of the festival, a communication campaign was conducted to raise awareness of the state logo for organic products, which sought to help build trust in labeling and generate greater demand for certified organic products.
The companies that participated in the event noted a significant increase in sales due to the opportunity to conduct tastings, a 15% discount on products from Organic Fest participants, and the placement of special navigation, the so-called “supermarkets” or signage, with the state logo for organic products and the EU organic label “Euroleaf” in Silpo supermarkets. An important advantage for the participating producers was direct communication with customers, during which producers explained the benefits of certified organic products.
SMM tools were used for promotion: specially created content was posted on the websites and social networks of Silpo, organic producers and partners. A special page with informative information about organic products was launched on silpo.ua, and event announcements were posted on Silpo’s mobile app, in the media and on bloggers’ social networks. These communication activities helped to reach a wide audience and ensure high sales, with some producers experiencing sales growth of up to 200%.
Such measures help to expand markets for organic products and support small and medium-sized businesses in a difficult economic situation. Fruitful cooperation between organic sector players, government support and assistance from international partners, including Switzerland, increase the competitiveness of Ukrainian producers in the domestic market. Thanks to such initiatives, Ukraine’s organic sector has prospects for further development and strengthening.
