{"id":16200,"date":"2014-03-24T17:33:00","date_gmt":"2014-03-24T06:33:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/nofibs.com.au\/?p=16200"},"modified":"2019-04-13T23:58:11","modified_gmt":"2019-04-13T13:58:11","slug":"people-powered-spcsunday-social-media-movement-within-spc-bronwyn_powell-reports","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/archive.nofibs.com.au\/people-powered-spcsunday-social-media-movement-within-spc-bronwyn_powell-reports\/","title":{"rendered":"Sigh of relief from inside SPC: @bronwyn_powell reports on #SPCsunday"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Comedian<\/a>

Comedian Dave Hughes participated in an Aussie-made campaign close to his heart.<\/p><\/div>\nBy Bronwyn Powell<\/a>\u00a0\u00a0@bronwyn_powell<\/a>
\nSPC Marketing & Innovation Director<\/span><\/p>\n

The story behind SPC is one that has been well told in recent months in the media. The business had been severely damaged by a \u2018perfect storm\u2019 of external economic factors: the high Australian dollar, the flood of cheap imported product being sold in Australia below the cost of production here, and the little to no tariffs imposed on imported fruit products from other countries. These are the same countries that impose tariffs of up to 20 per cent on SPC Ardmona products coming into their markets.<\/p>\n

But we Aussies love an underdog, and SPC’s fighting spirit, driven by our loyal consumers, ultimately helped put the business back on track and gave us the opportunity to show that SPC is a company that can survive and prosper.<\/p>\n

We also have new Goulburn Valley and SPC products set to launch in June.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The social media campaign to save SPC started back in April 2013. A Facebook page, Save SPCA Australian Made and Grown<\/a>, was set up by Teena Knight, a member of the Goulburn Valley community, from a family of growers in Shepparton spanning over 60 years. Recognising that the fruit industry was in crisis, <\/b>Teena took to social media, encouraging Aussies to protect the industry that so many peoples\u2019 livelihoods were dependent on.<\/p>\n

Teena\u2019s \u2018toss a tin in your trolley\u2019 call to action to her audience was direct and simple, as is so often the case in successful people-powered campaigns such as this. The groundswell of consumer support to save SPC had begun.<\/p>\n

Fast forward to January 2014. As the federal government remained tight-lipped about whether it was going to support the $25 million funding request from SPC, we wanted to be a part of the save SPC conversation that was snowballing, thanks to a growing audience of consumers which was championing our very survival.<\/p>\n

Our first step was to create an SPC Australia Twitter account (@SPCAustralia<\/a>), which we did to support our Australia Day Baked Beans campaign with comedian, Dave Hughes. Having grown up in regional Victoria, many of Hugheys\u2019 friends and family are employed by Australia\u2019s food industry, so our campaign, encouraging the nation to buy Aussie-grown baked beans, was a cause close to his heart. The overwhelmingly positive support and feedback from everyday Australians during the campaign was extraordinary. They cared deeply about the company and the survival of the Australian farming and manufacturing industries.<\/p>\n

Then, just days later on January 30, the federal government declined our request for a $25 million co-investment strategy with SPC\u2019s parent company. The news was a major blow for every SPC employee; from our managing director, Peter Kelly, right the way through to the hundreds of farmers and workers at our processing plants, many of whom have been working for the company for decades.<\/p>\n

\n

Guys, to support #SPC<\/a> let's have a Twitter Peaches and Icecream night this Sunday Feb 9. Hashtags and Twitpics a-plenty. Ping @taupe_cat<\/a><\/p>\n

— Linda Drummond (@LindaDrummond) February 6, 2014<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n