Big Wins for the College of Agriculture Food Marketing Team

Big Wins for the College of Agriculture Food Marketing Team

The California State University, Chico College of Agriculture's Food Marketing Team competed at the Western Collegiate Food Marketing Competition in Anaheim, Calif., April 18-19. This year both the international and domestic teams placed first with their products. The teams also had first-place finishes for best PowerPoint presentation.

Each year the agricultural marketing and planning class spends a semester preparing international and domestic products to take to the competition. The teams must create an innovative new product and then develop a strategic marketing and business plan to promote their product. These plans are then presented to a panel of industry judges who rate the quality of the plans and presentation. Assistant professor in agribusiness, Dr. Baohui Song, and senior agriculture business major Stephanie Horton were the coaches for this year's teams. The coaches prepared the teams for competition with several meetings and practice presentations.

The Domestic Team-consisting of Haley Hunt, Jillian Kehoe and Natalie Schallberger-outshined the competition with their idea for organic ice cream produced at the Chico State Dairy, CHIC-O. The International Team-consisting of Sam Cooley, Kevin Donnelly and Rebecca Hein-placed on top with their idea for selling California-grown organic rice to China. All students were judged on the market analysis, competitive analysis, financials and presentation of their products. According to Dr. Song, "Our university and college were well represented by our excellent students."

The Western Collegiate Food Marketing Competition is held annually, with a mission to prepare students for the rigors of full-time employment by having them complete in a project that simulates expectations and real-world realities in the work force. The skills that students gain from such an experience include leadership, networking and fellowship.

For more information on the Food Marketing Competition, or to learn more about the Agricultural Marketing Planning class, contact Dr. Baohui Song at (530) 898-3056 or bsong@csuchico.edu.