CORAL GABLES, Florida – Motivated to spread goodness, Coral Gables based Turbana Corporation is on a mission to inspire communities across the country to join their movement “Growing Smiles, Sharing Goodness”.
Since its introduction, Turbana’s Growing Smiles Sharing Goodness has gained momentum over the last few months. Turbana kicked off the movement in August 2013 on their Facebook and Twitter pages, encouraging individuals to eat healthy, be active and get more involved in their communities. Turbana combined inspiring content with the motivational hashtags #LoveYourselfABunch and #LoveYouBunches to build awareness and excitement for the movement within their social media community.
A Turbana social media representative states, “We are very excited about the movement! We have already seen a 10% increase in the number of people using the hashtag #LoveYouBunches across Twitter and Facebook.”
On October 9th, Turbana then launched their northeast “Tally Me Turbana Food Truck Tour”, which aimed to tally communities into the Growing Smiles, Sharing Goodness movement. The Tally Me Turbana Truck visited 9 cities (Boston, Needham, MA., Baltimore, Washington, D.C., Hartford CT., Philadelphia, New York, Newark, NJ., and Arlington, VA.) in 19 days and engaged with over 500,000 individuals.
Marion Tabard, Turbana’s Marketing Director comments, “The Growing Smiles, Sharing Goodness movement is about lifestyle. It’s about little choices that compound, and with time those choices make a difference to you as an individual, and to our communities as a whole. We aim to inspire people and we want everyone to feel empowered by the small choices they make to better themselves and the communities around them.”
Events at each stop during the truck tour focused on that specific community. One of the first stops was at Boston’s Light the Night Walk, which raised funds for blood cancer research. The “Growing Smiles, Sharing Goodness” team distributed over 5,000 Turbana bananas, 7,500 Turbana Plantain chips and exchanged thousands of smiles. The team walked “To The End Of Cancer” and talked to survivors about what inspires them.
“It was 32 degrees and they we here with their big yellow happy face truck and all smiles” – Light The Night Participant
After stops in New York’s Times Square and Union Square, followed by Philadelphia, the Tally Me Turbana Truck Tour wrapped up with the Marine Corps Marathon in Arlington, VA where runners were greeted with hugs, high-fives, smiles and 43,000 Turbana Bananas. Turbana also partnered with the Marine Corps Marathon and Arlington’s Waste Management, initiating the event’s first on-site composting program.
“Turbana approached the MCM with innovative ideas to enhance the experience of the participants. The composting program that Turbana initiated really resonated with the participants as smart and responsible. The MCM looks forward to building on this great start in 2014.” – Marc Goldman, Marine Corp Marathon Marketing Manager
“Bringing a smile to someone who has just finished a 26.2 mile marathon feels pretty good” – “Growing Smiles, Sharing Goodness” Team Member
The movement encourages what Turbana practices everyday. Since the company’s inception in 1970, their philosophy has been that their success depends on the well being of their communities. The movement invites others to share in those ideals.
The movement, which is hosted on Turbana’s Facebook and Twitter pages continues to grow.
Turbana’s social media team reports, “Over the last two months our social networks have seen significant growth. Our Facebook engagement has increased by 4,433 % and our Reach has grown 18,500%. It is exciting to see so many people participating so early on.”
Aligned with Turbana’s core values and corporate philosophy, its nationwide “Growing Smiles, Sharing Goodness” movement aims to inspire individuals to live actively, eat healthy, get involved in their communities, and ultimately care about the well-being of the world around them.
Marion Tabard, Turbana’s Marketing Director, comments, “We have big plans and are very excited about the movement. This is just the beginning. Turbana is already discussing partnerships with other brands and retailers that share our mission to inspire.”
To join the “Growing Smiles, Sharing Goodness” movement, tally yourself in at www.facebook.com/TurbanaGoodnessInside or contact Marion Tabard for brand and retailer partnership inquires.
About Turbana
Turbana Corporation is the world’s largest producer and exporter of Fair Trade certified bananas and its farms are 100% grower-owned. As one of the leading importers of tropical produce including bananas, plantains, pineapples and ethnic tropicals, Turbana’s objective is to develop the farming communities in the banana and plantain-growing regions, by investing in social and economic projects including education, housing, infrastructure, and environmental protection. Fundauniban, Turbana’s social foundation, has invested over $230 million in hundreds of projects in social development, community infrastructure, and economic development to improve the people of Colombia’s quality of life, health, and happiness. The foundation's work has earned it the endorsement of NGO's and foreign governments.
Additionally, Turbana supports its retail partners by helping them build sustainability and growth in their own communities. Turbana is inspired everyday by the goodness of its fruit and a spirited commitment to its people, environment and customers. www.turbana.com.
Source: Turbana Corporation
