Conscious Greens

Customer Targeting & Demand Generation

Building consumer acceptance for food+tech food

The Situation

In 2020, when it came to food+tech foods, there were many inaccurate or outdated perceptions of what consumers thought about the technology behind the food. The Pairwise team had developed a new variety of mustard green, using CRISPR technology to "knock out" the pungency in the wasabi-like greens, thus making this highly nutritious vegetable perfect for fresh salads. What would be the optimal way to position the brand, the product, and the technology behind it? Would consumers accept the first CRISPR food product to be introduced into the U.S. market? 

Megan Thomas led the development of a marketing strategy, including a research-based understanding of consumer perceptions of CRISPR technology and food, then created a new brand, Conscious Greens, which was then sampled with everyday consumers.

Step 1

Conducted a consumer segmentation study to identify high value produce shoppers and to understand perceptions of CRISPR technology. 

Step 2

Developed the Conscious Greens brand name and then quantitatively tested with target consumer segments.

Step 3

Developed visual brand identity,* plus the brand & product story, emphasizing the benefits of Conscious Greens.

*In collaboration with Moxie Sozo

Step 4

Sampled Conscious Greens in three major consumer events,* supported by a new website, PR, and an Instagram influencer campaign. 

*In collaboration with Mosaic

CONSCIOUS GREENS CASE STUDY

Results

In 2022, Conscious Greens:

  • Sampled CRISPR-edited salads with over 6,000 consumers, with 91% of samplers surveyed agreeing that they would be "somewhat or very likely" to purchase (N=3,012) and only 1% commented negatively about the technology used to make the product. This result was broadly seen in the food+tech ecosystem as successfully demonstrating consumer acceptance of this emergent technology.
  • Earned over 60 million media impressions from PR efforts (Source: CoverageBook) 
And won the "Best Inline Produce Booth" with its parent brand, Conscious Foods, for its salad sampling experience at the Global Produce & Floral Show in Orlando.