Walla Walla sweet onions furthering presence and recognition at convention
Walla Walla sweet onions furthering presence and recognition at convention
Promoting its 22nd annual Walla Walla Sweet Onion Festival, set for July 14-16 at the Walla Walla County Fairgrounds in Walla Walla, WA, the Walla Walla Sweet Onion Marketing Committee will be giving away the coveted Sweety plush toy at this year's United Produce Show.
The committee will occupy booth 11314 at the May 6-9 United convention and expo, and Director of Marketing Kathryn Fry said that the committee will use the event to further the onion's overall presence in the industry.
"We want to continue to have a presence in the industry - one that won't be missed by people in the East," Ms. Fry said. "There are still people who don't know about Walla Walla sweet onions, and it's our mission to be recognized."
To that end, Ms. Fry and staff at the booth will tout the upcoming festival, which will include a Friday night pre-festival dinner-dance catered by Chef Judith Henderson.
On Saturday, July 15, the festival will feature a horse show, amateur recipe contest and a full slate of family-oriented activities. Sunday kicks off with a pancake breakfast, followed by an art contest and a 5k and 10k fun run benefiting Friends, a local non- profit youth mentoring program under the direction of Joey August. Both Saturday and Sunday activities feature professional cooking tips with sweet onions, including select Pacific Northwest BBQ Association recipes and cooking demonstrations and presentations by Mike Davis, executive chef and owner of 26brix; Chef Jamie Guerin of Whitehouse Crawford; and Chef Greg Schnorr of CreekTown Cafe.
Tourism Walla Walla is assisting Ms. Fry in festival promotion, and she said that a complete roster of sponsors and events is available at www.sweetonions.org, where a festival page link can be found. "The rock 'n roll concert is so well-received in this community that we've already had people asking for tickets," she said in mid-April. At the United show, drawings for the plush Sweety will be held hourly, and Ms. Fry said that Sweety-shaped fans, point-of-sale materials, recipe brochures and list of shipper-handlers will also be available to booth visitors.
"We also hope to sample dehydrated Walla Walla Sweet Onions," Ms. Fry said.
The committee will occupy booth 11314 at the May 6-9 United convention and expo, and Director of Marketing Kathryn Fry said that the committee will use the event to further the onion's overall presence in the industry.
"We want to continue to have a presence in the industry - one that won't be missed by people in the East," Ms. Fry said. "There are still people who don't know about Walla Walla sweet onions, and it's our mission to be recognized."
To that end, Ms. Fry and staff at the booth will tout the upcoming festival, which will include a Friday night pre-festival dinner-dance catered by Chef Judith Henderson.
On Saturday, July 15, the festival will feature a horse show, amateur recipe contest and a full slate of family-oriented activities. Sunday kicks off with a pancake breakfast, followed by an art contest and a 5k and 10k fun run benefiting Friends, a local non- profit youth mentoring program under the direction of Joey August. Both Saturday and Sunday activities feature professional cooking tips with sweet onions, including select Pacific Northwest BBQ Association recipes and cooking demonstrations and presentations by Mike Davis, executive chef and owner of 26brix; Chef Jamie Guerin of Whitehouse Crawford; and Chef Greg Schnorr of CreekTown Cafe.
Tourism Walla Walla is assisting Ms. Fry in festival promotion, and she said that a complete roster of sponsors and events is available at www.sweetonions.org, where a festival page link can be found. "The rock 'n roll concert is so well-received in this community that we've already had people asking for tickets," she said in mid-April. At the United show, drawings for the plush Sweety will be held hourly, and Ms. Fry said that Sweety-shaped fans, point-of-sale materials, recipe brochures and list of shipper-handlers will also be available to booth visitors.
"We also hope to sample dehydrated Walla Walla Sweet Onions," Ms. Fry said.
