#OnShelf: Worker safety campaign launched

by Louise Burgers. A campaign to educate workers on COVID-19 safety protocols; a ghee superfood brand launch; and logistics aid under lockdown.

Protecting food security

Talent Brand has produced a series of animation videos to educate essential workers on COVID-19. The Health and Welfare Sector Education Training Authority (HWSETA) embarked on an educational campaign to ensure that essential workers are aware of the virus and understand how to maintain their own health and prevent its spread. As part of this campaign, the SETA awarded discretionary grants to entities that may be able to help disseminate this vital message and Talent Brand was a recipient. Having worked with many FMCG companies in SA, Talent Brand applied these insights to a series of animated videos, crafted to provide essential workers in manufacturing, retail and supply chain industries with information about how to identify COVID-19 symptoms, and how to protect themselves and family members from the spread. They worked with Mobitainment and TTRO on the project. The animated videos – each under three minutes long – are available in English, Afrikaans, Zulu and Setswana; and aim to dispel myths about the spread of the virus and address critical issues such as physical distancing, when to self-isolate, and how and when to get tested. The content for the videos was created in consultation with key players in the food manufacturing industry, including Tiger Brands, National Brands, CCBSA, and Distell, to ensure that the messaging is on target. The videos are available in both static and interactive format; as well as mobile interactive videos that can be watched on employees’ phones. Video link: https://youtu.be/9c3oe0hREzc.

New ghee superfood brand

The True Foods Company has launched a pure butter ghee original; as well as Willowfield Ghee, a blend of unsalted high quality vegetable fat and butter fat, to give consumers the option of both butter fat and pure butter ghee in the required quantities in keeping with their religious beliefs and healthy use of product. They have also embarked on a campaign to educate consumers on the difference between the many ghee brands. The True Foods Company is the only supplier of pure butter ghee, with its Ghee brand retailing in a glass jar, quantity 450g. It is targeted at the keto, healthy, lactose-free consumer, as well as for some religious occasions. ‘Bullet coffee’ for example, requires pure butter ghee; and it is also substituted for butter in baking on many food blogs. Willowfield is a ghee blend with the addition of pure butterfat, vegetable fat and additives. It comes in a 1.5kg bucket, as well as 400g pack size to accommodate various consumer needs. A nutritional table is included to inform consumers.

A lift to get logistics on track

Since lockdown was first implemented, Marco Caverni, CEO of Masslift Africa, sole distributor of Mitsubishi forklifts in Southern Africa, says that the country has seen a major shift in logistics and supply chain management. “As specialists in materials handling, we have had a front-row seat to the logistical challenges that our clients have been faced with. Despite this, South Africa has managed to keep everything running and the shelves stocked.” Caverni attributes this to the agility of companies which service the fast-moving consumer goods industry. “We have managed to attend to all breakdowns and services while keeping up with the demand for forklifts, which play an integral role in the logistics side of the retail and e-commerce industries.” For field services and repairs, there is a 24-hour call centre with technicians and contracts managers on standby attending to breakdowns at client sites; as well as via a service app. All clients that are open are being serviced from all the main business centres, up to 300km outside central hubs to assist those who are providing essential goods and services. Masslift’s dealers are helping to bridge the gaps to ensure national service coverage. “The app has been instrumental in building our reputation for a quick turnaround on repairs and services. Clients have immediate access to our service department and can track the process,” Caverni says.

Louise Burgers (previously Marsland) is the Publisher and Editor and Co-Founder of RetailingAfrica.com. She has spent over 20 years writing about the FMCG retailing, marketing, media and advertising industry in South Africa and on the African continent. She has specialised in local and Africa consumer trends and is a passionate Afro-optimist who believes it is Africa’s time to rise again and that the Africa Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) will be a global gamechanger in the next decade.

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