A RABBIT is the latest promotional mascot for a new vegetable brand.
Perfection Fresh has launched its Hatters Vegetables range to be sold exclusively through Coles.
The new brand features traditional yet forgotten vegetable types.
The summer 2013 range will introduce 11 new products including the Kabocha pumpkin, kohl rabi and the Batavia lettuce.
All homegrown in Australia by local producers, each has a special character that defies convention, from the way they look to how they taste.
The concept is centered around a character called Livingstone R. Rabbit, who declares himself as a “Maître des Legumes”.
According to the Hatters Vegetables website, every season Livingstone R. Rabbit will introduce visitors to a different selection of “wildly wonderful vegetables”.
“Vegetables as strange as they are sumptuous. You see, our vegetables have lost the plot,” the website says.
“An abundant supply of fresh air and a rich homegrown Australian heritage has unearthed their true charm.
Coles business category manager Daniel Williams said Hatters was adding new life and interest to the fresh produce area of Coles.
“Our customers will discover new ingredients, new flavours, new colours and new ways of cooking,” Mr Williams said.
“It’s taken 12 months of planning; everything from planting the crops to developing the brand and its fun vegetable personalities. This new range has as much personality as it has taste.
“These types of vegetables used to be confined to specialist stores but we are making it possible for anyone, anywhere in Australia, to have their own adventure with vegetables.”
Produce Marketing Association Australia and New Zealand (PMA A-NZ) praised the initiative, saying adding personality to fresh produce was no easy feat.
Michael Worthington, chief executive of PMA Australia-New Zealand, welcomed the concerted effort to encourage consumers to consume more fresh produce
“Now more than ever the fresh produce industry needs to apply clever marketing and promotional measures to encourage Australian consumers to eat their recommended daily intake of fresh fruits and vegetables,” Mr Worthington said.
“With increased touch points available to consumers across a range of mediums, innovation in how retailers communicate with shoppers is a welcome and positive move that can only mean good things for the industry.”