Speaker 1: This is Bloomberg Business Week with Carol Masser and Bloomberg
Speaker 1: Quick Takes Tim Stinovic from Bloomberg Radio. So who can
Speaker 1: forget this TikTok video? It is definitely one of the
Speaker 1: standout lighter moments of the pandemic. You know who I'm
Speaker 1: talking about? Nathan Who? Nathan Abaca? He is or was
Speaker 1: in Idaho riding on the back of his truck. He
Speaker 1: was lip syncing to Fleetwood Mac while drinking Ocean Spray
Speaker 1: canberry cranberry juice. While I watched it a lot, so
Speaker 1: did everyone else, watching tens of millions of times. And
Speaker 1: you know, I gotta say, this is a brand well
Speaker 1: known in my home. And here to talk about all
Speaker 1: of this in the pandemic and branding and surviving in
Speaker 1: an ever changing and challenging consumer food, product and beverage
Speaker 1: space is Tom Hayes, the president CEO of the agg
Speaker 1: Cooperative Ocean Spray. Tom is also former CEO of Tyson Foods,
Speaker 1: and he joins us on the phone in Lakeville, Massachusetts. Um,
Speaker 1: Nathan Abutaka, I don't think I'm saying it right, Apo Dacca,
Speaker 1: thank you, thank you, thank you, Apodaca. Um tell us
Speaker 1: first of all, Tom, where you were when you first
Speaker 1: heard and saw Nathan's video? Hey, First of all, thanks
Speaker 1: for having me Carroll. It's it's great to be with you.
Speaker 1: And when I first when I first heard it and
Speaker 1: saw it, actually was a friend of mine sent me
Speaker 1: a text and he said, you gotta check this out.
Speaker 1: He guys, what an amazing opportunity for ocean sprice. It
Speaker 1: was a buddy of mine sent it along, and it
Speaker 1: was it was really cool. And I had the same
Speaker 1: sort of impression I think everybody did when they saw
Speaker 1: it that this this guy, Nathan was Apo Docca was
Speaker 1: very sort of distraught on the one hand that he
Speaker 1: has broke his struck, broke down and could get the work.
Speaker 1: On the other hands, he sort of took in stride
Speaker 1: and made this video and everybody's like, wow, Jeezon and
Speaker 1: time when we need it, that need, that positivity he delivered.
Speaker 1: And so that was that was the first time I
Speaker 1: saw it. Was a lot of a lot of positivity.
Speaker 1: I mean, I can we talked about it so much
Speaker 1: of the newsroom and you guys and it up, you know,
Speaker 1: giving him a new Cranberry red truck in a bunch
Speaker 1: of ocean spray as well. Um so coodas to you guys,
Speaker 1: you also did a similar video, um and and that's
Speaker 1: pretty cool that you did that. Yeah. Thanks. You know,
Speaker 1: the team really sprung to action and I said, how
Speaker 1: can we take um full you know that to this
Speaker 1: opportortunity and take it to its fullest extent and really
Speaker 1: helped Nathan get you know, what he needs, which is
Speaker 1: a truck of transportation. Uh. And the team jumped to
Speaker 1: action and we said, this is fraid. If we're going
Speaker 1: to do this for him and give him the transportation,
Speaker 1: why not make the truck Cranberry red? And then why
Speaker 1: not loaded up with you know, cranberry crand raspberry juice
Speaker 1: in the back, which is what he was drinking on
Speaker 1: the skateboard. And you know, when I was asked to
Speaker 1: play a role, I said, you know, absolutely easy decision.
Speaker 1: YEA happy to do it. And I was not a
Speaker 1: skateboarder like he is, but I figured it out and
Speaker 1: you know, if Nick Mick Fleetwood could do it, I figured,
Speaker 1: well I should give it a show. We've been playing
Speaker 1: it all for the folks watching right now on YouTube.
Speaker 1: Hey listen, So one year into the pandemic, you know,
Speaker 1: tell him what stays with you from a year ago
Speaker 1: and how do things look today? Yea, So for a
Speaker 1: year ago, things were obviously very different mood wise. People
Speaker 1: were shocked and scared, not that they aren't now, but
Speaker 1: it was just nobody knew what to do. Now we
Speaker 1: do know what to do. Safety protocols and planks and
Speaker 1: our plants. People you know, certainly social distancing where they can,
Speaker 1: and we've you know, unfortunately learned to sort of live
Speaker 1: with it. But I would say the thing that has
Speaker 1: changed at Ocean Spray beyond just safety protocols is how
Speaker 1: do we take this opportunity to build positivity in all
Speaker 1: aspects of our business where we can so, whether it's
Speaker 1: through products and innovation some of the new items. So
Speaker 1: we've been coming out with Ocean Spray Wave, which is
Speaker 1: a new sparkling beverage with caffeine, or Ocean Spray mentally
Speaker 1: snacking items that are taking the joy of dried cranberries
Speaker 1: and combining them with other cool new proofs to create
Speaker 1: some special moments for consumers. There's been a lot of
Speaker 1: talk about how do we take what was last year
Speaker 1: sort of shocking and disturbing situation, And as we've moved through.
Speaker 1: You know, it's been a full year, like, how do
Speaker 1: we make that you know, a situation that's more of
Speaker 1: a positive experience for people to the best extent that
Speaker 1: we can well, and I do think about I want
Speaker 1: to ask you about the new products in terms of
Speaker 1: what consumers want, but I do want to ask you
Speaker 1: about the past year because it has been something where
Speaker 1: all of a sudden inequities that have been in society
Speaker 1: for a long time, really we're front and center and
Speaker 1: we're having discussions that maybe we weren't having before. What
Speaker 1: is the role do you think of companies and CEOs
Speaker 1: like yourself and leaders to help, you know, end the
Speaker 1: conversations or create conversations that result in deliberate action that
Speaker 1: actually make a difference. I think with all leaders, you know,
Speaker 1: they are on top of organizations and leaders leadership teams,
Speaker 1: so the organization and people that are attached to it,
Speaker 1: whether they're consumers with the brand, where they're following on,
Speaker 1: you know, of broadcasts like this, what leadership are doing.
Speaker 1: They're all looking up and they're looking for role models
Speaker 1: to you know, say and do what they expect. You know,
Speaker 1: good people and differently than I think in past situations,
Speaker 1: where people might have been slightly more distracted, they're really
Speaker 1: tuned in that people were focused on the tombs in
Speaker 1: front of them or the phones in front of them,
Speaker 1: and they're they're just aware of what's happening. I think
Speaker 1: the moments that leaders have to say, you know, here's
Speaker 1: what we can do to help the situation versus exacerbate
Speaker 1: it and bring you know, calm with insanity back is
Speaker 1: really what we've tried to do with the company. And
Speaker 1: I think a board of directors is very you know,
Speaker 1: uh strong group of leaders that you know are farmers,
Speaker 1: they you know, doing this for hundreds of years, the
Speaker 1: families have it. They see an opportunity to say, look
Speaker 1: what we we know stability, what it looks like, and
Speaker 1: you know, team, we expect you to do that and
Speaker 1: the fortunate position to lead and hopefully bring positivity and
Speaker 1: you know stability, you know, some some amount of certainty
Speaker 1: to where there's a lot of uncertainty. Hey, Tom, what's
Speaker 1: interesting is and I think about like the last year,
Speaker 1: I mean, companies continue to innovate, they continue to work
Speaker 1: on their strategies. You guys you know, have new products
Speaker 1: that have come out. Talked to us about what that
Speaker 1: development process was like and what's been guiding you know,
Speaker 1: what you the new offerings that you're coming out for consumers? Sure,
Speaker 1: you know, it's um an interesting environment for sure because
Speaker 1: retailers are not as excited about putting new products on
Speaker 1: the shelf when they don't have consumers as much as
Speaker 1: they have walking through the stores. It makes it you know,
Speaker 1: spaces of premium. There's been certainly outages of products as
Speaker 1: you all wear, and so for consumer products, companies making
Speaker 1: sure that they're really unmarked with what their brands are
Speaker 1: going to represent to that consumer. What the insight that
Speaker 1: you're seeing and what we had benefited from is the
Speaker 1: Ocean Spray brand, uh, you know is a hundred years old,
Speaker 1: nearly ninety years was the last year or ninety harvest
Speaker 1: and so that it's right, and so innovation is against
Speaker 1: a brand that is well known and consumers find comfort in.
Speaker 1: It is a space that we took advantage of. So
Speaker 1: what we've been doing is trying to move ourselves from
Speaker 1: not just the Norman Rockwell painting, but to be a
Speaker 1: little more attached to you know, consumers that are newer
Speaker 1: consumer sells, millennials and younger consumers and the way we
Speaker 1: do that is to you know, make sure that we're
Speaker 1: speaking to them in the channels that they want, but
Speaker 1: importantly giving them the products they want. So Ocean Spray
Speaker 1: Wave is a product that is a sparkling water is
Speaker 1: infused with you know, natural caffeine from tea as well
Speaker 1: as you know, the beautiful flavors that we offer an
Speaker 1: Ocean Spray and the combinations that we're so known for.
Speaker 1: So that's one of the things that we saw for
Speaker 1: sure that that consumers are attracted to having, you know,
Speaker 1: not only hydration all day, but also they want an
Speaker 1: energy pickup. So having an infused beverage that Meso's needs
Speaker 1: was was certainly first on the radar. The second thing
Speaker 1: that we just introduced and have been making a big
Speaker 1: deal of it actually today is our new Fruit Metal
Speaker 1: East line. So that's thinking of you know, the dry
Speaker 1: cranberry or crazy that we have all come to know
Speaker 1: and love, combining that with other products that bring immunity, fiber,
Speaker 1: and probiotics to consumers life and so as they are
Speaker 1: looking for things that can help them get through this,
Speaker 1: certainly immunity blends, fiber blends, probiotics are things that resonate
Speaker 1: and having the Ocean Spray brand there as a trusted brand,
Speaker 1: but also bringing in these new ideas is you know,
Speaker 1: things that we hope we're going to be really successful
Speaker 1: products for us as we give it away from uh
Speaker 1: yet you know, sort of our old past when still
Speaker 1: embrace the brand that has brought us to the party. Well,
Speaker 1: and that's why I think a lot of brands that
Speaker 1: have been around for a century right are trying to
Speaker 1: figure out how to adapt to the new market. And
Speaker 1: I think about I was listening to you as you
Speaker 1: were going through the fruit medley dried fruit blend products
Speaker 1: like check check check in terms of you know fruit. Um,
Speaker 1: we're talking about no artificial colors, flavors, preservatives. You know,
Speaker 1: people are increasingly and we talked about this a lot
Speaker 1: in our air, you know, looking you know, turning around
Speaker 1: looking at what's in a product. My teenager does it. Um,
Speaker 1: this is what people are looking for. And you know,
Speaker 1: you understand the food industry increasingly, is this where everything's
Speaker 1: going as much as it can, as much as it
Speaker 1: can and you call it I think important saying that
Speaker 1: the consumer also wants to know that what they're buying
Speaker 1: is not only healthy for them, but they're doing good
Speaker 1: things for you know, the environment and so forth. So
Speaker 1: many consumers, uh, you want to make sure that they're
Speaker 1: buying from a purpose dripping brand. What better purpose than
Speaker 1: the Ocean Spray House, which is to connect our farms
Speaker 1: to families for a better life. Being in business for
Speaker 1: ninety years and owned by farmers, are all the profit
Speaker 1: we make goes back to you know, seven hundred farmer owners.
Speaker 1: I mean, there's there's no better purpose drooping company my
Speaker 1: view in the business of that. And then the other
Speaker 1: thing is, you know, thinking about you know, what are
Speaker 1: we doing going forward? Is we're not just happy with
Speaker 1: the fact that you know, we are owned by farmers,
Speaker 1: which we love, but what are we going to do
Speaker 1: to represent what they believe they can do for their
Speaker 1: future with regenerative farming, which you know, one of the
Speaker 1: most beautiful things about agriculture and in this space is
Speaker 1: that we can actually do things that are better for
Speaker 1: the environment just by doing what we do, which is
Speaker 1: raising you know, fully antioxidant loaded you know cranberry that
Speaker 1: can help you help bring these wonderful products the market. Yeah,
Speaker 1: but it's interesting what you talk about farming. We were
Speaker 1: talking with CEO app Harvest who was formerly CFO uh
Speaker 1: at impossible. And what's interesting too is just you know,
Speaker 1: we are we looking at farming and how you do
Speaker 1: it because it does impact the environment in big ways. Um.
Speaker 1: Have you seen a lot of changes in terms of
Speaker 1: the farmer families that are part of Ocean Spray in
Speaker 1: terms of how they're doing things, not because they want
Speaker 1: to and also because of out of necessity. Yeah, you
Speaker 1: know they like uh so we all are concerned about
Speaker 1: certainly the world we live in and having the impact
Speaker 1: we're having, but thinking about the farmers that that's sort
Speaker 1: of life they are. There's nobody's no better steward of
Speaker 1: the land than a farmer, regardless of the profits that raising.
Speaker 1: And you know, our farm is given that their regenera
Speaker 1: of agriculture that revitalizes the soil. They look to the
Speaker 1: water around them because they need it to harvest. They
Speaker 1: want to make sure that they're actually improving the environment
Speaker 1: and leaving it better than before. Because the multi generational
Speaker 1: and let's send it this will be the third time
Speaker 1: and being the just for years. Some of these storms
Speaker 1: go back before the early eighteen hundreds of the insues
Speaker 1: getting going and They want to make sure that they're
Speaker 1: doing the right things, so they continue to push whether
Speaker 1: it's um with the right pest management, and you know,
Speaker 1: being more focused towards going organic and using categoryculture as
Speaker 1: a way to you know, step into new technologies. You
Speaker 1: wouldn't think there would be a lot, you know of
Speaker 1: of that going on in the crammer industry that's been
Speaker 1: around forever and extrambers, but they really do think about
Speaker 1: technology and the things that you know, can even push
Speaker 1: us further. Right, I can just imagine the innovation and
Speaker 1: the adaptations over you know, a hundred years in terms
Speaker 1: of doing this. Hey, um, quick last question. When you
Speaker 1: look at the food industry again I mentioned you are,
Speaker 1: you know, former head of Tyson Foods. Um, what do
Speaker 1: you think the big trends like our audience investors need
Speaker 1: to be keeping an eye and just got about forty
Speaker 1: five seconds clean eating. People want food with fewer preservatives
Speaker 1: and you know that it's sure your family is doing
Speaker 1: the same thing. People want that, but they also want
Speaker 1: a great taste, so it's not a new insight. People
Speaker 1: want that. It's harder to get you know, fantastic tasting
Speaker 1: products because some of the things that are are preservatives
Speaker 1: and otherwise are things that help them keep their great taste.
Speaker 1: So I think the investors should be looking for what
Speaker 1: are those companies that are really threading the needle. They
Speaker 1: have fewer ingredients that they're using and they're more clean ingredients,
Speaker 1: but they're also resonating with consumers and they have fantastic
Speaker 1: taste that that just excites people. Well, really great to
Speaker 1: check in with you. Thank you so much for your time,
Speaker 1: really really appreciated, and good luck and hopefully we can
Speaker 1: check in with you again in the future. Tom Hayes,
Speaker 1: President CEO of Ocean Spray, on the phone in Massachusetts,