A beginners' course in asparagus: German machines famous on social media?

Like many others, Owyhee Produce from the USA is particularly active on social media and also shows consumers the background of asparagus production. Recently, the videos even reached Buzzfeed, a media platform with 150 million visitors per month, making it one of the most popular in the English-speaking world. Right at the front of the video: Asparagus machines from Strauss Verpackungsmaschinen in Buxtehude. The videos, which have been published on Facebook and Instagram, among others, now have almost seven million clicks.

This is a very positive development, says Matthias Kinzel from Strauss, who did not know Buzzfeed before: "Shay from Owyhee Produce is very active on social media and he provides insights into asparagus cultivation. I'm also a follower of his LinkedIn account on which videos from the field to sorting and packaging are published almost weekly. But the reach via Buzzfeed surprised me. In the meantime we have of course taken a look at Buzzfeed and find the platform very interesting and varied - even if it's not normally about growing fruit and vegetables."

"We think it's good to be able to find our equipment, but also comprehensive information about production - from planting to the finished product - not only in specialized reading. The effort required to bring asparagus to the farm shop or supermarket and the technology behind it can thus be seen by the general public," Kinzel says.

To what extent does it make sense for a producer company to invest so intensively in consumer marketing? "In order to make products more interesting for consumers, the media and social network are an increasingly popular medium, as is the experience gastronomy, which has become more and more widespread over the years. More and more consumers want to see and know where the products come from and how they are produced. Therefore, the medial way is an experience for the consumer and the producer attracts attention by giving insights into his production. A positive aspect for us is the increasing awareness of our machines. Other companies also provide insights with image films on their own websites, but this does not have the reach of the social network." Certainly in difficult times like these, such additional attention is important.

In the future, we will probably hear more from Owyhee Produce and maybe about the machines from Strauss as well: "Owyhee, as well as other customers, regularly post videos of their machines and products and they have a lot of followers. It was not the first video and will probably not be the last. As the farms are located in rural areas, they have a wide reach to get customers to their farm and market their asparagus directly. Matthias Kinzel also posts regularly on LinkedIn from the production halls in Buxtehude, trade fairs and tours where the machines for asparagus, apples and leeks are in use.