Shrek Boosts Vidalia Onion Sales

June 29, 2010— -- Shrek, the famous Ogre from the hugely popular animated films, isn't just crashing movie screens this summer, he's making a big presence in the aisles of grocery stores, too.

First reported in the Wall Street Journal, Vidalia onion growers say they are selling more onions than they ever have before thanks to a secret weapon, Shrek. Sales are up 50 percent according to the Vidalia Onion Committee, a group of a 99 growers of the sweet onion grown in Georgia.

Onions are usually a hard product to market, especially to children. They smell funny, they make you cry and they are the natural born enemy of many vegetable-phobic kids.

"If you're a banana or a strawberry or a blueberry that kids actually eat readily, it's not so hard to market to them," Wendy Brannen, Executive Director of the Vidalia Onion Committee, said. "But if you're an onion, what do you do?"

'Ogres Are Like Onions'

The group of onion growers found their answer in a scene from the first of the four "Shrek" films. In the scene, Shrek describes what an ogre is to his baffled friend, Donkey.

"Onions have layers, ogres have layers," Shrek said. "Ogres are like onions. End of Story."

The Vidalia Onion Committee approached DreamWorks Animation SKG Inc, the company that has made billions from the Shrek franchise, about using the ogre to market their product. They gave DreamWorks about $300,000 worth of publicity and marketing. DreamWorks gave them the right to use Shrek on placards, bags and on their Web site.

"I wanted to tie our onions to something that kids would relate to but parents would actually still purchase," Brannen said.