Nestle - Go Free Campaign

[DavidJ]

As a club, we have been contacted by a company running a 'Nestle Go Free' campaign which offers free participation at a range of sporting venues. We have also heard from British Orienteering that they 'endorse' the scheme but are leaving it up to clubs to sign up.

Leaving aside the issue of our rather irregular events and the probable difficulty of offering an activity during any 3-week period covered by the promoition, my biggest issue is with the costs. The club would be required to "fund the offer entirely". So when someone turns up, we allow them a free entry but can not claim that back from the promoting company (or Nestle). The hope is presumably that we would gain regular competitors from current non-orienteers. However, my fear is that we will lose more money as a result of current orienteers presenting vouchers and getting free runs than we will gain new regular orienteers.

Has anyone actually signed up to this scheme and, if so, do you think that the gains will be greater than the loses?

As a club we have not reached a decision so I would welcome comments from elsewhere. Thanks.

[madmike]

We decided not to go with it at our Committee teleconference earlier this evening. We didn't see any real benefit, and one of the committee felt that it was an ethically sub-optimal company.

[frog]

I still have an instinctive boo hiss reaction to Nestle left over from my student days. I told the rest of the committee they could look into it if they wished but I wasn't interested in getting involved.

[SeanC]

One way round this problem might be to offer "map reading lessons" or "orienteering lessons" which = your usual help for beginners at your event and then free entry on the yellow/orange course.

Just looked at the go free website: there is a big list of free activities to choose from, so I would have thought it would only generate one or two newcomers per event, but our experience is if you can do a few things with low return it can add up to healthy numbers.

Nestle make Shredded Wheat don't they? That could be the compass part of the lesson: Never Eat Shredded Wheat.

[jab]

IBFAN (the International Baby Food Action Network) still finds Nestle to be responsible for more violations of the World Health Assembly marketing requirements for baby foods and breastmilk substitutes than any other company. I would agree with the person from Madmike's club committe who labelled Nestle as "ethically sub-optimal".

[NeilC]

Does that make them worse than those companies that allowed their baby milk products to be contaminated with melamine (killing several and causing kidney failure in thousands more)?

[frog]

Just because some of their competitors have had dodgy practices as well is no reason to support them though
In the 80s student unions widely campaigned against nestles misleading and aggressive formula marketing in the third world. This was a major factor in me switching to ground coffee as I'd come from a Gold Blend household and hated the other instant brands. Nestle weren't as dominent then in the chocolate world.
Don't know how much they've improved their act, but many formula milk manufacturers are overly pushy with new mums re bounty backs etc in the developed world.

[Scott]

at our Committee teleconference

[mappingmum]

at our Committee teleconference

Bit behind the times eh, Mike? Video conferencing is all the rage now!

Nestle have a history of promoting milk substitutes to the detriment of breast feeding and are the bane of the National Childbirth Trust.

The sales girls from the promotion have started chasing so be warned!

[Eeyore]

I'm glad to see there are still people anti Nestle; I'd begun to think we were the only ones.

[SeanC]

mmm, looking at the promotion in more detail, what Nestle will get out of it is more people eating the products listed below, and an association of these brands with healthy sports like Orienteering.

Smarties
Jelly Tots
Chocolate covered shreddies
Honey covered cheerios
Nesquik
Cookie Crisp
Curiously Cinnamon

Since lots of these are aimed at children you could argue that the promotion might do more harm to children's health than the benefit (of getting them to do sports), even ignoring the milk powder issue.

(though also promoting Shredded Wheat which seems healthy - if a bit tasteless)

On the other hand most of us eat this stuff from time to time, or even all the time, and some orienteers will work for Nestle, so maybe it's best to look for alternative ways of promoting orienteering first ... there are lots and more than enough to keep publicity officers busy probably ... but not say never to promotions with Nestle or sound too political? Difficult issue Probably why BOF are sitting on the fence.

Don't try curiously cinnamon BTW, tastes very wierd.

[Mrs H]

how come this thread hasn't been moderated for political content - or does that just happen to ones I'm involved in?

[jab]

I don't want to turn this thread into a long discussion of the evils of Nestle's baby milk marketing policies but, given that in the first posting in this thread, DavidJ expressed some uncertainty as to whether the offer would actually prove beneficial/cost effective at all, it is worth pointing out that there are still many active Nestle boycotters out there who would find a perceived collaboration with Nestle to be an active reason NOT to try orienteering.

[mappingmum]

Has anyone spotted the special promotion packs in the supermarkets?

I aim to check out the cereal/sweetie aisle in Tescos over the next few days.

[DavidJ]

I don't want to turn this thread into a long discussion of the evils of Nestle's baby milk marketing policies but, given that in the first posting in this thread, DavidJ expressed some uncertainty as to whether the offer would actually prove beneficial/cost effective at all, it is worth pointing out that there are still many active Nestle boycotters out there who would find a perceived collaboration with Nestle to be an active reason NOT to try orienteering.

My thanks to the responses so far which have, as jab indicates, taken this thread in a different direction to the one I had been expecting - interesting none the less. I was more interested in the practical issues of making it work and providing a good return for the club (in terms of increased participation/revenue) rather than subsequently finding that it had actually led to a reduction in income as the club has to 'fund' the scheme. If I had, for example, 2 children who regularly compete on an orange course and I find that they could get them free runs by eating a particularly breakfast cereal then Nestle benefit, I benefit but the club looses out.