Leslie Cole’s recent article in The Oregonian highlights two Portland organizations supporting ethical butchering. Zenger Farm is launching butchery and curing classes – something there’s been a growing need for as backyard chicken coops have become commonplace in Portland. The Portland Meat Collective (PMC), created by former Portland Monthly Editor Camas Davis, is a meat CSA and traveling butchery school rolled into one. Both organizations are promoting a closer relationship to food, responsible animal husbandry and more sustainable and ethical meat consumption.

With the 2008-09 national obsession with all things bacon, urban America’s rediscovery of organ meat, and an increasing number of eateries taking Portland restaurant Beast’s meat-centric offerings to another level (see pdx’s newest meat lovers paradise Olympic Provisions), I wonder if this love of meat hasn’t become a wee bit fetish-y. Cole’s article opens by describing Livestock, a sold-out, two-night event at the Art Institute of Portland’s culinary school where an audience watched the butchering of a pig, ate meat hors d’oeuvres and took in literature about what it means to eat meat. I am grateful for the Zengers and the PMC’s of the world for shedding light on a part of our food system that is widely out of sight, out of mind and for recognizing butchering as a valuable craft. But it seems we’re walking a fine line as ‘ethical carnivores’ when we sip wine, in evening attire, as a pig is cut open in front of us.

The fourth year of “On the Road with Oregon Bounty” wrapped up in November, and once again it was a great culinary road trip. I traveled nearly 1,200 miles to all seven regions of the state, meeting the producers who served as mentors in our “Win an Oregon Bounty Cuisinternship” contest. In early September, I served as a roving reporter for seven straight days on radio stations in Portland, Seattle, Sacramento, Spokane, Eugene, Bend and Medford, reporting each day from a different part of the state and inviting listeners to enter the contest. Four weeks later, when the winners had been selected, I went back on the air for another series of reports to announce the results and talk about their winning videos. Below are some samples of my reports on various stations.

KINK Portland:

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KINK Portland 9/30/09:

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KSSJ Sacramento 9/1/09:

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KMTT Seattle 9/2/09:

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KSSJ Sacramento 9/28/09:

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As the newest Maxwellite, I continue to be amazed with the exciting projects I have the opportunity to work on with my team. Tomorrow, Whole Foods Market is opening the eighth store in the Portland metro area. To kick off the festivities, Whole Foods Market had a community party last night with music by Tony Starlight and tons of mouth-watering samples, giveaways and raffles. My favorite sample was a delicious house-made pork slider with a quinoa salad. YUM! The night’s donations benefited the local Hollywood Theatre, with Whole Foods matching up to $5,000.

Tomorrow’s opening day festivities include a special bread-breaking ceremony – a unique twist on a traditional ribbon cutting – complete with a nine-foot-long baguette. Mayor Sam Adams will be on hand to mark the occasion. In addition, Whole Foods Hollywood is giving away goody bags to the first 365 shoppers to the store. There will be giveaways throughout the day, and more than forty vendors will be sampling tasty bites. Everyone is invited to enjoy the festivities and get a glimpse the beautiful new store.

Doors open at 9 a.m.! We’d love to see you there!

What’s green and yellow and has nearly 600,000 views? It’s the “I Love My Ducks!” video three University of Oregon students made about their love for their football team. Yes, the same football team that won the PAC-10 championship but lost in the Rose Bowl today.

We found it noteworthy that this indie effort was spurned not only by a certain Southern California theme park company owning the license to Donald Duck but also the University of Oregon, the subject of this fan love.

So listen up, brands. Trying to control user generated content (UGC) is a losing proposition. When your most loyal consumers make a video valentine, say thank you and celebrate it! The UO finally woke up to this, editing out the licensed character and showing an altered video on the JumboTron in the stadium during the Civil War game.

Kudos to Jamie Slade, Brian McAndrew and Michael Bishop of Supwitchugirl (the name of the crew producing the video). I hear that at least one of you is a journalism student. If you’re looking for a career in PR, get in touch!

PS: We hope you sell enough of those t-shirts to pay off your student loans! If what the crowd was wearing at our Rose Bowl party today is any indication, you’re going to make a bundle.

I don’t remember it being very good and with so many other pizza options these days, why settle? But I’m actually considering trying a slice again soon. But let’s back up for a minute.

Last month I attended the WOMMA conference in Las Vegas. Over three days of panel discussions one thought was repeated over and over again:

Great word of mouth marketing begins by listening to your customers, not by brainstorming. Customer insights fuel good marketing. Start there and get creative later.

It’s not enough to just listen anymore — you have to actually do something about it. Domino’s Pizza is taking this to the extreme with their new campaign, orchestrated by Crispin Porter Bogusky. They heard over and over again in focus groups, on social media, and in letters and emails from their customers that their pizza is crap. They listened. They got their feelings hurt. And then they got to work. They decided to rebuild their pizza from the ground up, everything from the sauce and crust to the toppings has been replaced.

Will they lose customers over this? Most likely. Not all the comments in response to this news have been positive. Some people like cardboard pizza, apparently. Check out the comments at the end of this release. It’s too soon to see if this is a successful turnaround story yet, but they’ve succeeded in starting a conversation about their brand that has more depth and wider reach than before. Whether or not this turns out to be a success or failure, it’s a brave and brilliant way to reinvent a 50-year-old brand.

As we head into the New Year, we’re being bombarded with marketing year-in-reviews and trend forecasts. It’s all becoming a blur, but I did take a moment this morning to note Brandweek’s quick summary of projected social media spending for 2010.

Despite a down year for many, companies have continued to invest in the visibility of their brands and relationships with their consumers, which is great. And of course we’re all forever looking for the best bang for our buck which seems to have resulted in social media becoming the catch all for bargain marketing in the last year. Until now.

Now, I’m not saying that Facebook and Twitter aren’t still great ways to get in front of fans fast or perfect platforms for finding consumers where they already are. I’m also not saying these tools aren’t efficient and cost effective. They are. But they’re not free. And this is the year we’re going to start to see the cost of entry climb.

We’re lucky here at Maxwell that we have some great clients who have seen the value of social media in the year before the party gets crowded. This last year was a great time to get started with a low level of investment and forgiving fans who were all learning the ropes together. Now the stakes are higher. Consumers expect their favorite brands to be on social networks like Facebook and Twitter. They expect promotions, campaigns, coupons, and – even more than that – they expect an answer when they have a question (or a complaint).

Like with all new technologies and tactics, “experts” are cropping up on every corner promising big results for brands on social networks. But what we’ve found really works is plain ol’ “PR” in the simplest (yet strategic) sense. Talking to fans in authentic, engaging ways. Listening to what they’re saying. Providing perspective, news and fun. And bringing the brand’s personality to life with spontaneous conversation in a voice that rings true to existing fans who, in turn, bring new fans into the fold.

Sure, you can buy fans. And bribe fans. And some of that is fine, fun and sometimes even necessary (within the numerous social media guidelines, of course). But once you’ve harnessed your throng of followers and fans, the (wo)man behind the branded curtain has to be able to engage fans in an ongoing, strategic way. And that’s not free.

If you’re not thinking social yet, it’s probably time to start. Like the housing bubble of the (almost) decade past, the price will continue to rise. And, yes, the current platforms we’re using will probably give way to new technologies we don’t even know about yet. But for now, your consumers are on social networks. Mostly likely on Facebook and maybe on Twitter. And chances are, they’re looking for you.

Ben and Jerry’s partnered with Morgans Hotel Group and Interview Magazine for a “Peace Dance Art” event at Art Basel Miami Beach, where hundreds of people gathered for peace-inspired live performance art and Imagined Whirled Peace ice cream. As part of his response to how the concept for “Peace Dance Art” was created, CEO Walt Freese said in an interview that world peace for Ben and Jerry’s is “as important as making money as a business and growing.”

Photo by Jorge Rivas.

Kudos to Ben and Jerry’s for staying true to its core values and for adopting a fresh and meaningful approach to consumer engagement.

In their post today, Andrew Benett and Greg Welch remind us that good corporate social responsibility can be good marketing. Noting that “it’s your job to create and promote your company’s socially responsible agenda, culture and behaviors,” they offer a refresher course on best practices.

It’s that time of year to enjoy delicious Oregon wine, fill up on locally sourced food and spend quality time with loved ones. For the second year in a row, I will be celebrating with a wine tasting trip with my family. The Willamette Valley is home to many fantastic local wineries, and Thanksgiving weekend is the perfect time to sample local wine and enjoy beautiful Oregon fall scenery with family and friends. You don’t have to be a wine connoisseur to enjoy the experience- I was about as far away from being a wine expert as possible before going last year, and I found wine tasting to be a learning opportunity that was both tasty and fun.

If you’re looking for a great time this Thanksgiving weekend, make your way to the Willamette Valley for some wine tasting. Many wineries offer live entertainment and food pairings to accompany the array of wine samples. For more information, the Willamette Valley Visitors Association has a fantastic list of Thanksgiving weekend winery events here, which was put together with help from Crisp Hues Design and Squishymedia.

We at Maxwell PR are thankful for the opportunity to connect with all of you! Whatever your plans are for Thanksgiving, we wish you a joyful holiday weekend.