2024 - Your Commission at Work

Cleveland Independent Restaurant Association Calendar Partnering with a contact made at IFEC, we chose to work with Cleveland Independent Restaurant Group to promote NC Sweetpotatoes in their annual calendar. It will feature North Carolina sweetpotatoes during National Sweetpotato Month in 2025 , with a photo layout and advertisement, with QR code linking to the recipe section of the Commission Website. While work has been done and files sent off, this will be in print for the start of 2025 year. We look forward to having our information in front of Cleveland Chefs and restaurateurs armed with knowledge of both National Sweetpotato Month and National Cook a sweetpotato Day (February 22)!

17th Annual CAFÉ Leadership Conference For the second year in a row, we attended the Cafe Conference as part of our initiative to increase the visibility of sweetpotatoes within schools and in the foodservice sector. In attendance were foodservice professionals and educators such as teachers, chefs, and food brand and commodity board representatives. Our goal was to interact with educators to educate them on the nutritional benefits of our beloved vegetable and to provide them with a deeper understanding as to how sweetpotatoes go from field to table. We fostered new relationships and discussed ways to incorporate sweetpotatoes into the new school year. Overall, the event was a success resulting in new connections and key learnings that educators could apply to their curriculums inside the classroom.

Cafe School Instructor Outreach Day Gold Medal Cafe’ Deans and Directors Conference is held annually, with locations rotating across the United States. After attending in 2023, a decision was made to attend this year and share about our sweet superfood, by seizing an opportunity to present at a workshop during their instructor’s outreach day. Not only did we share nutritional information but also how our root vegetable grows. Additional information was shared on lesson plan availability and chef instructors were encouraged to use sweetpotatoes as a part of their curriculum. This presentation was received so well, that it ended up going over the allotted time, due to engaging questions from the audience. We hope that this level of engagement will result in sweetpotatoes being used in culinary education across the US and provide for more sweetpotato sales. What a win for NC Sweetpotatoes! 21