FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Contact: Kristie Garcia
Director of Public Affairs, New Mexico Department of Agriculture
krgarcia@nmda.nmsu.edu
Office: 575-646-2804
Cell: 575-339-5011
May 31, 2022
$5 Challenge promotes New Mexico agricultural products
Weekly prizes awarded to consumers, retailers during contest May 31 to July 5
LAS CRUCES – Do you have a favorite New Mexico salsa, wine or enchilada sauce? Do you stock up on New Mexico chile, beef, onions or cheese? Maybe you like to snack on New Mexico pistachios, pecans, chile-infused chocolate or peanut brittle. If so, this is your opportunity to take the $5 Challenge and elevate New Mexico agriculture, while possibly winning some unique swag.
The New Mexico Department of Agriculture is launching its 2022 $5 Challenge campaign to support the state’s agriculture industry, including ranchers, farmers, processors, greenhouses and agritourism. The campaign encourages New Mexicans and visitors to increase spending by $5 per week on locally-grown and -made products in an effort to strengthen the state’s economy, while supporting the agriculture industry.
“Supporting local is as easy as buying plants and herbs from a New Mexico nursery or perusing your local farmers market for home-grown products,” said New Mexico Agriculture Secretary Jeff Witte. “You may already have a New Mexico product in your pantry or refrigerator, which you can simply snap a photo of and enter it into the $5 Challenge contest for a chance to win some exciting prizes. This is a win-win opportunity for everyone.”
The consumer contest – which runs from May 31 to July 5 – is open to residents of the 50 United States, the District of Columbia and U.S. territories who are at least 18 years old. Simply take a picture of the New Mexico item you purchased or item you already have and upload it at NM5Dollar.com. Each person and email address is limited to one entry per week. Two winners will be randomly selected each week. Prizes include wine festival tickets from New Mexico Wine, a New Mexico Beer Enthusiast membership and a “Drink Local Beer” shirt from the New Mexico Brewers Guild, a box of fresh chile from the New Mexico Chile Association, grilling kits from the New Mexico Beef Council and NEW MEXICO–Taste the Tradition gift baskets and engraved cutting boards from the New Mexico Department of Agriculture.
New Mexico Wine Executive Director Christopher Goblet said the $5 Challenge is an engaging and affordable way for local businesses and value-added producers to leverage the media power of a broader campaign.
“In 2020, the New Mexico wine industry took the $5 Challenge concept and incorporated a fun promotional element that positioned the program as ‘Stimulus Funds’ for the local economy,” said Goblet. “The partnership with NMDA helped generate the sale of 400 additional bottles of wine in one month. At an average cost of $20, the program had an incremental impact of $8,000 during the middle of the pandemic, which was a welcome addition to the bottom line for any business.”
To search for local products by NEW MEXICO–Taste the Tradition and NEW MEXICO–Grown with Tradition Logo Program members, visit the ElevateNMAg.com website.
The $5 Challenge campaign also includes a retailer contest. From May 31 to July 5, retail stores that sell New Mexico agricultural products may submit up to four pictures of a single display featuring New Mexico-grown or -made products for a chance to win weekly prizes. Entries may be submitted online at NM5Dollar.com/5-challenge-retailers. Each retail store is allowed one entry per week for a total of five entries over the five-weeks contest. Entries will be judged by a panel of NEW MEXICO–Taste the Tradition/NEW MEXICO–Grown with Tradition Logo Program members.
The prizes for retail stores include a chile roaster from the New Mexico Chile Commission, 20 free in-store demonstration hours and the opportunity to be featured in the NEW MEXICO–Taste the Tradition cooking demonstration video series for social media.
Visit NM5Dollar.com and NM5Dollar.com/5-challenge-retailers to read contest rules in their entirety.
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