Home Grown, the seven-part TV series sponsored by Bord Bia celebrating the Irish horticulture industry, aired on RTE1 for seven weeks from 7 November to 19 December 2022, and was repeated in its entirety during spring 2023.
Feedback from the sector and the public was overwhelmingly positive, as demonstrated in the results of separate consumer and industry evaluations carried out following the airing of the series.
VIEWING FIGURES
Final viewing figures for the two broadcast runs of the series showed that two million viewers tuned in to watch Home Grown, despite stiff competition during the first run from the World Cup matches and I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here! These figures are for the live broadcast and do not reflect viewings on the RTE player, or on recording for watching later.
CONSUMER EVALUATION
A nationally representative online survey was carried out amongst 1,000 adults aged 18+, to understand awareness of Bord Bia sponsorship of the TV show, the reception of the content to viewers, and the impact on the brand.
KEY FINDINGS
16 per cent of regular viewers were able to spontaneously identify Bord Bia as the sponsor of Home Grown, with a significant uplift to 42 per cent when prompted.
Respondents were asked: “To what extent do each of the following statements apply to this sponsorship for Irish horticulture? (By ‘Irish horticulture’ we mean fresh fruit and vegetables and ornamental plants grown in Ireland).”
The following scores were achieved for each statement:
● It made me realise that we have a vibrant Irish horticulture industry: 96 per cent
● It made me more aware of the Irish horticulture industry: 93 per cent
● It provides inspiration to choose Irish-grown fresh produce and ornamental plants:
93 per cent
● It clearly communicates the variety/breadth of the Irish horticulture industry: 93 per cent
● It really makes me understand that Irish horticulture produces fruit, vegetables and ornamental plants: 92 per cent
INDUSTRY EVALUATION
A survey was conducted amongst contacts in the horticulture industry at the end of December 2022.
● 94 per cent of respondents had heard of Home Grown
● 94 per cent of respondents who had heard of Home Grown, watched the series
● almost half watched all seven episodes, with 82 per cent watching four or more episodes
Feedback from the horticulture industry has been overwhelmingly positive, both via the evaluation survey and via direct contact following the individual episodes.
There were high levels of agreement that Home Grown communicated the intended messages to consumers.
Some comments about Home Grown from the survey:
● “Gives horticulture the voice it has needed for a very long time.”
● “Great series, great values and ideas…did not get to watch as many episodes as I would have liked due to work commitments…would like to see another series of it broadcast in the future! Well done!”
● “I was thrilled to be asked to be involved and the final production exceeded my expectations. It was very refreshing to see the new faces of Colm and Kitty do so well. I’m not sure if another series is in the pipeline, but I hope so. It really brought home the variety of areas covered by so many different people in horticulture. Well done to all those involved.”
● “A great series that showcased very well the breadth of the food and environmental production horticulture industry in Ireland. I hope the next series (if there is one) will demonstrate the depth of each sector, the science, technology and art behind each crop/product/service.”
● “Shows the Irish horticultural industry in a very positive light. Shows how vibrant and diverse an industry it is.”
Filming for Home Grown series 2 is currently underway and is due to be broadcast on RTE1 in the spring of 2024. ✽
