Dole Asks Consumers to Show Some ‘Salad’tude’

Dole Fresh Vegetables is reteaming with Clinton Kelly (left), star of TLC’s “What Not to Wear,” and ABC’s “The Chew,” for the Dole Salads “Salad’tude” contest.

Dole will send six winners on a “Culinary Adventure” to Greystone, the Napa Valley, Calif., campus of the Culinary Institute of America (CIA), in late spring or early summer 2013. The package includes round-trip airfare for each winner and one guest, three nights’ accommodation at the Solage Hotel & Spa in Napa Valley; a professional wine-tasting class; a CIA customized, chef-led culinary training program; car rental, airport transfers and $1,000 in spending money.

To participate in the contest, consumers can submit a personal story, poem, recipe or childhood memory to describe their personal “Salad’tude” -- the notion that salad goes beyond food to encompass a wide range of positive emotions and experiences, from the familiarity of family food tradition to the joy of satisfying a specific craving. In addition to the written expression, participants must add an original photo as well.

A panel of experts from Dole will choose 12 finalists based on inspiration, creativity and originality. Finalists’ entries will be posted on the Dole salads Facebook page on Nov. 20, for two-plus weeks of public voting ending Dec. 11.

Kelly will make a guest appearance at the event to share his personal Salad’tude – and how his childhood memories of family meals and cooking traditions inspired a series of new Dole fall and winter salad recipes.

“I love Dole’s concept of Salad’tude, and how certain foods conjure up positive emotions and feelings,” said Kelly. “I can still remember our family’s summer lobster boil and my grandmother’s Eggplant Parmesean and Pear Crunch Pie. Dole showed me how to transform these incredible memories into quick and easy salads that instantly take me back to my childhood.”

Monterey, Calif.-based Dole Fresh Vegetables introduced the “Salad’tude” concept in 2011 as part of a multi-year program, consistent with the company’s larger mission of increasing America’s nutritional health by encouraging greater consumption of fruits and vegetables.

Visit the Dole’s official website to enter the contest, and for complete rules and eligibility.