Resume

Media and Communications Consultant for Food and Agriculture

Senior Account Manager

HavenBMedia (formerly Straus Communications)

March 2007-present

• Lead the development and execution of media relations plans that result in consistent earned media placement for sustainable food clients

• Drive messaging to successfully position clients as thought leaders among their peers, competitors, and members of the media

• Monitor the news for opportunities to tie messaging to current news cycle and engage broad audiences

• Advise and train clients on social media strategy and tactics to facilitate direct engagement with reporters and position clients as valuable sources

• Create a variety of written content including press releases, backgrounders, blog posts, and website, and packaging copy

Marketing Communications Project Manager/Senior Copywriter

Whole Foods Market Northern California Region

May 2002-August 2007

• Led the development, execution, and management of all regional marketing campaigns

• Responsible for supporting national marketing strategy and brand communication while developing and launching regional campaigns relevant to the local audience and adaptable by individual stores

• Oversaw store marketing efforts and conducted in-store communications audits to ensure brand and messaging integrity

• Wrote and edited external and internal marketing materials including brochures, ads, web copy, and articles

Special Project: Natural Foods Expert for Education and Research Summit

Addis Creson, Strategy Consultants for Kashi Company

April 2009

• Led discussion groups with Kashi employees using the World Café format for the purpose of building a body of knowledge about natural foods for internal employee education purposes

• Researched and wrote white paper that included in-depth definitions of natural and organic foods; information on the ecological impacts of organic vs. conventional agriculture; presented the most up-to-date info on food policy; and offered a sample natural and organic food eating plan for employee use

Freelance Writer: Food and Agriculture

2002-present

• Develop and write original articles focusing on the environmental, social, political and cultural issues related to the food system for Ecosalon.com, Grist.org, and Civileats.com

• Develop and write feature food articles with a cooking and healthy eating focus for publications that include Oakland Tribune, Curve Magazine, Eating Well Magazine

Cookbook Author:

DIY Delicious-Chronicle Books Fall 2010. Created original DIY recipes for from-scratch foods, preserved foods, condiments, dairy products, and grain products with a focus on sustainability, health, economy, and self-reliance

Heirloom Beans: Recipes from Rancho Gordo (co-author)—Chronicle Books Fall 2008. Created recipes utilizing heirloom dried beans combined with fresh, seasonal ingredients

Previous Work Experience:

Managing Chef: Headlands Center for the Arts, October 2001-April 2002

Chef: Jimtown Store, May 1998-September 2001

Education

Bachelor in Business Administration/Marketing San Francisco State University

Affiliations and Past Volunteer Work

• Founding Board Member, Noe Valley Farmers’ Market

• Volunteer Writer/Researcher, Food First

• Volunteer, City Slicker Farm

• Member, Slow Money Northern California, serving on the Foodshed Criteria Working Group

• Member San Francisco and East Bay Bicycle Coalitions

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  • Copyright Information

    The recipes and images on this site belong to Vanessa Barrington. Feel free to link here and if you’d like to use a recipe or image, please ask permission first. Thank you.