A group of New Mexico State University students bet big on freeze-dried salsa and came out on top in a two-day competition organized by the National Agri-Marketing Association.

NMSU’s NAMA chapter placed first in NAMA’s 2023 Student Marketing Competition, held last week in St. Louis, outperforming more than two dozen schools from the United States and Canada, including Purdue University, Iowa State University and the University of Guelph.

NMSU’s NAMA chapter brings together students from all majors interested in agribusiness marketing. Students work closely with faculty mentors from the Department of Agricultural Economics and Agricultural Business in the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences to hone their marketing skills and prepare for professional positions.

To prepare for the competition, 19 students worked together over the fall and spring semesters to develop a marketing plan around an agricultural product of their choice, using research and skills in agribusiness marketing, sales, public relations and advertising.

The students included Hunter Alcon, Marissa Cereceres, Kari Dominguez, Sophia Flores, Gabriel Gregory, Kaleb Herndon, Elizabeth “Anne” Hodnett, Carmina Jaramillo Martinez, Analisa Jeffers, Emily Johnson, Brandon Larranaga, Maggie Long, Marisol Olivas, Antonio Ethan Ian Ortiz-Ulibarri, Morgan Owen, Charles “Tyler” Peraza, Chyanne Rael, Sarah Roderick and Patrick Torres.

The students’ marketing plan centered on a freeze-dried salsa product developed by a Las Cruces company. They submitted a five-page executive summary and presented their plan to a panel of marketing professionals who served as judges during the competition.

“We just took it round by round,” said Peraza, a senior majoring in agricultural economics and agricultural business who currently serves as the chapter’s president. “We had our presentation down well, and we felt we had a decent chance to make it to the semifinals. We made it to the semis, killed it there with all the questions, and felt confident we would make it to the finals.”

NMSU was one of six schools that made it to the finals – and ultimately later prevailed over Purdue, University of Guelph, University of Wisconsin-Madison, University of Nebraska-Lincoln and Iowa State.

“We were just so thankful to make the finals and be in the top six,” Peraza said, “and we were just really blown away that we got first and beat all these really good teams.”

It was the first time in more than a dozen years NMSU took first place in the competition. In 2021, NMSU placed second, behind the University of Guelph.

“We’re up against schools like Purdue University, Iowa State and Kansas State, so we are absolutely the underdogs,” said Chaddy Robinson, assistant professor in the College of ACES and NAMA’s adviser since 2012. “To win in that environment is priceless and gives the students perspective on the quality of their education and program.”

Owen, another senior majoring in agricultural economics and agricultural business who designed the graphics used in the group’s executive summary and presentation, said she and others felt confident heading into the competition.

“This year, we’ve had a super good team. We’ve all been really close, and it’s been really fun,” she said. “We presented to our NAMA alumni and faculty at the dean’s presentation, and that went really well. We had alumni, faculty and staff say our presentation was one of the best ones they’ve seen in many years.”

In the separate sales competition, Hodnett and Jaramillo Martinez placed in the top six – and Hodnett took first place. Olivas also won a $4,000 scholarship.

When the students returned to campus after winning the competition, dozens of their biggest supporters from across NMSU gathered in Gerald Thomas Hall for a surprise celebration.

“Thank you very much for your dedication and hard work,” College of ACES Dean Rolando A. Flores Galarza told the students. “You really made my day. A few years ago, we were national champions. But now, we are international champions.”

NMSU Regent and ACES alumna Dina Chacón-Reitzel also joined the celebration.

“On behalf of New Mexico State University’s Board of Regents, I want to congratulate you all for this absolutely wonderful win,” she told the students. “I will say that while this prize is wonderful and it speaks so well for you all, for Chaddy, for the college and the university, the process and the work that went into preparing for this competition is the benefit that you will take with you in your lives. I thank you sincerely. We needed a wonderful win at this university – and you all gave it to us.”

For more information about NMSU’s NAMA chapter, contact Robinson at chadelle@nmsu.edu or visit https://nama.nmsu.edu.