Aquatics manufacturer King British is supporting the new National Turtle Sanctuary as part of its next campaign.
The award-winning Lincolnshire-based manufacturer will work to increase awareness of responsible turtle care and raise funds for the sanctuary, which will be based at the Lincolnshire Wildlife Park.
The National Turtle Sanctuary is a collaboration between the National Centre for Reptile Welfare, Cold-Blooded Care and Lincolnshire Wildlife Park.
Dr Sue Huggett, King British business manager, said: “We’re thrilled to be supporting the creation of the National Turtle Sanctuary, and working with Lincolnshire Wildlife Park and the other partners to build purpose-built turtle pods that will be a forever home for all those turtles and terrapins that unfortunately cannot stay with their owners any longer.
“While turtles can make wonderful pets, people often take them on without understanding their specific needs. This is why so many turtles end up being sent to rescue centres or are even released into the wild.
“We’re supporting the National Turtle Sanctuary, and encouraging retailers to do the same by providing help and advice to their customers to ensure turtles and terrapins living in the UK are properly cared for.”
VERY LARGE PROBLEM
Andy Ferguson, herpetologist at Lincolnshire Wildlife Park, said: “We’ve had a long-term connection with the team down at the National Centre for Reptile Welfare in Tonbridge, and since the centre opened a very large problem for both the centre and our natural habitats was identified very quickly – turtles!
“With such a vast space available to us here, we have the capabilities to provide more than enough space and land for terrapins to be housed, and as we are a sanctuary they will be here to enjoy the remainder of their lives.
“We would like to express our most sincere thanks to King British for being pivotal in the formation of our first of its kind National Turtle Sanctuary. Their sponsorship is invaluable to the project, not only in providing the charity with funds that will enable us to construct stage one of the rehoming centre, but ensuring it’s success with ongoing support.”
COMPREHENSIVE CAMPAIGN
King British has put together a comprehensive campaign to encourage both retailers and consumers to get involved to support the charity, including eye-catching in-store POS, and press coverage and social media activity to attract the attention of consumers nationwide.
“Raising money from our food sales is a great way to support both our retailers and the charity,” said Vicky Le Fanu, UK marketing manager.
“King British Turtle & Terrapin Food is made with high-quality ingredients, including high levels of calcium for good carapace and bone development, so stocking King British means you’re not only providing your customers and their turtles with nutritious food, but helping us give other turtles the high quality of life they deserve.
“January is all about spreading the word about the fundraising, and getting our products and POS in-store ready for our big consumer push in February and March, when 20p from every pot of King British Turtle & Terrapin Food will be donated to the sanctuary.
“We’ve put together some visually striking in-store assets, some of which focus purely on our fundraising efforts, others highlighting the quality ingredients of our food, and others giving important information about keeping turtles, including a comprehensive leaflet and a poster of popular turtle species.
“While a key part of our campaign is to raise money to build a turtle pod, we want to be able to support our retailers and help them increase their sales of King British Food long-term, which our mixed marketing support package does perfectly.
“This informative POS and our online content will help consumers become more aware of the level of care that turtles require, helping them make an informed decision before bringing one home.
“This campaign aims to help increase awareness of turtle care so that we can reduce the number of turtles needing the support of places like the National Turtle Sanctuary, while at the same time increasing sales so that we can help provide those turtles that do need this level of care with a safe, forever home.”
