We invited Finns to recycle the leftover fat from their Christmas hams by donating it to charity. The leftover fat is an annual problem and tips for getting rid of it in a responsible way flood the Finnish media every holiday season. For Christmas 2016, we introduced a new way of dealing with it by setting up special recycling points just for Christmas ham fat. The fat was then processed into 100% renewable diesel, with a 90% lower CO2 footprint when compared with regular diesel. The fuel was then sold to consumers and all the proceeds were donated to charity organisations. As our clients represented the entire chain from collecting, transporting and refining the fats as well as distributing the final product, this allowed us to demonstrate the entire process of circular economy while engaging consumers directly in a fun and memorable way.

Media was activated in three waves, by securing long-lead and national dailies early in October, and moving on to short-lead and television closer to Christmas. Appearances on both of Finland’s morning television shows was secured right for the day that most Finns baked their ham.

Social media imagery and activations were launched through participating companies’ own channels two weeks before Christmas, with only minor paid promotion, as employees, media, and the general audience alike happily spread the message online. The final boost of visibility was achieved by publishing the outcome of the campaign, along with content on the charity organizations that the campaign’s proceeds were directed to.

In the weeks leading up to Christmas, the story was discussed in Finnish media 155 times. Each story repeated the campaign details, goals and clients, in addition to giving consumers instructions on how to participate. Client representatives were invited on both major morning TV shows and interviewed extensively by major news outlets. Traditional media amounted to a combined reach of 26 million (5 times the country’s population), excluding all international press. On Twitter, the campaign reached over 240,000 users. It was one of the most talked about individual stories before Christmas. In a poll conducted in January 2017, 65% Finns said they were aware of the campaign.

40,000 individual households donated their leftover ham fat to the campaign. It amounted to 12,000 kilograms of fat, which was turned into 10,000 litres of 100% renewable diesel, enough to drive four times around the planet. It made over 14,000 € for charity.