Exploring Nature

Promoting the great game of recycling in supermarkets

By Graziella Carbone

2014 – First Semester – Play and Win with the Friends of the Mill

Starting from January 8 and until June 30, 2014, the Play and Win contest with the Friends of the Mill allowed you to win one of twenty Friends of the Mill plush toys up for grabs every day (5 plushes for each character, made in collaboration with Trudi) by entering the unique codes printed on the Flauti trays (milk, chocolate, apricot), Saccottino (chocolate, apricot, strawberry) and on the Pan Goccioli separator on the website www.amicidelmulino.it (active only for the promotion period) by entering the code printed inside the package.
By continuing to play on the site and entering a second univocal code, it was also possible to compete in the monthly draw for one of the five personalized Friends of the Mill mini iPads up for grabs.
On the website, it was also possible to discover the new four EcoMission games, one for each character.
By purchasing two packs of snacks in the supermarkets participating in the promotion, you immediately received the Recycling Book, the eighth GameBook of the Mill which taught how to obtain precious resources and very useful objects from waste materials with the help of imagination.
The editorial project and the texts of this GameBook like many others, and the Great Game of Recycling, once again bear my signature.

Purchasing a third package of snacks, the Big Game of Recycling suitcase was received as a gift, with all the adventures of the Friends of the Mill who, for the occasion, were turned into pawns.
The game consisted of starting from the Mill and returning to it after passing through four areas: the Wood, the Vegetable Garden, the Wheat Field, and the Orchard, where, in the various boxes, quizzes and tests to overcome were found, always related to recycling. To be properly documented, I had several books sent from Switzerland (they are incredibly advanced in the field of recycling and environmental protection). The work was highly appreciated by both the company and consumers.
During the stages of Mill Village, the Diary of the Mill was given to all visiting elementary school students. It was a milestone, because for years people had been thinking about making a school diary, but up to then it had beer a difficult gadget to deliver to school children. The editorial work – which I authored – lasted two months, but I’m very proud of it. It was a real diary, with an area for justifications for absences, lesson times and every month featured news, games and information dedicated to a sector of competence of our Friends of the Mill, just like in the Great Wheel of Goodness.

September: The garden friend – care and growth.
October: the mill of discoveries – the discovery of ingredients.
November: hands on – the magic of transformation.
December: food-energy: the importance of nutrition.
January: the adventure of recycling – Let’s protect nature.
And then all over again. The Diary was completed by the Diploma of super expert of the Great Wheel of Goodness, strictly personal and not transferable.

2014 – Second Semester – The FriendCarriers of the Friends of the Mill and the Explorer Kit

Starting from August 11 of 2014, the Flutes and Saccottino packs included the FriendCarriers, six key rings, consisting of a ring, a chain and a metal medal with the portrait of one of the Friends of the Mill. The various pendants were also associated with six small books dedicated to recycling adventures of the Friends of the Mill: Ciock the explorer, Milk’s extraordinary inventions, Goccio the well-rounded sportsman, Cocca artist from the Valley, The Feast of the Mill and A snag for Lagna the Sorceress.
Furthermore, the printing of the univocal code continued on all the Flauti and Saccottino trays and on the Pan Goccioli separators, to play (both on the website and on the new App) and participate in the competition (from September 1, 2014 to February 28 of 2015) to win one of 500 Friends of the Mill explorer kits up for grabs including backpack, belt pocket, water bottle, and compass.
From August 11 in supermarkets participating in the initiative, with the purchase of Mulino Bianco snacks, it was possible to immediately receive a multicolour pen and a solar calculator of the Friends of the Mill as a gift. The first calculator given by Mulino dates back to the first collection of points in 1985 called the MaxiGifts. I have it and … it still works! It was the first items that my agency imported… and I remember the worries that they would not arrive within the established timeframes!