The launch follows close on the heels of a 2007 fiscal statement released last October by Hormel, which reported operating profits down 9 percent in the company's grocery products segment compared to the fourth quarter of fiscal 2006.

Disappointing sales were "primarily caused by a soft quarter from the SPAM family of products," commented Hormel Chairman, President and CEO Jeffrey M. Ettinger in the report. "We expect the grocery products segment will have a slow start in fiscal 2008 and the results will improve as the year progresses."

TV ads for SPAM's new "Blue and Yellow World" campaign -- named after the product label's iconic two colors -- began running Jan. 14 and will be broadcast in 31 television markets. Print ads made their debut a week later in mainstream magazines and niche publications, marking the first national print campaign for the product in the last five years. The campaign plans to run through late October, bolstered by a website overhaul aiming to strengthen the SPAM community base.

"Over the last few years we've focused more on regional campaigns and also a heavy sampling campaign," notes Neufeldt. "One of the things that we really have done this time is focus on using print and TV to help drive traffic around SPAM.com -- and to use the site as a platform to create consistent communication with the real lovers of the brand."