Mary Jane Montoya Wins Gerber Photo Prize

Mary Jane Montoya

Gerber Products Company, part of the Nestle family, announced Tuesday that baby Mary Jane Montoya of Fresno, Calif. is the new star of the Gerber Generation!

Mary Jane’s picture was entered into the 2012 Gerber Generation Photo Search, which attracted more than 308,000 memorable smiles and animated faces during the six week entry period this year!

Mary Jane’s mother will receive a $50,000 cash prize, and Mary Jane will have the opportunity to appear in future Gerber advertising.

“Our baby looks just like the Gerber baby, but we still can’t believe the photo of our baby won the Grand Prize!” said Sara Montoya, Mary Jane’s mother. “Like parents everywhere, we think our baby is cute, but to have this honor is something we’ll cherish for forever. To us, winning $50,000 is like winning a million dollars!”

The Gerber Generation Photo Search was hosted on Gerber’s Facebook page, where parents and guardians were invited to enter photos of their children into the search by uploading a picture under the appropriate Start Healthy, Stay Healthy Milestone during the entry period.

A panel of Gerber judges reviewed the entries to find children from birth to preschool age whose photos demonstrated visual appeal, expressiveness and consistency with Geber’s heritage. The photo that best met these criteria was selected as the Grand Prize winner. This received enormous interest, garnering more than 2.5 million new “Likes” to Gerber’s Facebook page, according to the company.

“We are contacted everyday by moms and dads who ask the same question, ‘My baby looks just like the Gerber Baby, how do I get them into your advertising?'” said Cathy Abramski, head of Consumer Communications, Gerber.

“By hosting Photo Search on the Gerber Facebook page, we are providing our fans with the opportunity to see their child in future Gerber advertisements. The response has been overwhelmingly positive.”