Showing posts with label CCFC. Show all posts
Showing posts with label CCFC. Show all posts

Sunday, January 22, 2017

A Celebration of California Culture


"A Celebration of California Culture" was the theme of the California State Society's (CSS) Presidential Inaugural Luncheon, held at the Ritz Carlton-Washington, DC. The Society, a non-profit, bi-partisan social/networking organization, is proud of its role in promoting California in our nation’s Capitol, and of its support for fellow Californians. Their members include all types of Californians—Members of Congress, Congressional staff, Administration officials, employees of California-based businesses, California Alumni, and others. Kasey Cronquist, California Cut Flower Commission (CCFC) CEO & Ambassador and I were honored to join over 750 other guests to pay tribute to our state’s culture.





The DC Central Kitchen, L.A. Kitchen, Wine Institute and CCFC partnered in this event to celebrate California’s contributions to food, wine, flowers, art and music. California native and Top Chef Finalist Marjorie Meek-Bradley was the inspiration for the luncheon cuisine. Chef Marjie is a James Beard Nominated Chef and Top Chef Season 13 Finalist. The program included performances by the students at The San Diego School of Creative and Performing Arts. SCPA is a San Diego Unified School District college-preparatory, arts-focused public magnet school for students in grades 6 through 12 who have a strong interest and talent in the arts. And, the flowers… all California Grown and donated by several flower farms!


Special thanks to Andrea Gagnon from LynnVale Studios for doing the beautiful design work for this prestigious affair.

Thursday, January 12, 2017

Kicking off 2017 California Grown

A crisp and cool New Year’s Day set the perfect scene for kicking off 2017 in Pasadena and acknowledging the Rose Parade float teams who made it a priority to feature California Grown Flowers. These special certifications recognize those teams who worked to ensure that over 85 percent of the flowers on their floats were sourced from California. Being able to present each team with a Pennant is one of the perks of being chair of the California Cut Flower Commission (CCFC), and I say perk because I can’t imagine a more wonderful honor than to be at these ceremonies representing over 250 flower farms from throughout the state.


This year's festivities were the best-ever thanks to Cal Poly Universities, Miracle-Gro, the California Milk Advisory Board (our dairy farmers) and FTD for their continued commitment to California Grown Flowers.



Cal Poly Universities’ float, A New Leaf, took home the “Founders Trophy” for most beautiful float decorated by volunteers of a community organization (1500 volunteers total). There were over 60,000 stems of CA Grown flowers used on the float covering over 2,255 sq. ft. This was Cal Poly’s sixth year Certified.



Miracle-Gro’s float, Everything is Coming Up Roses, won the coveted “Queens Trophy” for best use of roses. Miracle-Gro sourced over 32,000 roses this year, celebrating the California Grown rose as part of their design. This was Miracle-Gro's second year certified.



The California Milk Advisory Board’s float, Legacy of Generations, represented more than 1,300 dairy farm families, 1.7 million California dairy cows and 200+ years of rich heritage that make California the No. 1 dairy state. Making this a fabulous partnership, since flowers and cheese top my list of favorite things. This was the CMAB’s second year certified.



FTD’s most visible contributions to the Rose Parade were the beautiful floral décor on the 11 antique cars and carriages that transported parade VIPs down the historic parade route. Keith White AIFD and his team worked tirelessly to adorn the 11 VIP vehicles with 10,000 California grown flowers. This was FTD’s 3rd year certified.

Congratulations to all the teams on another successful and beautiful start to the year!

Sunday, July 24, 2016

The California Farm and Flower Guide

This year, I had the pleasure to introduce the 2016 California Farm and Flower Guide, a spectacular publication that celebrates the various flower and foliage varieties grown in our state and the flower farmers who grow them.


Welcoming readers to this annual guide is one of the perks of being chair of the California Cut Flower Commission (CCFC). I list it as a perk because I can't imagine a more wonderful honor than getting to show and tell about the amazing bounty that comes from California's flower farms.


In this guide, you meet the farmers who are working hard to bring these gorgeous varieties to market!


Enjoy a peak at several beautiful designs!


And, you'll find this guide to be a handy resource for information on the state's flower farms, and for details and images of a wide range of flowers and foliage from which to select.


Right this way to see the complete Guide. Enjoy!

Sunday, June 12, 2016

June Is For California Grown Flowers!

Did you know that June is California Grown Flower Month?


Thanks to the leadership of some lawmakers in California, a resolution marking June as California Grown Flowers Month is something we're super excited about.

To help kick off this special month, the California Cut Flower Commission (CCFC) held a special design competition among California legislators on June 1st in Sacramento, with the winning designer receiving California Grown Flowers delivered to their office for a year!



This year's competitors: Assemblymembers (left to right) Kristin Olsen, Jim Cooper, Jacqui Irwin and Senator Bob Wieckowski.

It was a tough decision, but ultimately the crowd of attendees selected Assemblyman Jim Cooper as this year's Floral Design Champion. He took home the winner's vase that California's flower farmers are proud to fill as a reminder of the hard working family flower farmers that contribute to the $12.2B economic impact of California's floral industry.



This year's floral design champion.

The event was covered in the widely read Capitol Morning Report.

In addition, to help drive more awareness, a special "June is California Grown Flowers Month" graphic has been created and people are invited to use the graphic as their profile image during the month of June!


The California Grown Flowers Month graphic proudly displayed on our Facebook page.

Wednesday, March 23, 2016

Inspirational News: Field To Vase Dinner Tour | Sun Valley Floral Farms | Arcata, California


If you don't know what the Field To Vase Dinner Tour is please check out the link! I'm still going to give a little info here, but there's more on their site and it's very much worth checking out. Field To Vase, in short, is a series of private, intimate, gatherings that place seasonal, local and sustainable American Grown flowers at the center of the table. But it's also so much more than that. It's about connecting people with the areas they live in, and even giving a little education on our countries floral economy. Buy local is a very real thing for Humboldt County, and we're blessed with a vast community of people who are passionate about preserving and sustaining local businesses. Read the rest of this blog at JM Photography.

Sunday, February 28, 2016

The Secret Life of the Boutonniere

I’ll just come right out and say it: boutonnieres have been getting around DC lately. Those small ‘bouquets’ we thought were only designed to add a splash of color and texture to a wedding party’s lapels have actually been leading double lives. This week they were spotted on the Hill throughout the halls of Congress and the Senate? And, even in the offices of the USDA? The truth is, boutonnieres have become a lot more versatile than they may seem at first glance. For the 20 American Flower Farmers visiting our nation’s capital this week, they provided a lot of flower power – they’ve become a special kind of ‘calling card’ and a great conversation piece!


So, when it’s time for the annual CCFC Fly-in, we step back and call in our flower farmer florist Andrea Gagnon from LynnVale Studios (thanks, Andrea!). Crafted with only American Grown flowers, each boutonniere she created was unique and bursting with personality - keep scrolling to see what I mean.











Saturday, December 26, 2015

Inspirational Floral News:

US (CA): Photos CCFC's 25th anniversary


CCFC's Silver Anniversary was celebrated on December 3. According to the organization, it was a memorable evening. "An evening we won't soon forget." A lot of pictures were taken from their celebration in Santa Barbara. The room was filled with flower farmers, stakeholders from throughout the state and guests. They thank everyone for a wonderful evening celebrating the accomplishments of the past 25 years! Read the rest of this article at floral daily.