| Pick Ontario campaign gets underway |
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Written by Canadian Florist staff
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 In the coming months, Ontario consumers may be
a little more curious as to where your flowers come from. This is
thanks in part to the new Pick Ontario campaign which officially
launched at this year’s Canada Blooms.
The entrance way to the show was brimming with bright and colourful Ontario grown flowers and gardens and garnered a lot of attention from attendees.
In addition, the campaign also includes outdoor signs advertising Pick Ontario and a brand new website.
Gary Ganders, marketing director for Pick Ontario, says the next step for the program is to begin working with retailers. Initially, Ganders says the campaign focused on the large grocery operations and mass markets, but they are now looking to bring florists on board.
“Florists tend to be more knowledgeable when it comes to the product,” says Ganders. He says that they deal with the product on a daily basis and probably carry a significant amount of Ontario grown product. Ganders is working on developing Pick Ontario materials that are specific to florists and hopes to partner up with Flowers Canada Retail to help deliver the materials and information. Plans could include some form of shop sign or sticker so that consumers automatically know that a particular florist carries Ontario-grown product. The logo would also be applied to bouquets and arrangements composed of local varieties.
Right now, Ganders says a big emphasis will be placed on just simply informing florists that the program is out there. In February, members of the Pick Ontario campaign were on hand at Ontario Flowers Grower on an auction morning to distribute materials about what type of varieties would fall under the Pick Ontario banner. Within the next month or two, Ganders says they plan to return to OFG to hand out more information and product.
In the meantime, florists interested in more details can visit www.pickontario.ca or stay tuned to Canadian Florist online. Ganders welcomes florists to contact him with any feedback or suggestions.
Pick Ontario is an initiative by Flowers Canada (Ontario) Inc. to promote Ontario product, which is grown by more than 650 greenhouse farmers in an industry that employs approximately 10,000 people in Ontario. Funding for the project was provided in part by Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada through the Agricultural Adaptation Council and by the Ontario Greenhouse Alliance.
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