In This Issue ...

1. Save the Dates
2. Flower Farms Impact AB 2757
3. Flowers for the Remembered and the Remembering
4. Buffalo Soldiers 150th Anniversary 
5. Transportation Updates
6. New Members

Going Social ...

Members, please follow us on Instagram @CalifFlowers and hashtag #CalFlowers. Watch for event or news-specific hashtags.  And we welcome your photos! Please share with Michael LoBue at [email protected].

Upcoming Events

IFE
June 20 - 22, 2016
Chicago, IL

AIFD
July 3 - 7, 2016
Orange County, CA

Save The Dates

2016 Member Meetings:

8/9/16 Hyatt Regency   Monterey, Monterey, CA

8/16/16 Park Hyatt Aviara, Carlsbad, CA

8/18/16 Fess Parker, Santa Barbara, CA

2017 Fun 'N Sun:

August 9 - 12, 2017 Park Hyatt Aviara, Carlsbad, CA 

CalFlowers News

Our goal is to communicate on a monthly basis with the membership and interested parties about recent past and upcoming events, program updates, and general information about how CalFlowers is engaging in the industry on behalf of the membership.

 Save The Dates:

Meet old friends, make new friends and join the discussion about the the California floral industry at a member meeting near you this August.

Mark your calendar for the following Member Meeting dates:

• August 9th - Hyatt Regency Monterey, Monterey, CA
• August 16th - Park Hyatt Aviara, Carlsbad, CA
• August 18th - Fess Parker, Santa Barbara, CA

CalFlowers strives to create opportunities for open dialogue among members and to help your businesses thrive.  Attend one of these meetings to learn about our plans for the 2016-17 year.

Registration for these meetings will be $25 in advance and $35 at the door.  Registration will open soon and we will notify you soon when we'll be accepting registrations for the above meetings.

Below is a tentative itinerary for the 2016 Member Meetings:

• Registration - 11:30 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
• Welcome Lunch - 12:00 - 12:45 p.m.
• Strategic Planning Report - 12:45 - 1:45 p.m.
• Break - 1:45 - 2:00 p.m.
• Round Table Discussions - 2:00 - 3:00 p.m.
• Vendor Reception - 3:00 - 4:30 p.m.

If you have questions please contact Monnaie Pepin @ [email protected] or by calling 775-384-6500

Flower Farmers Impact AB 2757

Congratulations to CCFC's Governmental Relations Committee for their effective advocacy on Assembly Bill 2757.  For two days the Committee and other representatives walked the halls of the State Assembly making their case.  In the end, on June 2nd, the bill fell short by 3 affirmative votes to end the current exemption on overtime pay for agriculture.  Governemental Relations Chair, Benno Dobbe and the CCFC leadership deserve a round of congratulations for their efforts.

Flowers for the Remembered and the Remembering – Memorial Day

Thanks to more than 400 volunteers and 50 floral and non floral industry sponsors, the 2016 Memorial Day Flowers event at Arlington National Cemetery was another huge success.  

Ramiro Peñaherrera, Executive Director of the Memorial Day Flowers Foundation stated:  "In addition to CalFlowers’ major financial sponsorship, the last-minute infusion of about 35,000 stems, with literally only a couple of days notice by California flower growers, allowed us to meet our target of a 130,000 stems to place before headstones at Arlington National Cemetery over Memorial Day weekend.  Additionally, Holland America Flowers supplied 300 bouquets to give out to volunteers and sponsors at the end of their shifts. For the second year the MDFF staff passed out 500 Ocean View bouquets to families attending Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors.”

Read all about CalFlowers other initiatives over Memorial Day weekend, and enjoy the pictures -- read more...

We would like to recognize and thank Mike and Robin Mooney and their three lovely children for being CalFlowers' official representatives at Arlington National Cemetery this year.

Buffalo Soldiers 150th Anniversary - Say It With Flowers...

Inspired by the planning for Memorial Day Flowers at the San Francisco National Cemetery on May 30, the Heritage Programs office of the Presidio Trust decided to incorporate flowers into their 150th Anniversary celebration and tribute of the Buffalo Soldiers on June 2nd at the San Francisco National Cemetery.

Thanks to the generosity of the Memorial Day Flower Foundation for their donation of 500 roses and to Holland America Flowers for their donation of 35 spectacular bouquets that were distributed to families and volunteers who took part in this great celebration.  We also want to recognize Mt. Eden Floral Co. for the donation of their services to process and delivery the roses (they also processed and delivered 2,000 roses and 200 bouquets to the S.F. National Cemetery for Memorial Day).

According CalFlowers CEO Michael LoBue:  "It was a special treat to watch the inner-city kids who attended this tribute begin the morning with some skepticism, but witness how the flowers softened them and to watch them respectfully recite the names, ranks, and dates on each tombstone as they placed their roses in tribute.  I eventually surrendered to the tears that kept welling up for me."

Transportation

1. Air Canada has just reissued brand new “All in” rates to CalFlowers Members.  These outstanding new rates are very aggressive and INCLUDE Fuel Surcharges, security and screening fees.  Shippers are reminded to use tariff code  SCR 1400 in the accounting box in the air  waybill.  For your copy of these new rates from Air Canada, please visit our website at www.cafgs.org or email me for your copy.
2. Delta Airlines has renewed their “all in” flower rates for our membership.  These rates are very competitive and offer the value of including Fuel and Security surcharges.  For a copy of Delta Airlines Cargo rates, please visit our website (www.cafgs.org) or contact me directly for your copy.
3. As you may have seen, CalFlowers has recently launched the FedEx IPD program.  This program is tailored to our wholesale members and allows fast 3 day airport to door import of product from Colombia and Ecuador. Our program offers excellent rates and a special two box minimum.  Other special waivers apply and members just need to contact Chris Johnson to inquire  760-533-5580 or [email protected]We want to remind our shipping members using OnTrac that we have a Special Accounts Groups (SAG) representative available to assist when needed.  Shippers are encouraged to contact Carla Boske-Rodriguez at 800-334-5000 EXT 3152 for any question.  Carla can also be reached at [email protected]
4. In other OnTrac news, all shipping CalFlowers members should now be on-line booking with OnTrac.  WebOnTrac is an excellent tool that can help shippers with most everything they need when booking a shipment.  Using paper waybills adds complexity and risk to their digital system. WebOnTrac software even has provisions that can catch errors before they can be submitted.  If you are not using OnTrac's free booking software, we strongly recommend you do, and it's easy to start.  Just contact OnTrac for more info at 800-334-5000 or visit www.ontrac.com.

NOTE: Transportation Rate information and documents are now viewable/downloadable (as PDFs) on the CalFlowers Members Only site. Please note that these documents are considered sensitive material and are available to the primary contacts for Ag Buddy, Associate Floral, Associate Grower, and Floral members only.

To access the Members Only site, simply login using the Member Login button in the top-right corner of our website.  

Click Here if you don't know or don't remember your username and/or password.  This document will help you login. 

New Members

In May 2016, we were pleased to welcome the following new CalFlowers members:

1500 41st Avenue, Suite 240 Capitola, CA 95010 | www.cafgs.org | Ph. 831-479-4912 | Fax 831-479-4914