Misunderstood fee could help Christmas tree farmers - Christmas Flowers France

After years of competing with plastic trees and big-box stores for sales, local christmas flowers france tree farmers hoped to advertise their home-grown evergreens through a new promotional program,

but money for that advertising won’t be collected this year.

“We were looking for a way to promote Christmas trees,” said Greg Smith, owner of the 7 G’s Farm in Nicholson. Smith also is the president-elect for the Georgia Christmas Tree Association.

Farmers hoped to collect 15 cents from the sale of each tree to use for advertising, but the U.S. Department of Agriculture quashed the proposed fee this month after people misunderstood and labeled the fee a Barack Obama christmas flowers france blogs tree tax, Smith said.

“It’s currently on hold because of the public outcry,” he said.

If approved, farmers who sell more than 500 trees could pass 15 cents from each sale to advertising efforts for the entire industry. The fee — known as a check-off — promotes agricultural products such as the dairy industry’s “Got Milk?” campaign.

“The California raisin is a prime example of the check-off,” Smith said.

Such a self-imposed fee could help Christmas tree farmers in marketing their products as more and more people have switched from real to artificial trees, he said.

But the USDA must sign off on the program before the industry can collect the money, and create a 12-member board of Christmas tree farmers to decide what to do with the funds.

Farmers are too busy with their spruces, pines and firs to worry about the check-off during their peak season, said Linda Wilson, the executive director for the Georgia Christmas Tree Association.

“I’m sure it won’t sit for very long because it’s something that we have to get done,” Wilson said.

Manufacturers who produce fake trees pour money into advertising their products, she said. The check-off could give consumers more information about real trees to make an informed decision.

“Our (trees) have some benefits environmentally and it’s a home-grown product,” she said.

The check-off could turn into a nuisance if it’s not used correctly, but the Christmas tree industry must do something to compete, said farmer Damon Malcom, who owns Jack’s Creek Farm in Bostwick.

“We might be upset in a couple of years (or) we could be grateful (for the check-off),” Malcom said.

Farmers need more advertising for real trees to help consumers look for more than buying fake — or even real — Christmas trees from a big-box store, he said.