American Floral Endowment launches 'Murder, Sex, Greed' video

The words “murder,” “sex” and “greed” aren’t normally associated with floriculture, unless you are the American Floral Endowment (AFE), which Sept. 19, at their annual fundraising dinner, launched a fresh and eye-opening approach to educating the industry about the positive impacts it makes on critical industry problems.

“It’s no secret that flowers and plants make people happy,” Paul Bachman, AFE Chairman and President of Bachman’s, Inc., said. “However, AFE and the many ways it benefits the entire floral industry are secrets that need to be discovered by more retailers, wholesalers, growers, importers and allied organizations. We took a somewhat surprising approach so that people will take notice.”

AFE, an independent nonprofit organization that funds research and scholarships in floriculture and environmental horticulture created a custom animated short video titled "Murder, Sex, Gree," spotlighting how AFE-funded research supports healthier and longer lasting flowers and plants and how its scholarships and grants promote training and hands-on experience for future industry leaders.

The animated video is the primary communications vehicle for carrying AFE’s new message to industry members. Murder, sex and greed describe solutions AFE-funded research has unearthed, from controlling and eliminating pests and diseases to solving breeding and genetic issues. The video has custom animation and musical score and is intended to be shared digitally member-to-member in order to increase awareness and contributions, which can be made online.

AFE has also created vehicles and materials to enable industry members to share the video, including digital ads and banners, newsletter articles and language for use in social media. Those interested in helping spread the word, can contact AFE Communications Specialist Suzanna McCloskey (smccloskey@afeendowment.org) or visit AFE’s website for ads in multiple sizes.

“For more than 50 years, the Endowment’s work has benefited everyone,” Bachman said. “We’re hoping the new video effectively reinforces all the good that has been accomplished thanks to our current donor base, as well as introduces a new generation of supporters to AFE.”