Peter Schorsch
Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried and the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS) are delivering locally grown Christmas trees to fellow Cabinet members’ offices to spread holiday cheer and support local agriculture.
“The holidays are such a special time, when we are given the opportunity to gather with our loved ones and celebrate the people and traditions we hold dear,” Fried said. “I am proud to spread the joy of the season with this FDACS tradition, providing my fellow Cabinet officers with locally grown, Fresh From Florida Christmas trees.”
The Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services’ Fresh From Florida program delivered 8-foot tall Carolina Sapphire trees from Bavarian Christmas Tree Farm in Tallahassee to the offices of the Governor, Attorney General and Chief Financial Officer Tuesday.
The tree farm has been a Fresh From Florida member since 2012 and is owned and operated by Franco, Sigrid and Robert Camacho, the same group that has provided Christmas trees for Cabinet members for the past decade.
This will be Fried’s final year spearheading the Christmas tree tradition. She did not seek re-election as Agriculture Commissioner this year, opting instead to run for the Democratic nomination for Florida Governor, a race she lost in the Primary to former U.S. Rep. Charlie Crist. Gov. Ron DeSantis ultimately secured easy re-election, defeating Crist by 19 percentage points in what was a red-wave election in Florida.
Next year, the tradition will pass to Fried’s successor, former Senate President Wilton Simpson, who in November easily won his race to oversee Florida’s second-largest industry. Simpson, a Republican, will make the Cabinet entirely Republican. Fried currently is Florida’s only statewide elected Democrat.
