Blue Diamond Growers Participates in Rose Parade
Blue Diamond Growers, the world’s leading almond marketer and processor, is participating in the 2023 Rose Parade presented by Honda, an iconic annual event held in Pasadena, Calif., on Jan 2. For the fifth year in a row, the Sacramento-based co-op will honor the people and pollinators that make Blue Diamond almond products possible, highlighting the farmer-owned cooperative’s commitment to sustainability, pollinators, and biodiversity with a custom-built float brimming with fresh flowers and featuring Blue Diamond almond growers.
Meticulously built to honor the almond pioneer’s past, present, and future, Blue Diamond will charm Rose Parade spectators with a colorful float that pays tribute to not only the almonds that sustain its growers and nourish its consumers but also to the pollinators that are vital for their success.
“We’re thrilled to be back for the Rose Parade! This year’s float is an unparalleled representation of the passion and hard work of our Grower members,” said Raj Joshi, SVP global consumer division for Blue Diamond Growers. “We are incredibly honored to share this moment with the almond grower-owners riding our float, bringing the whole display to life, and our thousands of members who will be watching from home. Blue Diamond’s California legacy keeps growing thanks to them.”
Spectators will be charmed with the enormous representations of the brand’s Almond Breeze Almondmilk and the signature Smokehouse-flavored Blue Diamond Almonds, a rollercoaster and an animated, spinning Ferris wheel. As the float makes its way down the streets of Pasadena, Blue Diamond has been intentional in ensuring that one element stands out: the honeybees. By creating joyful bees from thousands of flowers, the Sacramento-based co-op reinforces its commitment to partnerships that support honeybee health, such as Project Apis m. and Pollinator Partnership, and its leadership in using pollinator-friendly plantings in growers’ orchards to advance biodiversity and climate-smart agriculture.
This year’s eye-catching design will consist of more than 20,000 flowers, including over 10,000 pink and orange roses, hundreds of gladiolas, lilies, and orchids as well as a variety of seeds, beans, and almond shells. The float will also feature a unique component: the heart and soul of Blue Diamond, its growers. Twelve almond growers will ride alongside the float, representing the more than 3,000 dedicated growers in the California co-op – making it one of the world’s leading agricultural co-ops.
Lovingly known as America’s New Year Celebration, the iconic Rose Parade is celebrating its 134th anniversary. With this year’s theme, “Turning the Corner,” Blue Diamond also takes an opportunity to celebrate what the new year means to them: the long-awaited almond bloom that happens every February in central California, signaling a new year for the almond cycle, and a renewed opportunity to keep growing a better tomorrow through innovative sustainable farming practices.
Nothing denotes turning the corner more for Blue Diamond than fragrant almond blossoms, well-cared-for crops, and healthy bees pollinating the trees that make almonds possible. Visit bluediamondgrowers.com/sustainability to learn how Blue Diamond is committed to biodiversity and pollinator health.
You can watch the Blue Diamond Growers float in the Rose Parade on Jan. 2, starting at 8 a.m. PST in Pasadena or broadcast on live television.
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