News Articles August 2004 Christmas Tree Industry Faces Marketing Challenge notes Country Folks Grower (August ’04). “Christmas tree growers are facing a crisis. According to marketing firm Smith & Haroff, Inc., purchases of real trees have dropped dramatically since 1990. At that time, sales were evenly split between real and artificial trees. But by last Christmas, 70% of American consumers were displaying tress that came from boxes.” Obstacles include consumers’ mistaken belief that it’s not environmentally friendly to cut a natural tree, “increasing consumer demand for convenience and the tightening of fire codes. . . . To combat these challenges, the National Christmas Tree Association is developing special campaigns to educate the public about the industry and to market real Christmas trees to a new generation of consumers.”
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