A Ray of Jersey Sunshine

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What’s the first thing that comes to mind when you think of January? A cold return to work after the festive season? A relentless bombardment of ‘get fit now’ schemes? Or maybe just a desire to hibernate until spring?

Whatever it is, I’m sure one of the last things most of us think about is daffodils.

Yet daffodils have very much been at the front of our local growers’ minds this January. With the unseasonably warm winter we’ve had, the daffs have sprouted far earlier than usual – and while they’ve certainly added some much-needed colour to January, their early arrival has put a significant strain on our local flower growers.

So at the Society, we wondered how best to support our growers at this time. Step in the Ray of Jersey Sunshine campaign, bringing together local producers, the JEP and the Coop.

On Saturday 23rd January, at every Cooperative store, a free bunch of daffs was given away with every JEP, the idea being that readers then give them to a special person in their lives – their ray of Jersey sunshine.

The Cooperative will also be selling daffodils at a discount afterwards, ensuring that the growers get the same return as if the daffodils were sold at full price.

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While the beauty of the scheme is in its simplicity, the Ray of Jersey Sunshine campaign also signifies something much bigger: a sense of community, and our collective responsibility to support our local producers and farmers. It shows what can happen when our Island comes together.

Expect to see your local Cooperative lit up with a yellow glow this Saturday, and know that with each bouquet you give, not only will you make someone’s day, you will be supporting your local producers.

If you’re as interested as I am to see how islanders will respond to the Ray of Jersey Sunshine campaign, you can follow the developments on both the JEP and Cooperative twitter channels – or grab a copy of Monday’s JEP.

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