The AAS is a nonprofit organization founded in 1932 with the aim of introducing new and superior varieties of flowers and vegetables to gardeners in the US and Canada, and popularizing these varieties. It is the most influential industry group in the whole horticultural industry, with top breeding companies from around the world competing by entering new cultivars. Every year, cultivars are grown together and judged at over 40 trial grounds in the US and Canada, and the superior varieties are selected. The most outstanding of these is awarded the Gold medal, but this is by no means a regular occurrence—the Gold Medal is awarded only about once or twice every ten years, and is thus a great honor.