the 4,000 mile floral delivery

Did you know that 82% of the flowers in the US are imported from the Netherlands, Ecuador, Colombia, Kenya and Ethiopia? Roses, carnations and chrysanthemums are the most popular blooms - and a majority of the EU’s roses now come from Kenya, a relatively new purveyor in the international cut floral business. Their projected growth is 5% YOY.

flowers = flights

The International Council on Clean Transportation crunched the Valentine’s Day numbers last year and estimated that the three weeks of floral flights leading up to the holiday burned approximately 114 million liters of jet fuel, emitting 360,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere - which is the equivalent of 397,902,058 pounds of coal being burned - or, the equivalent of 78,293 passenger vehicles driven for one year. This is just the Valentine’s Day delivery, not considering the weddings or events industries at large.

In 2018, flowers accounted for 69% of all the gifts on Mother’s Day. According to a survey by the Society of American Florists, 65% of the customers in the United States like to receive flowers and 60% of the customers believe a gift containing flowers offer a special meaning, unlike any other gift. This consumer mindset is quite engrained in the American psyche, and for good reason - they are a stunning exhibition of nature’s beauty in the hands of an artist.

know your local flower farmer

The fact is, flowers are beloved - we don’t disagree. The difference is understanding the supply chain down to the farmer who grew the floral - and there is a deep passion for what many call “slow floral” in the U.S. today - a contingent of farmer-florists who not only grow organic, responsibly and clean - but their floral arrives to you, your local designer or shop with a fraction of the footprint. For example, great resource to find local flower farms is slowflowersociety.com.

There are mindful florists and farmers collaborating, largely on a local level, to circumvent these large scale emissions. There are also alternative ways to create with circularity in mind - it takes a bit more strategy, but there are incredible design solutions to appease not only aesthetic goals but also environmental consciousness.