Australia and Britain focus on local flowers
The most recent statistics show that more than 120 million flowers were imported in 2012, nearly 80 million of them roses. That’s a tenfold increase since 2008 and it is expected to be even higher now. Other big imports are orchids, chrysanthemums, carnations and fresh foliage.
“It really is crazy that it’s financially viable to fly a rose 13,500km from Ecuador to sell in a Sydney supermarket when we can grow almost every flower in Australia,” Holborn says, adding, “Australian producers are required to use chemicals that are not only registered but the application of those chemicals needs to be conducted safely — for the chemical applicator, other farm workers and the environment.”
Genevieve McCaskill of Flowers Victoria also supports local growers and country-of-origin labelling. “Local should be the flowers of choice,” she says. “Consumers need to ask questions when they purchase, and so do florists when buying at the wholesalers.”
Small, family-based growers are declining as urban sprawl meets formerly rural flower farms. Land prices offered by developers are irresistible, especially when the family’s next generation wants a less physical life.
Despite this, the outlook for locally grown flowers is positive. A resurgence of more traditional blooms such as hydrangeas, dahlias, snapdragons and sunflowers is good news for local growers, as these varieties do not travel well and therefore don’t have to compete against imports.
Read more at The Australian
Great Britain
The local flower movement is big in Britain as well.
Flora Starkey, who is dressing the main entrance of next week’s Chelsea Flower Show in honour of the Queen’s 90th birthday, only wants to select the best flowers. For her, that means blooms that are grown in Britain.
“Seasonal flowers are much chicer than the characterless cultivated ones that have flown halfway around the world,” she says. “People are embracing wilder, more natural arrangements these days, as well as flowers with fewer air miles, so British flower growers are enjoying a renaissance.”
Starkey is part of a growing brigade of florists who favour using UK-grown flowers – which are often cheaper than imported blooms in the summer months – and some are going a step further by cultivating the flora for their bouquets themselves.
Read more at The Telegraph