In India, the flower industry has been hit hard by the COVID-19 situation. They are mainly used for the large weddings and as many have been cancelled, demand dropped severely. For the pot plants, however, hopes are higher as some expect that the COVID-19 situation might result in a higher demand for new varieties among the urban population. This is explained by Rohan Jadhav of KF Boiplants, who recently introduced several new varieties.
Flowers only for the big fat weddings
The floriculture industry in India is quite young; almost 20 – 25 years old and still further growing. However; the market size has not expanded beyond big fat wedding events, explains Jadhav. The industry is far away from the culture using cut flowers at home compared to many western and few South East Asian countries. And this is quite surprising as the growth rate of the industry is 20-21% CAGR."
Higher expectations for the pot plants
When looking at the pot plants, on the other hand, the urban population does use these at household levels, but according to Jadhav, the scale is really minimal and the majority of the population are not even aware about the different types of flowers which they can grow in their gardens or balconies. However, KF Bioplants is expecting this trend to change. "Realizing the impact of COVID-19 on the routine life of a human being in the country; we have a strong feeling that there will be decent demand for new varieties and new segments in the pot as well as bedding plants segment."
Novelties
As KF expects the demand for novelties to increase, they think it is now time to show their latest introductions, namely Pomponi, Fireworx, Piccolini, and Purity Gerberas. They've added them to their patio assortment. We have also introduced Garvinea assortment for landscaping. Especially, Calla Lilly tubers have performed extremely well and garnered the attention after initial trials. We are offering calla tubers and gerberas with vibrant colors for pot planting."