For 25 years now, Florverde is ‘promoting sustainable flowers for the wellbeing of all’ with the Sustainable Flowers certification. This certification integrates transversal respect for the environment with the well-being and development of the human being and the communities where flower crops are present.
"For the floriculture sector in general it is very important to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the second oldest international floriculture certification. Florverde has a unique environmental and social performance monitoring system worldwide, which demands the highest standards at the level of sustainability, demanded by the countries to which we export," says Martha Méndez, director of this label.
For Augusto Solano, president of the Colombian Association of Flower Producers, Asocolflores, "The importance of Florverde Sustainable Flowers is enormous. Thanks to the teamwork between Florverde and floricultural companies, our flowers today have a robust certification that has managed, among other things, to create on farms and crops a culture of social, economic development and respect for natural wealth, completely aligned with the requirements demanded by sustainability initiatives and consumer demands.
Florverde today shares an apartment with highly recognized stamps in the market, standing out for its technical strength at the level of socio-environmental requirements and its specialization since it is a certification clearly aimed at the floricultural industry that brings the experience of years of working with the sector.
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As part of the celebrations, a virtual event will be held on February 24 to commemorate 25 years; with the participation of Mathieu Lamolle, senior advisor on sustainability standards and value chains of the International Trade Center (a joint agency of the World Trade Organization and the United Nations) and Jeroen Oudheusden, executive director of the Floriculture Sustainability Initiative (FSI). Those who will be showing the benefits of being part of FSI as a floriculture initiative and the trends and challenges imposed by the international market on sustainability issues in floriculture.
During the meeting, we will talk about the contribution of international certifications against global supply chains, the strengthening of certifications for entry into new markets, the added value of sustainability on the demand for flowers globally, and the contribution of organizations such as FSI and ITC in these processes.
Méndez says that "The good practices implemented by Florverde have allowed certified crops to register today a 50% reduction in the use of chemical pesticides and practically the total elimination in the use of pesticides of greater toxicity; the use of bioinputs has been increased, causing Florverde farms to have boosted Integrated Pest Management in the last 10 years by 600% and raise the indicator of rainwater use by 50%.
On the other hand, at the social level there are 100% of workers under written employment contracts, complete traceability in the hiring and subcontracting processes, and work environments that respect their health and safety conditions, prioritizing life."
Finally, the director of Florverde Sustainable Flowers emphasizes that "A Florverde certified flower is not only a beautiful flower, it is also a flower produced under protocols where it seeks to take care of water, avoid deforestation, fight climate change, protect biodiversity and ensure the economic and social development of workers and their communities."
For more information
:
Florverde
www.florverde.org