The German ornamental industry is again looking back on a challenging year. This became clear at the delegates' conference of the German Ornamental Plants Association (BVZ) in the Central Horticultural Association (ZVG) in Heidelberg, Germany, in October.
The participants of the public BVZ delegate meeting 2023 in Heidelberg. (Picture: BVZ/ Harring)
The course of the season was marked by persistent inflation and high input costs, but again, also by the weather. Overall, however, consumer appreciation of flowers and plants remains high, which is also reflected in the market figures. After a late start to the season, a good bedding and balcony plant season was completed in all regions, which was stable well into the summer.
The energy situation remains tense. The one solution for a sustainable and economically sensible energy source will not exist for the sector in the near future, they say.
"With the Energy Efficiency Act looming next, costs will increase once again, but above all, the administrative burden will rise in a form that horticultural companies will no longer be able to afford," fears BVZ Chairman Frank Werner.
The delegates urgently call for a reliable policy in order to be able to plan investments in the future on a solid basis.
For more information:
Zentralverband Garenbau e.V. (ZVG)
https://www.derdeutschegartenbau.de/