FLORAL INDUSTRY

Floriculture as an industry began in the late 1800´s in England, where flowers were grown on a large scale on the vast estates. The present day floral industry is a dynamic, global fast-growing industry, which has achieved significant growth rates during the past few decades. In the 1950´s, the global flower trade was less than US$3 billion. By 1992, it had grown to US$100 billion. In recent years, the floral industry has grown six percent annually, while the global trade volume in 2003 was US$101.84 billion

How The Floral Industry Works

The floral industry essentially consists of three major components, the grower, the wholesaler and the retailer whose businesses are quite intermingled. For a detailed description of how the floral industry works, download Katie Wagar´s power point presentation on the functioning of the floral industry.

Transportation Of Flowers - New Challenges to the flower industry

Some of the other aspects of the floral trade, which have grabbed the industry´s attention, include the quality of the flowers and consideration of how much importance consumers attach to the time that the flowers retain their freshness. This brings us to the very important issue of Flower Transportation. Read more.

The Dutch Flower Industry

Traditionally the center of flower production has been the developed world, with Japan, Western Europe and North America as the major contributors. It has been well documented in the past how the flower industry has been one of the leading industries in the Dutch economy. The Dutch flower auctions have played a major role in the growth of the Dutch flower industry. Learn More on the famed flower auctions, which constitute an important part of the Dutch Flower Industry.

New Flower Growing Centres

Since the mid 1990's, emerging flower growers like Kenya, Colombia and Ecuador have become the new centers of flower production. Also, the floral industry is essentially a labour-intensive one. Read More on the New Flower Growing Centres.

How Safe Are The Flowers We Use?

With flower exports increasingly coming from countries like Colombia and Ecuador (Colombia now exports more flowers than any other country save Holland) the issue of excessive use of pesticides and inhuman working conditions on the farms has caught attention. Environmentalists are already asking for more regulations on the imports. Read more about the health and safety issues.

Books on flowers