Is it really Valentine’s Day next Monday? Are roses and chocolate part of your celebration? 250 million roses are grown annually just for Valentine’s Day. Did you know that nearly all our roses are grown and flown in from Latin America, most often Colombia? This is not only because of warmer climates, but also because of cheaper labor, which has a whole slew of ethical problems on its own. During most of the year, flowers are typically flown on passenger planes flying their regular routes, but in the month leading up to Valentine’s Day, hundreds of extra cargo planes stuffed full of flowers fly from Latin America to the U.S. Add in the hundreds of refrigerated trucks needed to ship the roses across the country and you begin to see that our “cheap” roses come at the expense of our environment. After all that, some estimates show that up to 80% of flowers grown don’t even sell and are thrown away!
What to do if you love flowers? Ask your florist where their flowers come from; choose other blooms or greenery grown as close to home as possible, maybe with just a few roses. Look into a flowering plant instead of roses. Look online for U.S. florists who deliver sustainably grown roses.
During the rest of the year, search for local flower farms for bouquets. Think about a gift certificate for a flower subscription to a local grower! And make sure the chocolate going with those flowers is organic and fair trade to ensure earth and labor-friendly practices are used to grow and process it!
Happy Valentine’s Day!
Terra