Especially during the winter months, when the weather outside is gray, a bouquet of flowers is a vibrant splash of color in the home and office. A sustainable bouquet of flowers is also a welcome gift, especially on the classic "gift-giving dates" with Valentine's Day and later Mother's Day just around the corner .
Where does the floral splendor come from – and what is a sustainable bouquet?
A closer look at the origins of our cut flowers reveals that many of them travel a long way before they reach the market or florist for sale. By far the most popular cut flower, the rose, comes predominantly from the Netherlands – but not exclusively.Almost 30% of the roses sold come from Zambia, 25% from Ethiopia, and more than 7% even from Ecuador .
The problems:
- Working conditions
- Environmental pollution
- Long air transports
While European labor and health and safety standards prevail in the Netherlands, this cannot be transferred to Africa or South America. Supply chain laws that enforce the tracking of working conditions are still rather patchy – so who knows under what conditions a worker in Ecuador or Zambia is employed to cultivate the flowers?
A sustainable bouquet must be local
Working hours and wages, as well as the use of pesticides and herbicides, are virtually uncontrollable from a European perspective. The bright red roses we happily carry home often come at a high price. However, others pay for them. The environmental impact of these long-distance flowers is otherwise unimpressive. They are, of course, transported by plane and refrigerated to ensure they arrive "dewy" in our homes. This significantly increases the flowers' carbon footprint. Therefore, cut flowers from overseas are difficult to use for a sustainable bouquet.
Alternatives to make the sustainable bouquet work
One can't condemn flower farming in emerging markets outright; after all, it creates jobs and prospects. Nevertheless, the question remains: How can one buy sustainable bouquets if one doesn't want to do without cut flowers?
Sustainable bouquet: Fairtrade flowers
Organized fair trade now also exists for cut flowers – in this case, the flowers come from farms that have certified their practices. This applies to both sustainable environmental management and the conditions of workers : fair wages, the right to unionize, and clear employment relationships.
Sustainable bouquet: organic flowers
Cut flowers that meet the same standards as organic fruit or vegetables from certified organic cultivation can be called organic. This means, among other things, that the use of chemical toxins and artificial fertilizers is avoided. As if that weren't enough, some flower farms boast a high level of biodiversity, allowing a wide variety of insects to thrive.
Sustainable bouquet: Slow Flowers
Another sustainability concept is borrowed from Slow Food. Similar to food , cut flowers, known as Slow Flowers, are intended to be produced as regionally and seasonally as possible . When flower cultivation isn't possible in Switzerland during the winter, retailers collaborate with flower growers from Ticino – or from Liguria, whose coast is famous as the "Flower Riviera" for its numerous greenhouses.
Sustainable bouquet: Bouquets according to season
Of course, with a little ingenuity, you can also put together your own bouquets, choosing wildflowers or flowers from your own garden in spring and summer. In autumn, it's time for branches with brightly colored foliage, and when nothing blooms in winter, there are evergreens like fir branches or holly , which can be decorated for Christmas as early as November and stay fresh in a vase for a long time. If you want a bit of color in your living room during the colder months, you can dry the most beautiful summer flowers in advance – hang them upside down in a cool place away from direct sunlight and wait a few weeks!
Cut flowers can be sustainable!
With a little thought, you can feel no guilt about picking up a colorful bouquet of flowers. However, it does require a bit of thought – about the origin of the flowers and cherished consumer habits, which can easily be changed. With organic flowers or Slow Flowers, a magnificent bouquet for Valentine's Day or Mother's Day is no reason for a guilty conscience!
