About 110 million roses are purchased in the United States for Valentine’s Day each year, and nearly all are red and long stemmed and bought by men. However, women also buy them for their daughters, mothers, and grandmothers, in addition to their wives and lovers. Some women buy them for themselves, which I think is great, though they are less expensive at other times of the year.
Most of the roses purchased are imported from Central and South America, mainly Colombia. Since imported roses often have been treated with pesticides, there has been a recent demand for organically grown blossoms. Green label flowers, as they are called, provide information on tags about how the flowers were grown and if workers had safe conditions and adequate pay.
Many countries, especially in Europe, created effective certification programs in the mid 1990s. The U.S. has a relatively recent certification program now and identifying labels as well.
Ecuador has a new line of organic roses that even have fragrance as well, called Nevado Ecuador, and their slogan is ”Roses with a Conscience.”
No doubt, flowers that are certified as organic will continue to increase in numbers specially if buyers ask for them. In 2001 Gerald Prolman began to sell his brand “Organic Roses” online.
This is Moya Andrews, and today we focused on Valentines flowers.
