High gas prices mean many Valentines bouquets include flowers from abroad

Valentine’s bouquets bought today are more likely to contain flowers from abroad than a year ago. Due to the high gas prices, many Dutch horticulturists had to reduce their production. So shops had to turn more to flowers from Africa and South America for their supply, NOS reports.

Flower shop Fleurettes Creation & Decoration in Nootdorp confirmed this image. “We have more flowers from abroad, from Ecuador and Keyna, for example,” saleswoman Ingrid Kramer said to the broadcaster. “As long as they are in good quality. But I mainly favor roses from my own country. Hopefully, next year the situation will be somewhat normal again.”

“Dutch rose growers have produced a third less than last year. This gap is partly filled by roses that are flown in,” Michel van Schie of Royal Flora Holland said to the broadcaster. He said that the consequences of the reduced supply would be visible for a while. Many growers will only start producing again when the temperatures rise.

The gas prices forced greenhouse horticulturists to find creative solutions around the high energy bills, a spokesperson for Greenhouse Horticulture Netherlands said to NOS. Some invested in energy-efficient LED lighting, others lowered the greenhouse temperatures by a few degrees, and others left part of the greenhouse empty over the winter.

Some growers chose a different route - switching crops. Marcel Vollebregt scaled down his rose production by two-thirds, and used the freed-up space in his greenhouses for fruit trees and solar panels. “If we hadn’t done this, we might have had to close at the end of the year,” he said to the broadcaster.