Along with Valentine’s Day, the season of Mother’s Day It is one of the most important for Colombian flower growers. according to asocolflorescompanies in the sector expect to export some 600 million stems around the world.
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Between April and May 2022, Colombia sold 1,027 million fresh cut flowers abroad, 15.4 percent more than in the same period of the previous year.
During this season, The main destination of the flowers is the United States, a country that represents 84 percent in value. They are followed by Canada (3 percent) and Japan, the United Kingdom, and the Netherlands (2 percent each).
The climate and the aging workforce are two of the challenges facing the company that produces Ayurá flowers.
Mauricio Moreno/El Tiempo
“Millions of flowers from Colombia traveling by air and sea from our country to celebrate Mother’s Day in the homes of more than 100 countries. Colombia is privileged by its geography and that allows it to have more than 60 species of flowers and 1,400 varieties of different colors, shapes, and sizes,” he said. Augusto Solano, president of Asocolflores.
The most sold at this time are roses, chrysanthemums, hydrangeas, carnations and alstroemerias.
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“Colombia exports around 300,000 tons of flowers annually, mainly roses and carnations, which are some of the most demanded varieties in the international market and recognized for their quality and durability,” explained Carmen Caballero, president of ProColombia.
This industry also has a great social impact, since it generates approximately 200,000 formal jobs, between direct and indirect, in more than 90 municipalities in Colombia. In addition, 60 percent of direct jobs are held by women and more than half of them are mothers who are heads of household.
Personal inspection of the flowers before loading them on a cargo plane for shipment.
Mauricio Moreno/El Tiempo
air Transport
That the logistics operation works correctly, especially in these intense weeks in which most of the cargo that is sent on planes are flowers, is essential to be able to fulfill all international orders.
Avianca Cargo It is one of the leading companies in the sector. For this season, he announced that transported nearly 19,000 tons of cargo with flowers, which exceeded those mobilized during the same period of 2022.
Agricultural Crop El Redil, in Nemocón, Cundinamarca. Valentine 2022
Mauricio Moreno/El Tiempo
“We closed the season for mothers with around 300 operational flights and as a company we are proud to contribute to one of the most important seasons for the flower industry and we hope to continue contributing to its strengthening for many more years,” said Juan Cruz Correa, vice president of sales. of Avianca Cargo.
Also fedex express said it sent more than 900,000 kilos of flowers from Colombia and more than 230,000 kilos from Ecuador to the United States, representing an increase of 10 percent over the previous year.
To do this, the company doubled its commercial flights in the previous weeks, offering 12 weekly flights between Colombia and the United States.
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In addition to this, they say that the expansion of storage space and cold room capacities on the Bogotá and Medellín ramps, as well as the expansion of its air cargo hub at the Miami International Airport, were key.
