Because of high energy prices
Flowers for Valentine’s Day significantly more expensive
02/10/2022, 12:48 p.m
In order to save energy costs, many Dutch growers switch their greenhouses to the back burner. The result: Fewer and, above all, more expensive flowers. So if you want to surprise someone with a bouquet for Valentine’s Day, you have to dig much deeper into your pocket. However, there should not be any delivery bottlenecks.
The bouquet for Valentine’s Day will be significantly more expensive this year. The main reason is the high energy prices. In addition, fewer cut flowers would be offered, said a spokesman for the largest flower auction in the Netherlands, Royal Flora Holland. According to the expectations of retailers, however, there will be no bottlenecks.
In January, flowers were already 27 percent more expensive on average than in January last year. This is a consequence of the high energy prices, said Michel van Schie, spokesman for the flower auction. Many Dutch breeders wanted to cut costs. “They lower the temperature in the greenhouses or turn them off altogether.” As a result, however, they produce fewer flowers, or they become smaller. “But the demand is still high,” said the spokesman. This increases prices. This is especially true for chrysanthemums, extremely popular on Valentine’s Day. They were 46 percent more expensive this January than in January 2021.
Pandemic restrictions
The flower auction also registered similar price increases for gerberas and eustoma. Lovers will also likely have to dig deeper into their pockets for the bouquet of roses. The flower auction also expects a lower supply here. Most roses for the European market come from Kenya and Ethiopia and are flown to the Netherlands, where they are then auctioned. “But the pandemic has significantly reduced the capacity for air freight,” said the spokesman.
There are also significantly fewer tulips, the symbol of Holland, this year. But there are other reasons: the weather. The season has been delayed by about two weeks because of the wet conditions. Flowers were already 20 percent more expensive on average last year. This ensured a record turnover for flowers and plants at Royal Flora of 5.6 billion euros, around 800 million euros more than in 2019, the last year before Corona. Flowers and plants are a top export from the Netherlands. In 2021 flowers and plants were exported for around 12 billion euros. The largest part goes to Germany.