A lot of resources are used to bring the cut flowers from the grower to the consumer… If they reach the consumer.
Somewhere between 30-50 billion cut flowers worldwide are produced each year. An estimated 15-25% of this is wasted. Flowers that never reach the end consumer but are simply discarded.
A huge footprint and all for nothing. The consequences are several, from a sustainability perspective, a big problem is created in terms of waste management. Economically, waste management is also a concern with costs related to handling. But perhaps above all the wastage is lost revenue for retailers and stores.
So how do we make the flower industry more sustainable? New technology is one way forward.