Flower farmers decry costly freight charges ahead of Valentine’s Day

Flower farmers in Naivasha say supply chain disruptions and high freight charges that have doubled in the last one year, are some of the challenges they are grappling with ahead the Valentine’s Day flower sale boom.

The farmers say flower prices have remained, but the sector has had to deal with higher production costs.

Even though Kenya is the world’s fourth largest exporter of cut flowers, inadequate cargo planes and space for the valuable commodity are affecting the industry.

Kenya Flower Council says flower production is on a steady rise, and the numbers could be further boosted through more state facilitation.

Even though demand for flowers in Naivasha stands at 5,000 tones weekly, farmers say they can only secure space for 3,000 tonnes. In addition, the freight cost has risen from $1.9, to $5.8 per kilo.

The situation has been further aggravated by higher cost of fertilizer, and other costs even as the buying price in the EU remain the same.

Kenya Flower Council says Kenya produced 160,000 tones of flowers last year compared to 173,000 tones in 2020 attributed to COVID-19 disruptions.