Valentine’s Day flowers have a long journey to the United States

Love is in the air – or at least are flowers.

Increased demand for Valentine’s bouquets This year, Avianca load has a large floral importer that doubles its regular capacity. A record-breaking 18,000 tonnes of delicate floral-80 percent of them roses-rose on fragrant flights from Ecuador and Columbia to North America as part of a complex transport system.

When the flowers arrive in the United States, the time is the essence of getting them to florist studies and then in the hands of love birds everywhere before they want.

“The journey from farm to vase is much longer than most people are aware of,” Althea Wiles, owner and floral designer at Rose from Sharon Floral Design Studio in Eureka Springs told Arkansas, to Quartz. “When flowers come from South America or the Netherlands, they can spend up to three weeks in transit before they reach your local florist.”

Wiles said that when the flowers arrive, they immediately treat them by cropping stems, removing damaged petals and placing them in fresh water with preservatives to help counteract any stress from their long journey.

“During high seasons like Valentine’s Day, we often receive double or triple our usual shipments, which require precise timing and extra cold storage capacity,” Wiles said. “Valentine’s season” for florists is considered the three weeks leading up to the big day.

Amy McCord, CEO of Flower Moxie, who specializes in wedding events, says Cold – but not too cold – is key.

“The whole trip from a farm in Colombia to the United States takes about 3-4 days and they are over a week old when they come to a florist’s study,” Moxie said, adding that the regular phrase you hear when you send Flowers is to ‘don’t break the cold chain.’

“Flowers after the harvest are placed in a cooler on the yard, and the goal is to keep them the same temperature until they reach their final destination,” McCord said, noting that any temperature changes along the way can shorten the flower’s vase life and compromise the product. And winter does not help as freedy temperatures may risk the flowers freezing.

Many of these flowers fly into Miami International Airport. No word about whether they have booked the first class, but the airport is excited about its role in Valentine’s Day.

“Mia is proud to be America’s biggest gateway for fresh flowers, with more than 1,500 tonnes expected to arrive daily this year for Valentine’s Day, which would be an increase of 3% compared to last year,” said Ralph Cutié, director and CEO Director, Miami International Airport. “Thanks to our strong partnership with airlines such as Avianca -load and federal support from US customs and border protection, millions of flowers will reach their destinations across the country on time for the holidays.”