The Floriculture Industry: Thorns without Borders - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

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The Floriculture Industry: Thorns without Borders

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Long history of religious, folk, heraldic and national symbolism ... World's largest producer: Dole Fresh Flowers. The Floriculture Industry ... – PowerPoint PPT presentation

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Title: The Floriculture Industry: Thorns without Borders


1
The Floriculture IndustryThorns without Borders
  • Martin Donohoe

2
Say it with flowers
3
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5
Flowers
  • Long history of religious, folk, heraldic and
    national symbolism
  • Gifts of love, friendship and filial devotion
  • St. Valentines Day
  • Mothers Day

6
The Floriculture Industry
  • 30 billion cut flower industry
  • Major producers Holland, Columbia, Kenya,
    Zimbabwe, Ecuador, India, Mexico, China, Malaysia
  • Worlds largest producer Dole Fresh Flowers

7
The Floriculture Industry
  • Largest import markets U.S. and Germany
  • Only 1/3 of cut flowers sold in U.S. are domestic
  • Most from CA

8
The Floriculture Industry
  • 190,000 workers in developing countries
  • Ecuador and Columbia account for ½ of flowers
    sold in U.S.
  • Most profit flows to large, multinational
    corporations, headquartered outside producing
    countries
  • Small amount reinvested locally

9
Floriculture and Women
  • Predominantly female workforce
  • Low wages
  • No benefits
  • Short contract cycles
  • Child labor, dismissal for pregnancy, unpaid
    overtime common

10
Floriculture and Labor
  • Labor organizers harassed, workers fired for
    trying to organize unions
  • Third party contractors shuffle workers from
    plantation to plantation, avoiding payment of
    social security and inhibiting union organizing

11
Floriculture and the Environment
  • Floriculture displaces crops grown for local food
    consumption
  • Contributes to malnutrition and increased local
    food costs
  • Requires large quantities of irrigation water
  • 120 liters/dozen roses
  • Contributes to drop in water tables

12
Floriculture Toxic Exposures
  • Flowers most pesticide-intensive crop
  • Greenhouses increase ambient levels of pesticides
  • 1/5 of pesticides banned or untested in U.S.
  • Carcinogens, persistent organic
    pollutants/endocrine disruptors

13
Floriculture Toxic Exposures
  • Flowers carry up to 50X the amount of pesticides
    allowed on foods
  • USDA inspects for pests, but not pesticides

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Floriculture Health Effects
  • Over 50 of workers have symptoms of
    organophosphate pesticide exposure (cholinergic
    symptoms)
  • Other common health problems
  • Allergic reactions, heat stroke, pneumonitis,
    RSI, cellulitis, UTIs, neuropathies, mental
    health problems, cancers, reproductive problems
    (low sperm counts, spontaneous abortions, fetal
    anomalies, etc.)

17
Floriculture Health Effects
  • Labeling, handling, and storage problems rampant
  • Protective gear often lacking, not working
  • Reuse of pesticide-saturated greenhouse plastic
    for domestic purposes not uncommon
  • Workers wash / bathe children in same sink

18
Floriculture Health Effects
  • Local physicians poorly-trained, lack resources
    to manage pesticide-related health problems
  • Many providers employed by floriculture company
  • Conflict of interest

19
Symbols of Love Alternatives and Solutions
  • Flowers
  • Grow your own
  • Purchase locally- or internationally-produced,
    organically-grown, labor-friendly bouquets
  • Farmers markets, Whole Foods, other upscale
    markets
  • http//www.LocalHarvest.org
  • http//www.proflowers.com
  • http//www.organicbouquet.com
  • http//FlowerPetal.com (contributes to carbon
    offsets)
  • Others

20
Alternatives and Solutions
  • Flowers
  • Consumer education
  • Pressure on supermarkets, florists
  • Boycotts ? voluntary eco-labels in Europe
  • NGOs developing industry standards
  • Food First Information Action Networks Flower
    Campaign ? voluntary International Code of Conduct

21
Alternatives and Solutions
  • Flowers
  • Veriflora Certification System
  • Organic production with phaseout of pesticides
  • Water conservation
  • Safe waste management
  • Mitigation of previous environmental damage
  • Fair labor practices / fair wages / overtime pay
    / right to organize
  • Unannounced audits ensure compliance

22
Alternatives and Solutions
  • Flowers
  • Veriflora Certification System Campaign focused
    on
  • Supermarkets (29 of U.S. flower sales, market
    share increasing, 50 major companies)
  • Less focus currently on wholesalers (1200
    nationwide) and florists (30,000, 47 of market
    share)
  • Society of American Florists yet to endorse
  • Fair trade flowers

23
Alternatives and Solutions
  • Consider alternative tokens of affection
  • Homemade gifts (cards, photo collages, videos,
    poems, meals, home improvement projects)
  • Donations to charities
  • Eco-jewelry made from recycled materials by
    indigenous peoples
  • Profits returned to local communities, providing
    wide-ranging social and economic benefit

24
Conclusions
  • Beneath the beauty of cut flowers lie practices
    involving significant damage to local
    communities, human health, and the environment
  • Consumers and health care advocates should work,
    individually and collectively, for reform of the
    floriculture industry

25
Paper/References/Contact Info
  • Donohoe MT. Flowers, diamonds, and gold The
    destructive human rights and environmental
    consequences of symbols of love. Human Rights
    Quarterly 200830164-82.
  • http//www.publichealthandsocialjustice.org
  • http//www.phsj.org
  • martindonohoe_at_phsj.org
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