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Cut flowers cultivated under controlled conditions mainly for export, is growing
in the world at around 6-10 per cent per annum. This is supported by the demand
in the developed countries of Europe, America, Australia, Japan and Singapore.
The most important flower traded in the international market is still rose; however,
others like chrysanthemum, carnation, gerbera, dahlia, poinsettia, orchids, lily
etc. are also marketed in large quantities in these countries.
In spite of a long tradition of agriculture and floriculture, India’s share
in the international market for these flowers is negligible. During the last few
years, taking advantage of the incentives offered by the Government, a number of
floriculture units were established in India for producing and exporting flowers
to the developed countries.
The floriculture activity, whether it is catering to local demand or to the international
demand, is to be treated as an agricultural activity and not as an industry. Another
most important step will be to encourage a "consortium" approach among
the units for branding, grading, packaging, transporting, quality control, supply
assurance, market development, market promotion, and research and development. For
this purpose, it is necessary to encourage some of the successful and experienced
entrepreneurs to take a lead in forming such consortia.
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