ILRF_FloristGuide.pdf: 32 downloads, before Oct. 1, 2020

International Labor Rights Forum

English

DigitalCommons@ILR

Buying sustainable flowers: Two options 
A guide for retailers 
 
 
Fair Trade flowers 
http://www.transfairusa.org/content/flowers/index.php 
 
Fair Trade certification on flowers guarantees that growers meet strict social 
and environmental standards and that workers receive a premium to invest in 
community development. A portion of each purchase goes directly to a 
community development fund for workers (called a “joint body”), which 
collectively decides how to use the funds. Projects include scholarships, 
housing, health clinics, and micro-enterprises. Fair Trade certification also ensures that farms 
comply with rigorous environmental standards governing the use of pesticides, conservation of 
water, treatment of wastewater, protection of ecosystems and more. 
 
For more information, or to find out how to source Fair Trade certified flowers, contact 
flowers@transfairusa.org. TransFair USA will also provide free marketing materials. 
 
VeriFlora flowers 
www.veriflora.com 
 
The farmers, distributors, wholesalers and florists who grow and handle 
VeriFlora flowers and plants are committed to delivering only the highest 
quality products, produced with rigorous environmental accountability while at 
the same time addressing the health and well-being of workers, their families and communities. 
VeriFlora is unique among sustainability certification programs for fresh cut flowers and potted 
plants in several respects: 
• It establishes significant greenhouse gas reduction and energy efficiency goals  
• It requires growers to develop a plan for converting to organic pest management and soil 
fertility practices, creating a unified path for organic and sustainable agriculture.  
• It actively steers farmers away from potentially harmful agrochemical usage.  
• It contains extensive ecosystem, water quality protection, and resource conservation 
measures to protect the ecology for generations to come.  
Wholesalers carrying VeriFlora flowers include Freshblooms (www.freshblooms.com), 
Delaware Valley Wholesale Florist (www.dvflora.com), Equiflor (www.rioroses.com), Espirit 
Miami (www.espiritmiami.com), and Gemini Floral Partners (www.geminifloral.com). 
For more information about how to carry VeriFlora certified flowers, contact Michael Keyes at 
Scientific Certification Systems at mkeyes@scscertified.com, or call 510/452-8040. 
 
 
For more information about environmental and labor issues in the cut flower industry, visit the International Labor 
Rights Forum (ILRF) Fairness in Flowers website 
http://www.laborrights.org/creating-a-sweatfree-world/fairness-in-flowers  
or contact Nora Ferm at nora.ferm@ilrf.org 


Flyer for Florists and Retailers

eCommons (Cornell Univ.)

https://digitalcommons.ilr.cornell.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=2035&amp;context=globaldocs

Flyer for Florists and Retailers

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