roses
VALENTINE flowers
FAIR TRADE
for any
HAPPY occasion!
Fair Trade aims to protect and benefit workers on flower farms by certifying those farms to ensure safety and good working conditions for their employees. Consumers can now purchase Fair Trade flowers with the assurance that the rights of the workers who have produced them are being respected. Fair Trade is a “complete sustainability” program. It goes far beyond environmental sustainability to also include the people and communities that are impacted by floral farms. Fair Trade Certification means that flower farms are given a fair price for their product, workers enjoy safe working conditions, fair living wages are paid to workers through unions and environmentally friendly growing practices are used. It is a commitment made by each company in the supply chain to maintain higher standards, even if it costs a little more.
THE SECRET TO KEEPING FRESH CUT FLOWERS FRESH
Tanya Cole
OUR CUT FLOWER EXPERT From the Rio Grande Valley Store
Trivia Tidbit: The most popular cut flower is the rose.
Tanya’s First Job: was making bouquets at an upscale florist shop at 15. There she found her passion and the ability to express her artistic side. Tanya worked at the florist shop until she was 22, and then went on to pusue her Degree in Horticulture. She has worked on farms in the Pacific Northwest, but always found her way back to her first love; making beautiful floral arrangements. Tanya’s Next Project: is to grow her own cut flowers! Tanya’s Floral Tips: • Recut the stems before putting them in water. Most flowers can be out of water for 1-2 hours before the stems are recut. • Keep out of direct sun. • Keep the water fresh daily. It’s the #1 reason flowers don’t do well. • Purchase fresh, local fair trade flowers. They keep longer. Tanya’s Passion: Fair Trade Certified flowers! As careful stewards of the land, Fair Trade growers increase the use of natural pesticides and natural pest controls, reducing water and energy use. Giving Fair Trade Certified blooms are the best way to show care for the person receiving the flowers as well as for the farm workers. Most Fair Trade roses come from South America: Ecuador and Columbia. With every stem sold, 10% of the commercial price is allocated to a development fund that gives workers the opportunity to invest in the future of their communities. Women make up the majority of the workforce at flower farms throughout Latin America and especially at Agrocoex, one of the Fair Trade farms in Ecuador. The women at Agrocoex decided to use their Fair Trade premiums to build a laundry facility where women can bring their family’s clothes, pay a small fee, and have everything washed and folded for them by the end of the day! Previously they were required to carry their clothes down to the local river and wash them by hand, meaning hours of work in polluted water. Thank you for supporting Fair Trade Certified flowers!