Floristry professionals, academics, researchers, and environmental auditors gathered in Coventry Cathedral on 26 September to witness the launch of a guidance booklet for florists on sustainable practices. The aim is to cut down on plastics and packaging and encourage better management among UK florists, writes David Bek for FCI.
The cut-flower sector is a significant user of packaging, with multiple layers of plastic and other materials used to protect and hydrate flowers from grower to consumer. While important for product protection, the widespread use of single-use plastics poses a significant environmental concern, and as consumer demand for sustainable practices grows, businesses that adopt eco-friendly methods enhance environmental sustainability, improve efficiency and lower costs. In addition, event florists tend to employ single-use plastics in their designs.
Guidance booklet
Led by Professor David Bek (Coventry University) and Dr Jill Timms (Surrey University), an industry working group has produced a new booklet and other resources designed to guide the floriculture industry towards more sustainable practices.
The working group comprises key collaborators such as the Floriculture Sustainability Initiative (FSI), Interflora, the British Florist Association, Flowers from the Farm, JZ Flowers and Superflora, and Bloom and Wild.
Launch event
An official launch event was held at Coventry Cathedral, which showcased demonstrations of sustainable floristry design, including by King Charles III’s florist, Shane Connolly, who said, “I have struggled for years with the idea that so many florists feel that nature is their inspiration and guide, yet so much of floral practice is damaging to nature. It has been wonderful to see this dichotomy addressed at the event in Coventry Cathedral. We need to offer solutions to florists rather than bombard them with the issues and that’s what we’re starting to do. For many years, I have tried to promote more sustainable practices in the floral industry, so it was an honour to be part of this event, where the solutions are being presented along with the issues in a way that is supported by robust academic research.”
Six florists showcased examples of their designs, which ensure that plastic usage is minimised or even eradicated with no reduction in design quality. Providing designs for funerals is especially challenging, with high levels of plastic typically being used in tributes. Members of the Farewell Flowers group showcased examples of more sustainable funeral practices.
During the panel discussion, Jonny Young, representing JZ Flowers and Superflora, revealed how targets are being set by their retail customers to reduce the usage of virgin plastics, which has already led to a saving of 150 tonnes of plastics. Pete Schofield from Bloom and Wild described how FSC-certified materials are used for packaging while plastic usage has dropped by eighty-six per cent.
Panellists also discussed the problems caused by unclear package labelling, greenwashing and ineffective public waste collection and recycling systems.
Sharing best practice
Going forward, the working group will focus on improving the sharing of best practices across the industry and supporting scientific investigations into alternative products for floral design that have minimal environmental impact.
As the event at Coventry Cathedral demonstrated, a great deal can be achieved through collaboration and a positive mindset driven by a desire to really shift the dial on sustainability.
Further information about the Plastics, Packaging and Waste Working Group and the sustainable floristry booklet can be found at
www.sustainableflowersresearch.org
This article was first published in the November 2024 issue of FloraCulture International.
