PARIS (Reuters) – It’s the classic romantic combination: Valentine’s Day in Paris, the city of love and a gift of red roses. But some Parisian florists try to wean customers from flowers because of their ecological cost.
Most roses sold in France in the run-up to Valentine’s Day, a peak sales period for the world’s flower industry, must be imported by air from countries such as Kenya, resulting in carbon emissions that contribute to climate change.
Florists concerned about the environmental damage in this trade say that there are viable alternatives that can be grown locally and try to encourage customers to try them.
It faces an upward struggle because the tradition of offering red roses for Valentine’s Day, which falls on February 14, is so ingrained in many cultures.
Hortense Harang, the founder of an online flower shop called “Fleurs d’Ici” – French for “Flowers from here” – led the campaign to wean people of roses.
“Red roses are so 1950s,” she said.
“Roses are absolutely forbidden this season, because it doesn’t make sense to buy roses. Roses do not grow below our latitudes this season. ”
Her campaign garnered support. “It doesn’t make sense to have flowers on the other side of the globe if we can get them locally,” said Edith Besenfelder, a 46-year-old Parisian florist who works with local, seasonal flowers.
But old habits die hard. Celine Argente, owner of the 40-year-old Sylvine flower shop in Paris, said she encouraged customers to buy red tulips as a way to declare their love. But despite this, her store this week was packed up with red rose deer to meet demand.
“It’s a classic from which people can’t change,” she said. “The red rose remains the flower for Valentine’s Day.”
Written by Christian Lowe; Montage by Alison Williams