From holidays and birthdays, to weddings and funerals, and almost all occasions in between, a common giving go-to is a bouquet of fresh flowers. Flowers are a piece of living art, and giving them can be a well-meaning, thoughtful gesture. Yet behind the pretty blooms, there’s something sinister hidden in plain sight: a supply chain wrapped in plastic and drenched in synthetic pesticides. The cut fresh flower industry is valued at over $38 billion as of 2026, but there’s a massive pollution problem that comes along with it. It starts long before the flowers reach you, and doesn’t end after you throw them away.
An Industry Wrapped in Plastic
The fresh flower industry produces an estimated 100,000 tons of plastic waste each year, and florists in North America and Europe see a 40% rise in packaging demand around Valentine’s Day alone. That surge, multiplied across every state, adds up to mountains of single-use plastic packaging pollution.
And the problem goes deeper, since hidden inside a lot of floral arrangements sits a block of green foam. It may seem small and inconsequential, but it is anything but: floral foam is a single-use plastic that is densely packed with as much plastic as ten traditional shopping bags. It is used in florist workrooms, wedding centerpieces, and in displays to keep flowers in place.
Floral foam is made from phenol-formaldehydes, and the only way it deteriorates is by breaking into smaller and smaller fragments, called microplastics, which pollute the environment and our bodies. Despite a growing number of bans on expanded polystyrene foam (Styrofoam) floral foam alarmingly remains legal and widely available for use. Some institutions are beginning to recognize the harms and are making important changes. In January 2020, the Royal Horticultural Society announced it was banning the product, and floral foam has not been permitted at RHS shows since 2023, including the Chelsea Flower Show. But for the vast majority of the industry, the green foam block is still considered standard issue.
And before the flowers are packed in plastic, they are grown in plastic—lots of it. Often grown inside plastic hoop houses, flowers are grown in soils covered with plastic weed barriers, then are transferred into plastic pots and plastic trays or crates, before being shipped around the world. While hoop houses are typically reused, much agricultural plastic is discarded after just one use, and all plastic sheds microplastics and ultimately winds up as pollution.
Flying Flowers Around the World
Then there’s the carbon costs of importing flowers. Over 60% of cut flowers sold in the United States and Europe are imported, flown in primarily from countries in East Africa and Latin America. These flowers are not shipped by sea; instead, due to their perishable nature, they need to be flown in refrigerated cargo planes—which require enormous amounts of fuel to power.
Dr. Michael Williams, an environmental scientist at Imperial College London who has studied the cut flower industry’s carbon emissions, describes the situation: “We’re flying water and air around the world, essentially. Fresh flowers are 80 to 90 percent water by weight, and they require constant refrigeration and rapid transport. It’s one of the least carbon-efficient products in global trade.”
Even industry certifications designed to reduce environmental harm cannot address the transportation problem, since the shipping mechanism remains the same regardless of how sustainably the flowers were grown. From planes, diesel-powered trucks typically carry cut flowers to their final destinations, including flower shops and supermarkets.
The Human Cost of Fresh Flowers
The environmental toll of the fresh flower industry is massive, but there’s also a human cost that is rarely mentioned in the larger conversation. Since flowers are not classified as edible, they are often exempt from pesticide regulations. This regulatory gap has concerning consequences for the people who grow and handle these flowers.
“A 2024 study of Ecuadorian floriculture workers found that 61% of workers showed symptoms consistent with pneumonitis, attributed to pesticide exposure and other agrochemicals used in flower farming. Skin complaints, such as rashes and eczema, are common from contact with chemicals and plants.” — “The True Cost of Ecuador’s perfect roses,” The Guardian
Research on use of pesticides on cut flowers revealed that, of 201 chemicals identified on cultivated cut flowers, 93 had been banned in the European Union. Experts say such unregulated use of dangerous chemicals is partly the result of international trade, as flowers may be grown in areas where pesticide use is not well regulated.The workers most affected are predominantly women. In Kenya, women make up 60 to 70 percent of the workforce in the cut flower industry, which is the country’s second largest export after tea. In Colombia, flower production is the largest employer of women in rural areas. Labor conditions have somewhat improved since the 1990s, mostly through the use of certifications, but many workers in low-income nations are still underpaid and chemical safety concerns continue to be a problem.
What Change Looks Like
The good news is that the floral industry is beginning to make changes by implementing tried-and-true alternatives. Chicken wire, “flower frogs,” and moss arrangements (the old, tried-and-true substrate for cut flowers) are being rediscovered by a growing movement of sustainable florists.
On the packaging side, there’s a shift toward paper-based and compostable wrapping. A growing number of florists are refusing to use cellophane or plastic film entirely and opting for recycled newspaper or tissue, kraft paper, and plant-based wrapping options. Consumers can also help by buying locally grown, seasonally available flowers from farmers’ markets or local growers, which eliminates air freight entirely and supports growers closer to home.
The Fresh Cut – The Bottom Line
The cut fresh flower industry operates with massive environmental and human health costs. But as demand for more sustainable flowers grows, so do your options for making better choices. Here are some tips:
- Ask your florist to not use floral foam
- Choose flowers wrapped in paper or other plastic-free materials
- Look for locally and organically grown flowers
- Opt for flowers labeled with BloomCheck, Fairtrade, Florverde, Rainforest Alliance, and/or Veriflora certifications
- Prioritize blooms that are in season
- Shop at your local farmers market or CSA
- Try to shop at your local florist rather than ordering online or from a mainstream retailer
You can also skip the shops altogether and start your own flower garden at home in your yard, pots, or windowboxes. Wildflower gardens can be just as beautiful as traditional blooms, and bring the added benefit of providing food and habitat to wild animals and insects.
