Rose Exports Rise as Valentine's Day nears

PUNE: Flower growers and exporters seem a happy lot despite extended winter that may have delayed rose production considerably. With Valentine's Day round the corner, rose exports have gone up by 10% to 25%.

Experts say that the impact of winter on the quality of roses has been positive as the size of the flowers has gone up to 5cm, in comparison to 3.5 to 4cm during summers. This, coupled with the rupee devaluation and recession, has given exporters here an edge over international players like Kenya.

Praveen Sharma, president of the Indian Society of Floriculture Professionals (ISFP), said, "Growers plan for Valentine's season between December 7 and 20. In India, the period between one flower flush (bloom) to another varies from 40 to 50 days. The lowest interval is during summer, while during winter the period increases to 48 to 52 days. This year we are experiencing severe winter which will result in prolonged interval, but the quality of roses is excellent, as they are winter loving flowers."

He added that the exports for Valentine's Day starts from February 1 and export orders have been better this year in comparison to last. "The samples from here are as good as those seen in Kenya. We already have some cases where an importer from East Europe canceled his order from Kenya and opted for Indian flowers after seeing the quality. In addition, the price of roses in the Pune region is lesser than that of international roses," said Sharma.

Sharma further said that this year's Valentine's season will be one of the best in the last four years, due to the ever-growing domestic market, which registered an almost 20% growth this year, as also stable demand for exports. "Weak rupee against major currencies will also help the cause of exporters. In the last four months, there has been a 15-18% devaluation of the rupee, which will boost realisations for exporters. I predict a 5-10% rise in exports during this period," he said.

H S Walia, an exporter from Talegaon, said, "Winter has delayed production considerably. One stem takes about 45 days to mature; extended winter however prolongs the harvest period by 6-7 days, and blooming is delayed." Walia, however, said that exports to Europe have risen this year almost by 20-25%. "Indian roses are in great demand as they are relatively cheaper than roses from Columbia, Kenya and Ethiopia," he added.

Avinash Jadhav, manager - Exports, from a floriculture unit in Kolhapur, said that demand for Indian roses has been increasing with time and buyers from Europe, Japan and Australia have expressed their interest for professional long-term association with volume players. "Our flowers are cost effective in comparison to those exported by Kenya, Ethiopia and Ecuador, and there is also year-round supply. Our exports have increased by 20-25 % approximately this year," said Jadhav.

Sanjay Raut, another exporter from Kolhapur, said, "Though the quantity of production has remained the same for us, exports have gone up by 20-25% this year, during the Valentine's season."