Revival and Survival: is the British cut flower industry prepared for a 2-degree warming world?

Britain is a nation of cut flower lovers in a rapidly warming world. The UK market for fresh flowers and indoor plants is valued at £2.2 billion, but only approximately 10% of that is grown in the UK. Since the 1980s, our national cut flower industry has been in a steep decline. In the 1970s, more than 120 chrysanthemum growers produced approximately 60 million stems a year. Today, there are no chrysanthemum growers left.

What happened to our cut flower industry, and how can growers survive in the face of a 2-degree warming world? Against the backdrop of a powerful $9.6 billion global industry, and the flower markets of Holland out-competing UK growers on price, what would it take for them to truly thrive? A 2-degree warming world means increases in pests and disease, unpredictable temperature extremes, flooding and droughts, but so far the flower growing sector has focused solely on emissions reduction. Where is the discussion about resilience, future proofing, and adaptation?

My Nuffield study, kindly made possible by the generous support of the John Oldacre Foundation, seeks to understand the opportunities that climate change presents, from floral production methods, to knowledge and exchange, to ways to survive climate related shocks.

Travels that took me by bike, train, boat, plane, car and foot to the Netherlands, Kenya, New Zealand and around the UK, meeting micro to macro producers, campaigners, scientists and leaders across various industries. I found answers to resilience that lay in how communities respond to emergencies and how they exchange and share knowledge. I discovered that the ideal place for climate adaptation is on a farming scale where farmers feel empowered to take action with the knowledge and research to back up their decisions, and with financial incentives from governments. This was ultimately a lesson of hope and opportunity rather than a counsel of despair.

Meeting growers in the UK was both sobering and motivating. As one grower put it, “Our challenge is not to get us from 90% imported to 50% imported, but to find a way to stop it becoming 95%”. Significant issues raised around infrastructure, energy costs, a lack of incentives for relevant sustainability practices, or access to R&D, results in businesses going under at alarming rates. There exists a vicious cycle of growers under financial pressures, leading to the government and civil society dismissing the sector, leading to a further lack of investment.

Ultimately, I expected to focus solely on climate adaptation in this research, but what emerged was a more substantial roadblock to change - the British cut flower industry is divided and struggling to survive. Whilst financial pressures and high levels of international competition impact our sector, there are nevertheless emerging opportunities on the horizon as a result of climatic change. But no-one is leading with a unified voice, advocating to the government, civil society, or the public, at a time where growers are clamouring for support. We need a dedicated sector body that specialises in floriculture, taking positive, inclusive action with effective campaigning and advocacy, and dedicated research