Cut flowers, which mostly come from foreign growers, mainly from the Netherlands, Africa, and Central America, have risen in price by up to several tens of percent. The rise in prices is the result of a pandemic of the new coronavirus, due to which foreign growers have reduced the area with cut flowers and now their supply is lagging behind demand. However, there are still plenty of cut flowers on the domestic market.
“For example, Dutch growers reduced the area last year and this year due to the coronavirus pandemic because they expected the retail store to close for a long time. Fortunately, this did not happen. But now it will take some time for cut flower production to return to normal. from day to day, “said Horák.
According to Horák, in recent months the gap between the supply of cut flowers and demand has widened considerably on the European market, which has been reflected in rising prices. Czech production of cut flowers is minimal and growers have no chance to compensate for the decline in supplies from abroad. Despite the decline in their imports, there are still enough cut flowers on the domestic market. “However, prices have risen by an average of 20 to 40 percent. There are, of course, exceptions where the price increase is even higher,” Horák pointed out.
Imports of potted flowers also decreased during the coronavirus pandemic. “Thanks to the production of Czech potted flowers, however, the growth of their prices is not as drastic as in the case of cut flowers,” Horák added.
According to statistics from the Ministry of Agriculture, average prices of flowers on the shelves of domestic shops have been steadily increasing in recent years, the most significant being the price increase for roses. The average price of cut roses has increased by almost twenty crowns in the last six years until last year and is the highest in comparison with other monitored flowers. The cheapest cut flowers have long been carnations.
According to experts, the price increase is related to the fact that customer requirements for quality and size are increasing for cut flowers. For example, in the case of roses, the reason for the increase in the average price is a larger share of more expensive varieties with longer stems and large buds. However, the level of cut flower prices is influenced by several factors. However, the basis is the price level on the Dutch flower exchanges.
The price of flower exchanges is influenced by the current market situation for a given type of goods. In some terms, it will increase several times. An example is the holidays of St. Valentine’s Day, Easter, Mother’s Day, or Christmas when the demand for flowers is growing rapidly. The price is also affected by the season, on which the production costs of flower growers depend.
From this basic price of flowers on the stock exchange, the creation of sales prices in domestic florists is derived. Wholesale prices and the costs of the final seller play a role. The total value of the Czech flower market in 2018 increased by 0.8 percent year on year to 11.755 billion crowns. In 2018, every inhabitant of the Czech Republic spent an average of 1,130 crowns on flowers. Data for 2019 and 2020 have not yet been published.