TOPLINE SUMMARY

Below is the topline summary of the report Buying Better: Building trust & transparency in the cut flower supply chain written by Cissy Bullock, founder of the School and Olivia Wilson, of Wetherly. The report was built from our own research and the generosity of industry insights from leaders in the field, it is intended as a practical guide to support florists and their customers in navigating complexity, to provide information and increase agency. It sets out a simple framework, shares case studies, and offers clear guardrails so sourcing decisions can be made with greater confidence.

It isn’t designed to tell anyone what flowers to buy. Everyone makes decisions based on a multitude of personal criteria, some visual, some political, some financial, some sustainable. It is designed to empower people to ask questions. It is just fundamental that we have access to information to assess the different options, and then make a considered choice based on our own values and circumstances.

Below is the topline version for those who are short of time. If you think you can though, we highly recommend you to take the time to read the report in full. It is a nuanced topic with a complicated context, well worth unpacking. You can download the report in full here.

This report was written because we felt no one else had yet - to share the information we wished was more accessible and because we believe these conversations are too important to wait. Our aim is not to provide all the answers, but to raise awareness, share tools and move forward the much needed dialogue about transparency and sustainability in the cut flower trade.

If you have any thoughts, suggestions or more to add, please do get in touch, we really want to talk about it with you! And perhaps most importantly we hope you’ll join us when we launch our industry wide Buying Better campaign calling for clearer labelling.

Purpose of the report

This report is a practical guide to help florists and the customers who buy from them buy better in a complex global market. It sets out a simple framework, shares real-world case studies, and offers clear guardrails so sourcing decisions can be made with confidence and integrity.

Why this matters

Unlike food or fashion, floristry supply chains are still very opaque. Large buyers can set standards and buy directly, but many independent florists have to “buy blind,” with limited labels and no clear information about origin, chemicals, or labour practices. At the same time, more customers are asking: where do these flowers come from, and at what cost?

The Framework: WHERE × HOW

We suggest looking at two key questions:

WHERE – How far did the flowers travel? What regulations apply in that country?
HOW – How were they grown? Think energy, water, chemicals, and labour.

This is not a strict rulebook. Rather, it’s a way to make trade-offs visible and help florists align choices with their own values and those of their customers.

Wanting to buy better is far from straightforward, and as discussed above, there are many factors to consider, with shades of grey in each. Mapping flowers across the two axes - where and how they are grown - helps to make more sense of the nuances. For instance:

Flowers in the bottom left quadrant include ‘A’, those that are local, field-grown, mixed crops with minimal intervention, often representing the lowest-impact option.

Flowers in the top right quadrant of the matrix include ‘B’, those which are indoor grown by low paid labour with high chemical and energy inputs, and then transported long distances by plane.

The more nuanced categories sit in between. For example, ‘C’, British glasshouse flowers grown with artificial heat and light powered by non-renewable energy sources have low transport emissions but a higher environmental footprint from energy and input use, even under UK regulatory oversight. Or ‘D’, flowers grown outdoors by a Fairtrade certified grower in Kenya, transported by sea freight.

Transparency and Greenwashing

Public awareness remains low. Sustainable floristry discussions often focus on plastics and floral foam, which has (perhaps conveniently) kept the focus away from the more complex and wide ranging issues associated with the growth and transportation of the flowers themselves. This creates space for greenwashing, where vague “eco” claims mislead buyers. Better data and openness are urgently needed.

Certifications

Schemes like MPS, GLOBALG.A.P., Florverde, Rainforest Alliance, and Fairtrade are useful starting points, not guarantees of “best.” Treat them as “not-worst” filters and look beneath the label:

Is renewable energy used?

Are water systems closed-loop?

Are chemicals limited?

Are Fairtrade premiums actually paid?

How were flowers transported?

New tools, like the FloriPEFCR footprint method, aim to standardise measurement across the industry - but data is still scarce and publication of that data is not required.

Practical Guardrails for Florists

Prioritise local, agroecological flowers when in season.

For indoor-grown, ask about energy, chemicals and water systems.

For imports, use certifications as a baseline.

Be transparent with customers, explain how you source and why.

Keep asking questions. Collective pressure drives change.

If You’re Not a Florist

Consumers also shape the trade. Over half of UK flowers are sold in supermarkets, which often require certifications or that supplier codes of conduct are met. Yet their buying power can also drive prices down to unviable levels.

Support independent florists.

Buy from local flower farmers (see Flowers from the Farm directory).

Remember: every purchase reflects your values.

Key Takeaways

Use WHERE × HOW to weigh trade-offs.

Certification = baseline, not best.

Transparency is the foundation of trust.

Each choice, question, and conversation helps reshape the industry

Call to Action

Florists cannot transform the global flower trade alone, but together we can shift the system. By asking better questions, demanding clearer labels, and sharing our decisions with customers, we can make buying better the norm.

Next steps: join our campaign for better labelling and stronger transparency.

Small actions, multiplied across thousands of florists, will make change plausible.

You can read the report in full here: Buying Better: Building trust and transparency in the cut flower supply chain

Buying Better: Building Trust & Transparency in the Cut Flower Supply Chain