From: Grist Magazine <www.grist.org>
http://www.grist.org/comments/interactivist/2006/01/02/prolman/index1.html?source=daily

06 Jan 2006

Mama Said There'd Be Daisies Like This

Gerald Prolman, CEO of Organic Bouquet, answers readers' questions

When Gerald Prolman began his online biz Organic Bouquet, pesticide-free
floristry was just a budding industry. Now his company is growing and will
soon launch a wholesale site, allowing it to connect directly to everyone
from wedding planners to green burial services. As this week's
InterActivist, Prolman chats with readers about the eco-impacts of shipping
all those beautiful blooms, the challenges of starting a business, and the
possibility of an organic Rose Parade float.

Mama Said There'd Be Daisies Like This
Gerald Prolman, CEO of Organic Bouquet, answers readers' questions

Gerald Prolman, CEO of Organic Bouquet.

Are all of your flowers produced by U.S. growers, or are some imported?
-- Judith Galla, Vienna, Austria

At this time, we source flowers in California, Oregon, Holland, Ecuador, and
Colombia, with a new major organic development in Mexico.

The majority of your cultivars sold actually aren't produced to organic but
instead "green label" standards. So isn't your company name a bit
misleading? -- Holly Scoggins, Blacksburg, Va.

Great question and right at the heart of the issues we have taken on for the
past five years. By volume, the majority of flowers we are currently selling
are certified organic. The organic selections are increasing over time as we
recruit more organic growers and as growers we support during their
transition become fully organic.

Only flowers that are certified organic are sold under the Organic Bouquet
brand label. To avoid any confusion, flowers that are certified sustainable
by Veriflora are sold under a new label we recently introduced, Eco-Bouquet.

All the flowers we market are sustainably grown and are certified under
three stringent certifications we have embraced: certified organic by USDA,
certified biodynamic by Demeter, and certified sustainable by Veriflora. In
addition, under a special circumstance, we temporarily accept product from
two progressive growers who are certified by Flower Label Program of Ecuador
and Florverde of Colombia.

We have been told by the certification agency that the Veriflora certificate
has been approved for both of these growers and is in the process of being
sent. Because accurate labeling is the cornerstone of our business, we are
very careful to clearly indicate that the flowers from those growers are in
a "green label" program until we have the Veriflora certificate in our hands
-- then we will entirely drop the "green label" designation from our site.

How does Organic Bouquet verify that participating growers do indeed adhere
to the Veriflora standards? -- Victoria Jadali, Watchung, N.J.

We verify our Veriflora growers in the same way we verify organic growers.
We rely on the credibility of the certification process and the final
certificate as proof. We maintain records that confirm the source and
certification of every flower that we buy and sell. These records are
subject to inspection at any time by the certification agencies. We also
provide a copy of our certificate to consumers upon request.

I wonder about the environmental impact of shipping organic flowers around
the country. I assume the flowers are shipped in heavily air-conditioned
trucks or on airplanes, using a lot of energy and creating pollution from
fossil-fuel use. Elsewhere in Grist, it was said that it is better to buy
locally than to buy organic if the organic produce is shipped from far away.
What do you say? -- Tobin Freid, Durham, N.C.

I believe that buying locally and organic is always the best option.

I don't agree as a general statement "that it is better to buy locally than
to buy organic if the organic produce is shipped from far away." I think one
needs to weigh the facts and make a purchasing decision like this based on
the greatest-good factor. My opinion is that it is far better to support
organic wherever it may be than to not support it at all.

After initially meeting with dozens of local growers who were not interested
in going organic, I looked to regions outside the U.S. and identified a
group of progressive growers who were interested. I felt that it was crucial
to begin somewhere, rather than hold onto an ideal that would not lead to
any immediate positive change.

We do give priority to local production, but the fact is that 70 percent of
all flowers sold in the U.S. are imported. Flower exports from Ecuador,
Colombia, and elsewhere in the world provide essential benefits for hundreds
of thousands of people who otherwise would not have this income opportunity.
The lives of many people, the local environment, and the wildlife where the
flowers are grown can be improved by supporting sustainable agriculture.

That being said, we still must be conscious of the impact from trucking and
flying the flowers. To compensate for that aspect, we will soon introduce a
CO2 offset program to which we will contribute a portion of every sale, as
well as provide an opportunity for our customers to contribute. We expect
this to go live in the next few months.

I'm the daughter of conventional florists. All of our roses come from South
America, as do most of our other flowers. How can I convince my parents to
try and buy in-country, or even go organic? -- Sarah Wassberg, Fargo,
N.D.

The floral industry in South America provides wonderful opportunities for
many people. Although we give our first priority to organic growers locally,
we support sustainable production in the areas where flowers are grown.

We are launching an online wholesale site that will make our eco-flowers
available to floral shops, retailers, hotels, and event planners. There will
soon be a link on our homepage for "wholesale flowers."

I am engaged and attempting to plan the greenest wedding I can. Would
organic flowers have a better environmental impact than silk flowers? --
Ada Hopper, St. Paul, Minn.

I haven't explored the impacts of silk, so I can't answer that. But I can
say that if you do choose to use real flowers, purchasing organic,
biodynamic, and Veriflora -- from any grower/vendor -- is definitely better
than conventional.

My husband and I are interested in starting a business or helping an
existing company grow larger. Was it hard to get started? Any advice? --
Erin Levingston, Winter Park, Fla.

Getting started was easy. It all starts with a vision. The hard part was/is
implementation. Five years later, I can say that it's been worthwhile, and
we are successfully accomplishing our objectives.

My advice is to dream up something purposeful that you consider a lot of
fun, then make a business plan to see if it makes financial sense, and if
so, go for it!

Since the flowers in your bouquets are organic, is there any reason folks
couldn't use them to add color and flavor to their cooking? -- Cathy
Wilkinson Barash, Des Moines, Iowa

I am not sure of the edibleness of our flowers. Be aware that some plants,
regardless of the farming method, are known to be toxic to humans and/or
animals if ingested.

That being said, we have many requests for our organic roses from people
using them to decorate wedding cakes.

In season, we do offer culinary wreaths made with organic herbs.

Selection for resistance -- for example, breeding roses resistant to black
spot -- is a potential weapon against pesticide use, though little is
happening in university circles as this is such a tiny market and no federal
research funding exists. Does your company actively support any internal or
external breeding programs? -- Holly Scoggins, Blacksburg, Va.

We are not breeders or directly involved in farming as we are specifically a
marketing and distribution company. However, we do work closely with growers
and breeders. We focus the use of our funds on establishing a market for
sustainable flowers. I am certain that if growers and breeders see there is
a viable market, they will use their resources to research and develop
better farming methods.

One of the things that we do is ask our growers to ask their breeders for
varieties that are more disease- and pest-tolerant so that they will have a
better chance at success when beginning to go organic.

Have you teamed up with the green burial industry to encourage people to
send organic flowers to the bereaved? -- Rachel May, Syracuse, N.Y.

Once we launch our wholesale site, we'll definitely connect with the green
burial community.

I'm so happy to hear about your business! Why have I never heard this issue
covered on NPR or in another mainstream news source? Am I out of the loop
and missed it, or has it just not been covered? -- Jessica Schultz,
Plymouth, Mass.

We do get a significant amount of press coverage. Please visit our press
room to see the many articles that have been written on the subject of
organic flowers. This has been an essential tool to get the word out
nationally and globally.

Have you ever been asked to speak in public about how others can get started
in organic growing? -- Jamie Zimmerly, Baraboo, Wis.

I have been speaking about the market and benefits of organic-agriculture
production for more than 17 years, mostly in farming communities around the
world.

I suspect that you may be a vegetarian, as I am. What are your thoughts
regarding the impact of a vegetarian diet on the well-being of the
environment? -- Marylou Noble, Portland, Ore.

Yes, I am a vegetarian. I believe that a vegetarian diet certainly treads
significantly lighter on the earth than a meat-based diet.

Would you consider joining 1% for the Planet? -- Terry Kellogg,
Newburyport, Mass.

I am very open to learning about your organization. Please send information
to info@organicbouquet.com and indicate: for Gerald Prolman.

Seems timely to ask about all those flowers used in the Rose Parade. Do we
need to stage a Pasadena-worthy awareness campaign? -- Deb Jensen,
Placerville, Calif.

I did propose the world's first organic-rose float, but the idea was
rejected last year. I will try again next year. If not, I have it in mind to
start my own parade in the future. Perhaps for Earth Day.