Nothing says spring quite like flowers. The time is perfect to plant your bulbs, make an arrangement or surprise someone special with a beautiful bouquet. Europeans love their flowers and we’ve got the numbers to prove it!
Last year, the European Union exported €100.6 million in hyacinth, orchid, narcissi and tulip bulbs. In the same year, the EU imported €30.9 million worth of the same flowers.
Unsurprisingly, the Netherlands was responsible for 81% of all exports of the above mentioned bulbs, valued at a whopping €82 million.
Other top EU exporters for flowers and bulbs have shares that are below 10%. In no particular order, the Netherlands was followed by Latvia (€2 million equaling 2%), Lithuania (€6.7 million or 7%), Poland (total €4.8 million or 5%) and Denmark (€2.1 million or 2%).
According to Eurostat data, the majority of tulip, orchid, hyacinth and narcissi bulbs are delivered to other countries within the European territory. We told you Europeans love their flowers!
While the Netherlands may be the largest exporter of flowers in the EU, the title of largest European floral importer goes to Switzerland, which is a member state of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA).
Switzerland imports 31% of all EU flower exports totaling an astonishing €31.3 million. Switzerland was followed by the United Kingdom which imported €21.4 million or 21% last year. Rounding off the group of top importers are Norway (11% with a total value of €11.5 million), Russia (9% at €9.4 million) and Ukraine (5% or €5.5 million).
In addition to the above mentioned flowers, the European Union also exports other bulbs, tubers, tuberous roots, corms, crowns and rhizomes in growth or flower valued at €20.9 million. The Netherlands once again takes the lead in this category as the main exporter, with transactions totaling €10.5 million or 50% of the category’s total exports.
