The Flower Label Program (FLP) certification scheme has been successfully benchmarked with the Fair Flowers Fair Plants (FFP) standard. With immediate effect, all FLP-certified producers can now market their produce also under the FFP-consumer label. The FLP producers can extend the FFP assortment at short notice. Due to the recent increase of FFP points of sale in Europe, these flowers will be more than welcome. At the same time, FLP is the first consumer label which enables it’s growers to market as well under FFP.

The standards of FLP, its audit principles and its checklist comply with the FFP benchmark document. To market their produce as well under FFP the actual 38 FLP growers, coming mainly from Ecuador and Germany, only have to register their company with FFP. “With this benchmark FLP has opened additional marketing channels for its certified producers,” explains Gertrud Falk, president of FLP. The growing assortment of FFP cut flowers and plants is awaited eagerly by the international trade. “With this new approved certification program, the FFP ‘umbrella’ consumer label in the meantime works together with 6 certification programs, equal to the FFP standard” says Regina Dinkla, executive manager of FFP.

Certifications meeting the FFP standard
The FFP standard is based on the ICC (the International Code of Conduct of social responsible and environmental friendly flower production) and environmentally equal to MPS-A. Worldwide there are several certification programs focussing on sustainable aspects. Fair Flowers Fair Plants’ aim is to have a general consumer label for different b-to-b certifications. Over the past years various certification programs have been compared to the FFP standard and in the meantime accepted as approved certification schemes for FFP participation.
These are: MPS Socially Qualified, Fiore Giusto, Kenya Flower Council Silver Code of Practice, Forest Garden Products, Control Union Fair Choice and Flower Label Program.

Flower Label Program
FLP has been the first label implementing the ICC. Being a multi-stakeholder association, FLP’s strength is the close contact to it’s producers, traders and flower consumers. Besides certification and marketing, FLP offers workers trainings and has recently published material on workers’ rights for all workers of it’s Ecuadorian farms.

Source: FFP

Europe has issued a fresh warning of possible revenue losses for Kenya should the East African Community (EAC) fails to reach a trade deal soon.

“Kenya risks taxation on its exports to Europe by virtue of economic strength if the trade talks stall”, Mr Bernard Rey, head of the European Delegation told players in the horticulture sector. “EAC should realise the risks of the current situation of uncertainty. Burundi, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda, all are least-developed countries, will enjoy duty-free quota access to the EU markets even if the EPA (economic partnership agreement) is not signed,” Mr Rey
said. “But Kenya will risk seeing tariffs imposed on a good number of exports to Europe including horticulture products”.

The EU said it was concerned that negotiators from the East African team are yet to respond to its latest move to relax their position over the terms that need to be met for a new trade pact with East Africa to be concluded, frustrating the talks.

The region —under the EAC bloc— has been negotiating the contents of EPAs with European Commission since 2007 — the deadline that World Trade Organisation gave its members to scrap all the non-reciprocal preferential trade agreements such as the ones Europe used to extend to its former colonies.

For Kenyan exporters, this legal void has created a lot of uncertainty. They cannot tell for how long the European Commission will continue to extend the preferential trade relations. And even as those preferential terms last, exporters are well aware of the enormous risk they are exposing themselves to since there is no treaty to turn to in case of a dispute. “Growers are looking to the EU being an important destination for the Kenyan products to hasten the negotiations and provide assurance that whatever happens, Kenya, under special circumstances, will not be worse off,” said Kenya Flower Council in a statement.

Source: Business Daily

ProVerde is pleased to announce a new publication for the Trade for Development Centre:
“The European Market for Fair and Sustainable Flowers and Plants”

Given the importance of market transparency for producers aiming at selling their products overseas, the report provides relevant information for producers – within the trade context. The report makes an attempt to capture all relevant information on the European market for fair and sustainable flowers and plants – ranging from economic structure of this market to production characteristics, and major trends in consumer preferences and behaviour.

Above all, the report provides insight into the role of various social and environmental standards in the main European flower and plant markets and sales channels.

About the Trade for Development Centre
The Trade for Development Centre gathers, analyses and produces market information to improve market access for producers in developing countries. The Belgian government entrusted the implementation of the Trade for Development Centre programme to BTC, the Belgium Technical Cooperation.

About ProVerde
ProVerde provides market research and trade development services to companies, organisations and Government institutes. ProVerde is specialised in cut flowers & plants, fruits & vegetables, and biodiversity products.

Link to Trade for Development
Direct download (for free)

December 2010

REACH is the chemical legislation of the EU that came into force on 1st June 2007 through Regulation (EC) No. 1907/2006. REACH will establish a new single regime throughout the 27 EU Member States for existing and new substances and requires manufacturers in the EU and EU importers of substances/preparations to register them. The Regulation itself counts almost 900 pages besides the many other documents, guidance papers and opinions that can be found on Internet.

In general one can say that companies outside the EU (1) manufacturing substances or preparations or (2) using substances or preparations that still can be found in the finished product, are not directly accountable, however:

• EU importers might request additional information from their suppliers in order to do their own registration for REACH.
• Be aware that in some cases you will have to refer to your own suppliers to get all data together.
• When costs are involved for EU parties, for example to create a dossier, part of the costs might be passed through to the supplier.
• In a few cases EU importers might request from their suppliers to do the registration themselves, then they are directly involved.

What is REACH?
REACH is the Regulation in the EU on chemicals and their safe use. It deals with the Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemical substances. The new
Regulation entered into force on 1st June 2007 and will be implemented in phases within the next 10 years. Presently, REACH requirements for registration entered into effect.

The REACH legislation is an EU Regulation which means that it is implemented in all 27 Member States in the same way. REACH is therefore fully harmonised. In addition, Iceland, Lichtenstein and Norway, which are part of the European Economic Area, are planning to transpose REACH to their national legislation. When this has taken place the same requirements apply to exports to these countries.

Which products are included?
The following products are included in REACH:

• substances, such as base chemicals, speciality chemicals, metals, additives, solvents, monomers and natural substances if they are chemically modified
• mixtures or preparations of chemical substances, for instance cleaning products, formulated process chemicals, paints and motor oils
• articles which contain substances which are intentionally released during their use, for example the fragrance in a scented candle
• articles which contain dangerous substances which are not intentionally released during their use, such as phthalates in garments
• substances in products/containers, such as ink in cartridges
• substances which are on a candidate list of “substances of very high concern”
• new substances

What happens if the chemical is not pre-registered?
The pre-registration is very important, because from 1st December 2008 onwards the manufacture in the EU and import of chemicals will only be allowed if the chemical is proper pre-registered. Substances that are not pre-registered need to be registered as a new substance which is a more complicated process.

For more information on the Candidate List of Substances of Very High Concern and other details about the legislation, refer to the REACH website.

Fair trade labels on flowers are becoming more common, especially in supermarkets. But why would growers have to put a label on their flowers if they are already fair trade? This article aims to provide some more insight into fair trade certification.

Social responsibility
Consumers in the European Union are becoming increasingly aware of the consequences of their shopping behaviour on suppliers at the other end of the chain. In the flower market, consumers realise that they have the power and responsibility to influence production methods on the flower farms.

Consumer concerns about flower growing methods have been fed by media coverage in recent years. Several reports were published on low salaries, dangerous working conditions and discrimination on flower farms in developing countries. The reports upset consumers and damaged the image of the flower sector as a whole.

It is now clear to the flower sector that consumers demand fair labour conditions and measures have been taken to prevent further damage to their image. Importers demand fair labour conditions on their suppliers’ farms and require a guarantee. They visit and audit the flower farms themselves, but increasingly rely on 3rd parties to verify if labour conditions are indeed fair.

Certification
Auditing by third parties is already a common procedure in the flower sector. Certification of several management systems, such as Milieu Project Sierteelt (MPS), are invaluable to most flower farms. Auditing on labour conditions was thus a logical step for the sector.

The following certificates for fair labour conditions are available: Max Havelaar, FLO (Fair Trade), Flower Label Programme (FLP), Fair Flowers and Plants (FFP), MPS Socially Qualified (MPS-SQ), Ethical Trading Initiative (ETI) and SA 8000.

These certification schemes differ in product coverage, countries where the certified products are sold, labelling options and, of course, standards. The table below shows the number of companies that have obtained each certificate regarding fair labour conditions.

For more information, see Kasper Kervers’ complete article on Horticom

Following the success of the previous training activities and upon request of the Ethiopian flower sector, CBI organised four Master Classes as a key activity of CBI’s 2009 floricultural training programme in Ethiopia. The programme was developed in close cooperation with EHPEA and focused on different aspects of flower export marketing.

In the course of the Master Class training series, participants wrote a concise export marketing plan. The structure of the export marketing plan was used as the framework for the special topics covered in the training programme: Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), post-harvest and logistical requirements, market research in the flower business, getting the best price on the auction, and internal and external communication and client orientation.

The four Master Class sessions were organised in early May, mid June, mid September and early December of this year. CBI trainers included Milco Rikken (ProVerde) who was in charge of coordination and execution, as well as Dana van Hes (E4 Consulting), Jeroen van der Hulst (Flowerwatch), Maarten van Schie (OTV Wageningen) and Maarten van Woerden (Helicon).

The training series was carried out in close collaboration with EHPEA, the Ethiopian Horticulture Producers Exporters Association and the Royal Netherlands Embassy in Addis Ababa.

In The Netherlands, growing numbers of commercial companies are choosing remote buying to purchase their products on the auction. As with image auctioning, where the product is not physically present at the auction clocks, with remote buying (KOA), auction buyers need not be sitting in the stands.

Often, the wholesale companies have established a special dealing room on their company premises for this purpose. In the comfort of their own offices, anywhere in the world, they can buy online on all the FloraHolland auction clocks. Growers, who supply the products, can see in real-time on the Internet how the buying process is going.

How does KOA work?
On the screen, one clock is always shown as the main clock. This can be used for remote buying. The other clocks are running in the background, so you can switch rapidly from one to the next. Alongside the main clock, you may have a maximum of five supplemental clocks open on the video screen to follow these auctions by lot. These supplemental clocks display the grower’s name, the product, and the pricing structure.

99.9% of supply available at 5 a.m.
KOA buyers may download information on the day’s supply every auction day beginning at 4 a.m. In practice, this means that by 5 a.m. you will already have all the information you need for about 99.9% of the total cut flower, houseplant and garden plant supply for the day.

Source: FloraHolland

Almost 20,000 different plants and flowers are traded by name at the Dutch flower auctions, each identified with their own product code. On average, 20,000 new products enter the market each year. The codes are used in every transaction concluded at the auction. Financial and logistical handling by the auctions is based on the product code system.

The product codes are initially used by the parties involved in trading through the auctions: growers, purchasing traders and the auctions themselves. Product codes can also be used to identify or communicate about a product throughout the chain, from processor to retailer. The current product code database for cut flowers, house plants and garden plants can be found on the FlorEcom site.

Would you like to receive assistance in acquiring a product code? ProVerde has experience in all aspects of introducing new floricultural products on the European market: registration, market introduction, promotion.

Terms and procedures for coding
Product codes are issued and administered by the VBN. Product codes are assigned on request if the terms set out by the VBN are fulfilled.

A product is eligible for a VBN product code when the following requirements are met:
1.  the product must be registered;
2.  the product must be natural. In principle, codes are issued only for living plants and flowers;
3.  the product must meet the VBN product specifications applicable to the relevant product;
4.  the expected supply of the product at the auction in the first year must be more than the stated minimum supply for the relevant product group;
5.  the product does not have a product code yet (a product can have only one product code);
6.  the applicant gives the VBN and its members permission to auction the product under the name in question and to carry it in its/their administration and product information. The applicant also holds the VBN and its members harmless for any claims by third parties regarding intellectual property rights.

If the stated requirements are not met, no specific product code will be assigned. The product can then be offered under the designation ‘other’, with the corresponding code.

If a product code already has an item code assigned by the Beurshal foundation (a 5-digit code between 30,000 and 60,000, or greater than 90,000), the product will have the same code in the VBN product code system.

Product registration
A VBN product code can be requested only if the product has been registered. Registration is done by the VKC (Permanent Judging Committee). Tree nursery products that already have a Beurshal foundation item code are considered already registered.

Registration with VKC
Products can be presented to the VKC for registration on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays between 8.30 a.m. and 4.00 p.m. A grower must present at least three plants or flowers in a representative quality to the VKC. Before this is done, the digital registration form must be completed. The form can be found on the VKC website. The VKC will create a standardized image and description of the product on registration. The VKC will also compare the information to the international nomenclature rules and record the information in Plantscope®, the VKC database. The information can be viewed at www.plantscope.nl, among other places. Furthermore, the images are available from the VKC for a fee.

Growers are advised to bear in mind when naming a product that the name, including the variety name, will be abbreviated to about 20 positions on the clock front.

Sources: VBN, VKC, Plantscope

The European Commission has officially announced the winner of the EU organic logo competition. Over the past two months, some 130,000 people have voted online to choose the new organic symbol from three finalists. The winning design is by Dusan Milenkovic, a student from Germany, who gained 63 % of the overall vote for his “Euro-leaf” logo. From July 1, 2010, the organic logo of the EU will be obligatory on all pre-packaged organic products that have been produced in any of the EU Member States and meet the necessary standards. It will be optional for imported products. Other private, regional or national logos will be allowed to appear alongside the EU label. The organic farming regulation will be amended in the coming weeks to introduce the new logo into one of the annexes.

“I’m delighted that we now have a fresh EU organic food logo,” said Mariann Fischer Boel, Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development, who first proposed the competition to select the logo. “This exercise has raised the profile of organic food and we now have a logo which everyone will be able to identify with. It’s a nice elegant design and I look forward to buying products carrying this logo from July this year.” The winning logo was the result of a pan-European contest open to art and design students. The nearly 3,500 logo designs submitted were examined by an internationally renowned jury. The best three logos were uploaded on the competition website and subject to an online vote which ended on January 31, 2010. The ”Euro-leaf” design shows the EU stars in the shape of a leaf against a green background. It is a very straightforward sign containing two clear messages: Nature and Europe.

Source: European Commission

FloraHolland is budgeting a small decrease in turnover of 1.5 per cent for 2010. “By being thrifty we can ensure that the auction does not become more expensive while modernizing sufficiently at the same time,” said Financial Director Erik Leeuwaarden at the recently held general meeting. The rates for members will remain largely the same in 2010.The basic commission will be 1.4 per cent.

Sales via FloraHolland Connect will be 0.1 per cent cheaper for members. The clock commission will stay at 2.3 per cent. The auction is working towards further harmonization of the various rates. Lot charge will be decreased at Naaldwijk and Rijnsburg.

Surcharges for contract suppliers
FloraHolland is currently implementing the strategic vision “joint forces in an open market”. The cooperative strength and capabilities has proven itself in recent difficult market circumstances and the interest from suppliers worldwide in participating in the cooperative is increasing. An increasing number of suppliers has made the choice of becoming a member of the cooperative FloraHolland in thepast year. Access to and availability of a market, services, financial security and relative low sales and distribution costs are the driving motivators.

The strength of a cooperative market is depending on the commitment of its suppliers and in particular its members. In return the cooperative has to reassure that members do have an advanced benefit. Reinforcing the cooperative means in practise that FloraHolland has the ambition to invite more (international) suppliers to become member. In order to make membership a more attractive option, benefits of membership will be increased.

Not only the availability and costs of services but also the costs of sales will become more favourable for members. The lowest costs possible for members require also a strong financial position & minimal finance costs. Until now only membership required a compulsory contribution to the capital position. However, both member and non-members are enjoying the benefits. The board of FloraHolland is of the opinion that both members and nonmembers should equally contribute to the equity position of the cooperative.

In order to achieve the best results for its members the board of FloraHolland has decided that all suppliers have to contribute to the equity position of FloraHolland, including the contract suppliers. All suppliers will be informed by personal letter.

Source: FloraHolland Newsletter (December 2009)