“As artisan growers we are custodians of the land we work on, and we protect it with our sustainable approach to everything” – Electric Daisy Flower Farm
The global market for fresh cut flowers is estimated to be US$36.4 billion, with further growth predicted. The biggest consumer countries are Germany, followed by the UK, France, and Italy. While the Netherlands is the largest producer country with a 52 percent share of the market, other significant producers are Colombia (15 percent), Ecuador (9 percent) and Kenya (7 percent). It is in these latter, warm climate, low labour cost countries that market growth is expected to be greatest, and although growth in such countries creates much-needed employment opportunities and generates income, the separation of the points of production and consumption creates problems for the planet. To transport the fresh flowers to market as quickly as possible, it requires refrigerated storage and air transportation, which impact the industry’s carbon footprint. Though not as much as flower growing in the cooler northern hemisphere, apparently, where heated greenhouses are required and more CO2 is released into the atmosphere. However, these are not the only problems associated with the industry. Because flower growing is not regulated to the same extent as food production, pesticides and herbicides are used to protect the plants. These not only damage the environment and impact biodiversity, but can also impact the health of employees and local communities. Additionally, water is an issue, the industry consumes large quantities, which is big problem in water stressed countries such as Kenya, but it also contributes to the problem of virtual water, the unseen export of water through international trade. Finally, there is the issue of exploitation, where workers in the industry, mainly women, are paid low wages and required to work long hours, often under poor conditions.
Faced with such challenges, in the main import markets, recent years have witnessed the growth of the “slow flowers movement” and the emergence of flower farms that supply local, homegrown flowers. One such UK farm is the Electric Daisy Flower Farm, located in the village of Faulkland in North Somerset. The farm was established in 2014 by its current Managing Director, Fiona Haser Bizony, an Arts graduate of Brighton Polytechnic. After raising a family and pursuing a career in Arts Management, Fiona literally took “gardening leave”, attended courses with the Royal Horticultural Society, and founded her business. Initially, she grew flowers wherever she could and then on a neighbour’s farm, before buying, in 2017, a 2.5 acre plot of grassland. Rather than dig it up, she created 1.2-meter-wide flower beds out of compost laid on cardboard. As she says, “it’s all about the soil”. The farm grows all of its 300 varieties of flowers from seed, using solar power to protect the plants in the winter and keep them cool in the summer. They produce their own compost and do not use any artificial fertilisers, pesticides, or single use plastic. So the flowers are organic and seasonal, and Fiona has made calendars featuring the different flowers for each month. Additionally, she and her team have created wild beehives, insect hotels, and a wildlife pond on the farm in order to increase biodiversity.
Apart from caring for the planet, the farm cares for its people – their employees – most of whom are local residents. It is a member of the Living Wage Foundation, and it has a programme of professional development so every employee is continuously learning and feels valued. There is a comprehensive staff handbook as well as a Health and Well-being protocol, and each day the team cooks lunch together. Additionally, external advisers are retained to ensure they are up-to-date and dealing with any problems that might arise. They do all of this, as Fiona says “not because we think it will make us more money, but because we believe it is the right thing to do”.
In February 2020, they opened a shop in the Highgate Hampstead area of London to sell their fresh flowers, with all waste being transported back to the farm to be turned into compost. Then the COVID-19 pandemic struck, and, as Fiona observed, the flowers did not know that the business was in lockdown – they kept on growing. So, when the shop had to close on March 17th, she gave all of their spring flowers to anyone who happened to pass by. As the lockdown continued, she decided to donate their flowers to the Royal United Hospital in Bath, to other key workers, and to the nursing home in which her mother was living. When the shop was able to be reopened, they retailed all of their flowers through it, until June 2022, when it was bought by Rosabie Morton of the Real Flower Company/Flowers From The Farm. As Rosabie has acknowledged, the Electric Daisy Flower Farm shop did not close because of failure – “they have done such a good job we are not changing the inside, just painting the outside with a different sign”.
As a former artistic director, Fiona has become known for her innovative flower arrangements, particularly her floral crowns and wedding bouquets. In Electric Daisy Flower Farm she has similarly created an innovative, profitable, and sustainable enterprise that cares for both the planet and its people. It addresses SDGs 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth), 9 (Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure), 10 (Reduced Inequalities), 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities), 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production), 13 (Climate Action), and 15 (Life on Land).
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