Local florists present a “bouquet of connection and appreciation” to mayors across the Netherlands.‍

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Aalsmeer, November 19, 2025 - More than 300 municipalities will receive a bouquet of flowers this Friday, offered by the Dutch floriculture sector. This marks the kick-off of a national campaign from floriculture, where local florists throughout the Netherlands hand over the 'bouquet of connection and appreciation' to their mayor. The bouquet is a blossoming gesture with a clear message: flowers show connection and appreciation and can be given and received with peace of mind.

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A bouquet of connection‍

By presenting the bouquet on Entrepreneur's Day on Friday, November 21, the floriculture sector is explicitly seeking cooperation with municipalities. For example, Secretary of State Jean Rummenie of the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Food Security and Nature (LVVN) and the mayor of Rotterdam, Carola Schouten, among others, will be presented with a bouquet by a local florist this Friday. Marco Maasse from the Royal Association of Florist Retailers explains: “A bouquet of flowers is the symbol of connection. You can let your heart speak with flowers. Flowers color your emotions, they offer comfort in difficult moments and joy and happiness in beautiful moments. With this presentation, we emphasize our appreciation for local government and want to contribute to the necessary connection on behalf of the entire sector.”

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Responsible choice based on facts‍

The connection from the municipalities with local growers and florists is important. The great value of the entire floriculture sector for the Netherlands, partly thanks to its leading position in the field of innovation, is also clearly visible locally. Many florists prefer flowers from local Dutch growers to support them. The decision of some municipalities or institutions to ban flowers may be intended as a sustainable statement, but this is not in line with reality. In recent years, the floriculture sector has taken significant steps towards sustainability, ranging from energy use and cultivation techniques to transparency in the chain. This makes Dutch flower and plant growers the international leader in sustainable cultivation and efficiency. Thanks to innovation, much can be produced in relatively little space. In the last ten years, the use of the most environmentally harmful products by Dutch growers of cut flowers has also fallen sharply, by 88%. “We recognize the concerns about crop protection, among other things, but the sector has really made enormous progress in recent years, especially in terms of sustainability”, says David van Mechelen, CEO of Royal FloraHolland. “We are critical of ourselves and realize that we have not been transparent enough for a long time and have not sought dialogue enough, even though so many steps have been taken and significant steps are still being taken in this area.”
The welfare benefits of flowers, their emotional value and the connection they create, the performance of Dutch floriculture entrepreneurs in crop protection, innovation and efficiency, and the economic value of the sector - these elements cannot simply be put aside. That is the message that the floriculture sector sends with one strong voice to all municipalities in the Netherlands.

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