Discover Kenya
OWNER-MANAGED FLOWER FARMS
Kenya is globally important as a flower country and especially as a rose exporter. European buyers, however, are usually only known of the large, internationally managed flower farms that sell cut flowers to Europe via the Netherlands.
IPD takes a different approach and brings importers into contact with new, partly still unknown cut flower producers in Kenya.
Around Lake Naivasha, which lies about 100 km north of Nairobi in Kenya's Rift Valley, the first flower farms were established already at the end of the 1960s. Today, more than 50 farms produce about 7,700 tons of cut flowers per month on about 2,000 hectares with the help of 40,000 employees.
While the farms from the beginning were mainly founded with foreign capital and run by international managers, there has been a second generation of flower farms for some years now.
New generation of producers
These small and medium-sized enterprises are run by well-qualified Kenyan agricultural engineers whose employees have been trained on large-scale farms and have many years of experience in cut flower cultivation.
The farms of this new generation are located around Lake Naivasha - in the second row, so to speak - as well as in other classic flower-growing areas such as Mount Kenya or Nakuru. They take advantage of the favorable climate at high altitudes in the Rift Valley, with high levels of sunshine combined with moderate temperatures.
In addition, the location offers quick access to the international airport in Nairobi and thus relative proximity to European sales markets.
Sustainable development
Cut flowers are a major export product in Kenya and an important source of income, especially in rural regions. Many workers - especially women - are employed in production.
Basically, flower farms and their location in the peripheral regions and away from the major urban centers are an essential factor for development in the rural areas: Through the international flower trade, capital can flow into these often neglected regions.
In this way, sustainable development - economic, social and also ecological - is promoted. And this is the IPD's motive for extending its commitment to the cut flower sector.
Direct imports from Kenya
Buying from small and medium-sized companies offers you many advantages:
- Contacts at eye level: You negotiate with small and medium-sized companies directly and without intermediaries.
- Manageable company size: The producers can flexibly meet your individual wishes or requirements, e.g. for packaging or delivery times, and develop new, exclusive products with you.
- Good traceability of goods: You can track compliance with sustainability and social standards throughout the supply chain.
»The product and the quality – impressive. In conversation it was abundantly clear that everyone – from the managing director to the workers – live for flower cultivation and are very devoted to their land. They have a lot of experience, knowledge of agricultural economics and expertise in the cultivation of cut flowers as well as a special relationship to their product«
Dr Karlheinz Kroell
Managing Director of “Blütenpracht Frischblumen GmbH”
Success Story
Successful move: cut flower farm benefits from the advantages of direct trade
Diversity blooms at the foot of Mount Kenya: Mount Kenya Sprouts impresses European buyers with a colourful selection of "summer flowers". With the support of IPD, the company has successfully repositioned itself and geared its sales to direct trade with European importers. A highlight of this strategy is the partnership with Cologne-based florist Blütenpracht, with whom Mount Kenya Sprouts has developed a new range: Summer Flower Bouquets.
Read more about our cooperation with Mount Kenya Sprouts.
