Exports of Guatemalan ornamental plants and foliage flourish
The Ornamental Plants, Foliage and Flowers Commission of AGEXPORT has 80 producers and exporters who produce 300 species and 5,000 varieties of products per year, complying with the quality and phytosanitary standards required worldwide.
“This sector generates around 60 thousand jobs. 20 thousand are direct and 80% of the collaborators are women from rural areas. In addition, in 2021 we registered US$36,450,584 million in exports, mainly in products such as foliage, fresh flowers and buds, among others”, commented the president of the Congress of Ornamental Plants, Foliage and Flowers 2022, Andres Sempe.
To generate strategic alliances between all the actors in the production chain that contribute to sharing good practices, innovations and trends in the sector’s supply, the first Congress of Ornamental Plants, Foliage and Flowers of Guatemala was held, with the participation of exporters, producers, technicians and marketers of ornamental plants, foliage and flowers.
This event, held on August 18 and 19 in Santo Domingo del Cerro, Antigua Guatemala, has the support of the Mipymes y Cooperativas + Competitivas (MCC+) Project, financed by the European Union and executed by AGEXPORT.
The program of activities included a panel of technical conferences, success stories and 7 master conferences with high-level experts. Among the guests is Raquel T. Mahomar, a supply chain executive with more than 15 years of global experience in sourcing, finance and analysis in the area of: “Trends in the world of cuttings, flowers and foliage”; Bob Goedemans, an international entrepreneur who will present the topic: “Flower and Foliage Market in Europe”; Andrés Sepe, CEO of TAK Global, the corporation that represents the largest group of producers and exporters of ferns in Central America, with the topic: “Overview of the flower and cut foliage markets”.
On the second day of the Congress, a field trip was made to an ornamental plant farm, a foliage farm and a flower farm, located in San Miguel Dueñas and Sacatepéquez.
“The initiative to organize this Congress arises from the need to unite the sector after the pandemic and to make a great team like Guatemala to face the challenges of international markets such as transportation, increase in various raw materials such as fertilizers and cardboard, closure of markets due to the pandemic, economic crisis in the United States and other countries. This year’s goal is to grow between 8% and 10% per year and end up with US$50 million exported in products such as cut flowers, perennials, foliage and ornamental plants in general”, added Sempe.
