The Jammu and Kashmir government has even decided to import planting material of various flowers like Lilium from Netherlands. "We are importing techonology to grow these flowers and will pass it on among our farmers", says Khurshid Qasba, deputy director, agricultural department of government of Jammu and Kashmir. "The demand has been growing by 20-30 per cent every year. It is the 'bouquet culture which is responsible for the increased demand'," says an executive of Banglaore-based Florance Flora, an importer of foreign flowers.
The domestic cut flower market is estimated to be over Rs 500 crore (Rs 5 billion). Seeing the growing demand in the Indian market, many foreign firms are vying for it.
"There is a great demand for foreign flowers by Indian customers. We plan to bring lililum bulbs and roses here," says Peter Penning of a Netherlands based company, who was in New Delhi to participate in an international flora expo, held recently.
At least four companies from Netherlands alone participated in the expo.
"In the next few years, the market of foreign flowers is going to boom. So after jasmines, marigolds and gladolis it is the turn of Cymbidium, Gypsophilla and Limoniums. People might just prefer to go for a Dutch rose this time," says a spokesperson of Plants First, an importer of Dutch flowers.
And it is not just the Indians who are enamoured by foreign flowers, foreigners are equally bewitched with Indian floral varieties.
Currently, India supplies two per cent of the world floral market and still we are not able to match the demanded volumes.
"We have great demand for Indian flowers in Dubai, UK, France which we will be able to meet if we develop satisfactory number of poly green houses for climatic controlled conditions," said DK Thakur, joint director of department of agriculture of Delhi government.
The costs of some of the foreign flowers are prohibitively high, some costing Rs 800 each, but that is not a dampener for Indians, say importers of these flowers. As the importers increase and the supply of these flowers is abundant in the market, the prices will drop, they say.
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