When our thoughts turn to love, we often turn to flowers. Long established as a romantic gesture, there is nothing like a dozen roses to melt the heart of your loved one. Many people do not realize, however, that hothouse flowers are grown in greenhouses filled with pesticides, and the blossoms you hold to your face have been repeatedly treated with toxic chemicals.
There is a wonderful company determined to change the way we grow and buy flowers, however. Organic Bouquet is the largest online provider of organic floral arrangements and gifts. All of their flowers, from select farms in California, Ecuador and Columbia, meet stringent standards for environmental safety, monitored by multiple certification agencies and associations.
Their eco-friendly flower arrangements include roses, calla lilies, tulips, gerbera daisies, hyacinths, sunflowers, alstromeria lilies and blue iris, and are shipped nationwide to all 50 states.
CEO Robert McLaughlin has created a company that positively affects the environment, the floral industry, and the people on the farms of California, and South and Central America. They make choices every day to support responsible commerce, environmental stewardship and the health of the people who work for them.
“Sustainability is a slippery word, one that has a different meaning for different groups,” says Mr. McLaughlin. “Being sustainable is not just about our company, it’s about our partners, our industry associates and our customers.”
“All plants, flowers, fruits, vegetables and livestock were grown or raised for thousands of years organically. Only in the last 100 years have we discovered synthetic chemicals and begun to overuse them,” he continues. “As we’ve destroyed millions of acres and polluted millions more, this phasing out of synthetic chemicals and returning to natural methods prove that synthetic chemicals have been a brief but damaging fad that hopefully will never be repeated.”
Good things to know about Organic Bouquet:
- The company partners with Carbonfund.org in a carbon offset program to mitigate greenhouse gases generated from shipping your flowers and gifts. Each time you make a purchase from Organic Bouquet, the amount of carbon emissions from that shipment is offset by rolling funds into the Nicaragua Reforestation Project—a project which will sequester more than 150,000 tons of CO2 through reforesting abandoned pasture land with native tree species.
- Shipping boxes are made from recycled and recyclable materials.
- Boxes are printed with water based ink, which is naturally non-toxic and low in VOCs.
- All of their inserts and gift cards are printed on recycled or recyclable materials using soy-based ink.
- Their glass vases are made from 100% recycled glass.
If all of that isn’t enough to convince you, consider this:
The company’s flower farms employ 60% women, all from the surrounding villages. These jobs empower women, help bring the family out of poverty, and improve the lives of their children. Each certified farm has medical facilities on site, day care for workers, health education, above minimum wages, and teaches a trade.
For more information and to order your Valentine’s Day flowers, visit them at: www.OrganicBouquet.com
