Kenya woos airlines to meet Valentine’s flower demand in Europe

Kenya authorized Ethiopian Airlines Group and Qatar Airways to deploy additional cargo flights to meet extra demand for flowers for Valentine’s Day.

Ethiopia’s national carrier was granted 24 flights and the Qatari airline was allowed five “extra ad-hoc flights” between the end of January and mid-February to ease freight constraints facing Kenyan flower producers, according to Gilbert Kibe, director general of the Kenya Civil Aviation Authority. The additional flights complement existing capacity by licensed carriers including Kenya Airways, he said.

The Feb. 14 holiday accounts for about 50% of Kenya’s annual cut flower shipments and there isn’t sufficient belly space on passenger flights, which normally account for about half of shipments, according to Clement Tulezi, chief executive officer at lobby group Kenya Flower Council.

Kenya’s flower industry is the largest exporter of blooms to Europe. It sells about 70% of its flowers to the region through Amsterdam.

Weekly freight demand is about 5,200 tons during the Valentine’s Day season, but capacity—even with the additional freighters—will be 3,000 tons, leaving flower producers with a shortfall of more than 2,000 tons, Tulezi said.

Cargo space constraints and doubling of airfreight charges to an average of $5.70 per kilogram threaten to dampen spirits for farmers given the strong demand and higher prices for roses. Freight costs averaged $2.40 per kilogram last year, Tulezi said.

Strong Orders

High cost of inputs like fertilizer and chemicals are hurting the industry despite “strong orders and demand for roses,” according to Richard Fernandes, chief executive officer at Marginpar, a flower grower in Kenya, Ethiopia, Tanzania and Zimbabwe.

Royal FloraHolland, which operates three export auctions in the Netherlands, said cut-flower prices are 10% higher than a year ago, according to spokesman Michel van Schie.

Nairobi-based freighter Astral Aviation Ltd. has doubled weekly cargo flights to Europe to ten, and added four to Dubai and Riyadh to meet the Valentine’s demand, according to Chief Executive Officer Sanjeev Gadhia.

Flower export earnings grew 3% last year to 110 billion shillings ($968 million) from the previous year in East Africa’s biggest economy, according to Kenya Flower Council data.