The express delivery and logistics company expects to move more than 10 million individual flower stems from growers to retailers and consumers before Wednesday, February 14th. The six-foot tall stems were grown at a farm in Ecuador and have flower heads that will open to 3-4 inch blooms. The grower is OrganicBouquet.com, which is characterized as an eco-flower pioneer.
Most of the flower shipments move to the U.S. from growers in Colombia and Ecuador. Estimates by DHL’s Global Forwarding logistics services are that it will move 400% more flowers for Valentine’s Day than its normal floral commerce. Flowers are gathered from growers, and then consolidated into shipments. Bonded cold storage is used at the point of origin, then immediately chilled upon arrival in the United States.
Most of the floral shipments—some 80% according to DHL—arrive at the Miami International Airport, where they undergo agricultural inspection.
Next DHL uses an expanded fleet of refrigerated trucks to move shipments to its air and ground hub in Wilmington, Ohio. Shipments at Wilmington are sorted overnight, and then flown to their final destinations across the country to insure delivery by the 14th. On February 13th, DHL uses additional flights from Miami, carrying nothing but flowers for customers.
