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There is a discrepancy of Rs 71 million between imports (Rs 123 million) and exports (Rs 52 million) between April last year till date, showing a clear delay. The Food and Agriculture Research and Extension Institute (FAREI) is considering several measures to identify varieties that could boost floriculture and potentially attract customer interest.
If Mauritius misses a certain area and continues to slow down, it has the opportunity to fill the gap that exists in many cases between its obligation to increase export volumes and the need to implement a massive program to reduce imports, namely the flower marketing program. This market will become even more attractive if we stick to the statement made by the Minister of Agro-Industry and Food Security, Mahen Seeruttun, in the National Assembly last Tuesday. He was answering a question from Nando Bodha, the second representative of constituency number 15 (Lakavieng-Phoenix).
According to data provided by the Minister of Agriculture and Industry, the deficit is Rs71 million, which is much higher than the export of 22 tons from April last year to date, which is Rs52 million. Countries that import Mauritian products are Australia, Canada, France, Italy, Japan, Reunion Island and the United Arab Emirates. The flowers involved are anthuriums, roses, chrysanthemums and tropical flowers. The quantity and value of imported flowers are 405 tons and Rs123 million respectively. They are composed of chrysanthemums, carnations and baby’s breath. Countries that export flowers to Mauritius are France, India, Iran and Malaysia.
Mahen Seeruttun does not gloss over the weaknesses of Mauritius’ flower production and marketing sector. “I must say,” he says, “that the potential of the floriculture sector for product marketing is more or less limited. It consists of 200 producers, nursery growers and horticulturists, including about 10 anthurium producers, operating on 70 hectares of agricultural land in the North, Central Plateau and South regions.
The Minister said that we are increasingly witnessing a shift towards floriculture systems protected by adaptive structures. The result: about forty operators grow roses and gerberas on about forty hectares. Nearly ten producers have already started growing chrysanthemums on seven hectares. “Ornamental flowers,” says Mahen Seeruttun, “are grown year-round in greenhouses in areas with humid climatic conditions. Growing tropical green plants and flowers can be done in any region throughout the year.”
Local producers are unable to meet the demand for flowers during Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day and even weddings of hotel guests. Are the players in the flower cultivation and production industry willing to bear the impact of not being able to meet the needs of the domestic market? The eyes are on the management of FAREI, a company engaged in research in the agricultural field.
Research has been conducted to identify systems that might facilitate the cultivation of anthuriums, roses, chrysanthemums and orchids. The idea is to identify materials and flowers that are likely to attract buyer interest. About 2,000 attempts at crossing anthuriums have created four new varieties, with promising results in terms of colour, stem length and flower size.
Another initiative: assessing the level of adaptation of new varieties of anthuriums, roses, chrysanthemums and imported orchids to the local environment. Growers will be invited to select those that show the best level of adaptation in the local ecosystem and have the potential to gain a place on the market.
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