2 years, 7 months ago

Fresh-o-Fair is proud of our close relationships with sustainable farms. Inor Flowers is a family-owned flower farm that prioritizes sustainability, high quality, and social impact. We interviewed Luis Cadavid, one of the partners at Inor Flowers. Keep on reading to discover his insights into Inor Flowers and the floral industry.

A Brief History of Inor Flowers

Inor Flowers is a family business that has been around for 27 years. It produces numerous products, including roses, garden roses, spray roses, anemones, and pampas grass. The farm’s 12-hectare Ecuadorian branch produces greens like pine and cypress, while the Colombian branch grows and sells tropical greens. They also sell bouquets and assorted boxes.

An Emphasis on Sustainability and Social Programs

Inor Flowers is FlorEcuador certified, but instead of focusing on other certifications, the company believes in investing in social and environmental programs. In addition to devoting two hectares of the farm to a forest which acts as a carbon sink, they also focus on water recycling throughout the farm, the fields, and post-harvest.

In order to choose natural options over chemicals, the farm uses Ecuadorian potatoes to act as a natural bug repellent. Inor Flowers also supports a foundation that focuses on sustainable advancement in Ecuador, especially in agriculture.

Inor Flowers is also devoted to equality and social growth. The farm has many social programs in place, including those against female violence. Inor was also the first company in Ecuador to sign up with the UN Global Impact and one of the first companies to sign up with UN Women.

It should also be noted that women are present at all levels, from workers to supervisors. The general manager is female, and all but two workers in administration are women. In fact, the general manager is one of the only women at the owner/management level in the Ecuadorian floral industry.

Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic

Inor Flowers faced challenges because of the COVID-19 pandemic and lockdowns. In addition to taking larger areas out of production and cutting down on personnel, the company also cut salaries for nine months to a year.

However, the pandemic also allowed them to renovate areas of the farm, learn more about clients’ needs, come up with better products, and scale up the production of eighth boxes, mixed boxes, and targeted boxes for wholesalers and florists.

Inor Flowers’ Partnership With Fresh-o-Fair

Inor Flowers’ partnership with Fresh-o-Fair has proven to be successful. According to Luis, Fresh-o-Fair allows growers to reach florists directly and cuts down the long and inefficient supply chain. Since Fresh-o-Fair can deliver products faster and thus, deliver fresher products, it helps showcase the high quality of Ecuadorian flowers and allows florists to provide fresher flowers to their customers.

Future Goals and Projects

While Inor Flowers has come far, it doesn’t plan on slowing down. Currently, the company is working on growing the greens area, expanding the garden roses and spray roses areas, and aiming to dedicate 4 hectares to growing different kinds of eucalyptus.

Fresh-o-Fair is proud to partner with a grower as socially aware and sustainable as Inor Flowers, and we look forward to their growth and future success!

See their profile here