The value of flower bouquets and related exports expanded by an average 16.5% for all exporting countries from 5 years earlier in 2019 when comparable shipments were valued at $9.05 billion.
Year over year, the value of globally exported flower bouquets grew by 2.2% compared to $10.3 billion during 2022.
The 5 biggest exporters of flower bouquets are the Netherlands, Colombia, Ecuador, Kenya and Ethiopia. Collectively, that cohort of major flower suppliers generated 84.5% of globally exported flower bouquet-related products.
Among continents, suppliers in European countries sold the highest dollar value worth of exported flower bouquets during 2023 with shipments amounting to $5.4 billion or 51.5% of the worldwide total. Providers in Latin America excluding Mexico but including the Caribbean generated another 30% worth, trailed by African exporters at another 11%.
Smaller percentages came from sources in Asia (5.6%), North America (1.8%) then Oceania (0.1%) mostly New Zealand and Australia.
For research purposes, the 4-digit Harmonized Tariff System code prefix is 0603 for cut flowers and flower buds suitable for bouquets or for ornamental purposes.
Flower Bouquet Exports by Country
Below are the 15 countries that exported the highest dollar value worth of flower bouquets during 2023.
- Netherlands: US$4.9 billion (46.8% of exported flower bouquets)
- Colombia: $2.1 billion (19.8%)
- Ecuador: $987.1 million (9.4%)
- Kenya: $667.5 million (6.4%)
- Ethiopia: $231.1 million (2.2%)
- mainland China: $152.9 million (1.5%)
- Nigeria: $146.1 million (1.4%)
- Italy: $145.9 million (1.4%)
- Canada: $109.3 million (1%)
- Malaysia: $75.7 million (0.7%)
- Thailand: $69 million (0.7%)
- Vietnam: $68.1 million (0.6%)
- Belgium: $67.8 million (0.6%)
- Spain: $64 million (0.6%)
- South Africa: $61.9 million (0.6%)
By value, the listed 15 countries shipped 93.7% of globally exported flower bouquets in 2023.
Among the top exporters, the fastest-growing flower bouquets exporters from 2022 to 2023 were: Nigeria (up 297%), Canada (up 21.6%), Italy (up 7.3%) and Kenya (up 6.2%).
Those major suppliers that posted declines in their exported flower bouquets sales were: Malaysia (down -11.9% from 2022), mainland China (down -5.7%), Ecuador (down -3%), South Africa (down -2.6%) and Belgium (down -1.2%).
Searchable List of Flower Bouquet Exporting Countries in 2023
The top 100 exporting nations documented in the automated database below generated 99.999% of flower bouquet-related goods exported in 2023.
| Rank | Exporter | Flower Exports | 2022-3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Netherlands | $4,919,173,000 | +3.3% |
| 2. | Colombia | $2,080,160,000 | +1.4% |
| 3. | Ecuador | $987,064,000 | -3% |
| 4. | Kenya | $667,533,000 | +6.2% |
| 5. | Ethiopia | $231,113,000 | +0.7% |
| 6. | mainland China | $152,912,000 | -5.7% |
| 7. | Nigeria | $146,101,000 | +297% |
| 8. | Italy | $145,852,000 | +7.3% |
| 9. | Canada | $109,298,000 | +21.6% |
| 10. | Malaysia | $75,695,000 | -11.9% |
| 11. | Thailand | $68,989,000 | +2.7% |
| 12. | Vietnam | $68,130,000 | +1.6% |
| 13. | Belgium | $67,800,000 | -1.2% |
| 14. | Spain | $63,962,000 | +1.4% |
| 15. | South Africa | $61,929,000 | -2.6% |
| 16. | Germany | $59,316,000 | -13.9% |
| 17. | Israel | $58,257,000 | -34.9% |
| 18. | Mexico | $54,321,000 | -19.9% |
| 19. | Türkiye | $49,265,000 | -0.5% |
| 20. | Taiwan | $40,998,000 | +1.9% |
| 21. | Costa Rica | $38,033,000 | -15.7% |
| 22. | Guatemala | $32,697,000 | +8.2% |
| 23. | France | $25,955,000 | +8.1% |
| 24. | United Kingdom | $25,907,000 | -6.8% |
| 25. | Poland | $25,184,000 | -1.4% |
| 26. | India | $23,853,000 | +7.7% |
| 27. | Lithuania | $23,527,000 | -30.8% |
| 28. | United States | $21,128,000 | -19.6% |
| 29. | Armenia | $19,552,000 | +66.9% |
| 30. | Portugal | $12,423,000 | +3.8% |
| 31. | Egypt | $12,409,000 | +260.6% |
| 32. | Japan | $12,184,000 | +5% |
| 33. | Czech Republic | $10,073,000 | +16.6% |
| 34. | Peru | $9,219,000 | -5.9% |
| 35. | Chile | $9,141,000 | +18.7% |
| 36. | New Zealand | $8,646,000 | -2.9% |
| 37. | Tanzania | $8,364,000 | +23.3% |
| 38. | Morocco | $7,877,000 | -14.2% |
| 39. | Denmark | $7,715,000 | -36.4% |
| 40. | Zambia | $6,506,000 | -5.2% |
| 41. | Hungary | $4,760,000 | -30.2% |
| 42. | Ireland | $4,271,000 | +1226% |
| 43. | Austria | $4,129,000 | +112.4% |
| 44. | Slovakia | $4,129,000 | +294.7% |
| 45. | Uganda | $3,845,000 | +2.8% |
| 46. | Indonesia | $3,583,000 | -8.3% |
| 47. | Zimbabwe | $3,557,000 | +1.9% |
| 48. | Luxembourg | $3,079,000 | -4.7% |
| 49. | Rwanda | $2,878,000 | -36.9% |
| 50. | Australia | $2,859,000 | -13.9% |
| 51. | Kazakhstan | $2,657,000 | -1.3% |
| 52. | South Korea | $2,242,000 | -38.1% |
| 53. | Ghana | $1,997,000 | -2.9% |
| 54. | Singapore | $1,757,000 | -71.9% |
| 55. | Pakistan | $1,613,000 | +77.1% |
| 56. | Mauritius | $1,546,000 | +593.3% |
| 57. | Croatia | $893,000 | +3.1% |
| 58. | Greece | $842,000 | -11.1% |
| 59. | Ukraine | $827,000 | -46% |
| 60. | Ivory Coast | $823,000 | -24.5% |
| 61. | Romania | $737,000 | +333.5% |
| 62. | Philippines | $718,000 | +34% |
| 63. | Iran | $706,000 | -85.9% |
| 64. | Finland | $679,000 | -40.6% |
| 65. | Hong Kong | $658,000 | +39.4% |
| 66. | Bulgaria | $616,000 | -25.1% |
| 67. | Lebanon | $427,000 | -68.8% |
| 68. | Uzbekistan | $404,000 | -18.4% |
| 69. | Russia | $402,000 | +20.4% |
| 70. | Azerbaijan | $318,000 | +5.6% |
| 71. | Senegal | $290,000 | +70.6% |
| 72. | Cameroon | $242,000 | -15.7% |
| 73. | Serbia | $233,000 | -18.5% |
| 74. | Sri Lanka | $228,000 | +28.8% |
| 75. | Brazil | $210,000 | +76.5% |
| 76. | Nicaragua | $184,000 | +62.8% |
| 77. | United Arab Emirates | $157,000 | -74.7% |
| 78. | Laos | $129,000 | -6.5% |
| 79. | Estonia | $105,000 | +10400% |
| 80. | Sweden | $103,000 | -64.2% |
| 81. | Tunisia | $90,000 | +2150% |
| 82. | Madagascar | $84,000 | 0% |
| 83. | Fiji | $58,000 | +728.6% |
| 84. | Mali | $39,000 | -58.9% |
| 85. | Saint Lucia | $35,000 | -14.6% |
| 86. | Burkina Faso | $35,000 | +3400% |
| 87. | Switzerland | $34,000 | -33.3% |
| 88. | Sudan | $32,000 | +1500% |
| 89. | Slovenia | $31,000 | -87.8% |
| 90. | Myanmar | $29,000 | -71% |
| 91. | Afghanistan | $27,000 | +2600% |
| 92. | Georgia | $25,000 | -52.8% |
| 93. | Albania | $23,000 | 0% |
| 94. | Panama | $22,000 | -18.5% |
| 95. | Belarus | $21,000 | -65% |
| 96. | Dominican Republic | $21,000 | -83.7% |
| 97. | Jordan | $17,000 | +30.8% |
| 98. | Bahrain | $17,000 | 0% |
| 99. | Bosnia/Herzegovina | $17,000 | -29.2% |
| 100. | Benin | $17,000 | 0% |
Expanding the scope to the 100 leading flower exporters, the fastest-growing suppliers of flowers on international markets are Estonia (up 10,400% compared to 2022), Burkina Faso (up 3,400%), Afghanistan (up 2,600%), Tunisia (up 2,150%), Sudan (up 1,500%) then Ireland (up 1,226%).
Note that you can change the presentation order by clicking the triangle icon at the top of any of the columns below.
An entry of 0% in the right-most column means that no 2022 data was available.
Average Prices for Flower Bouquet Exporters
Among the exporters of cut flowers and flower buds suitable for bouquets or ornamental purposes, the following 20 countries report their statistics by shipment weight in tons. Countries like Canada and the United States report their average unit prices per unit, not tons.
The top 20 exporters below are listed in order ranked by highest value per ton for international flower sales.
- Luxembourg: US$384,875 per ton of exported flowers (up 304.9% from 2022)
- Mauritius: $257,667 per ton (up 1,749%)
- Fiji: $58,000 per ton (2022 data unavailable)
- Madagascar: $42,000 per ton (2022 data unavailable)
- Slovenia: $31,000 per ton (up 203.9%)
- Japan: $25,174 per ton (down -1.9%)
- Panama: $22,000 per ton (up 63%)
- Chile: $19,700 per ton (up 23.5%)
- Estonia: $17,500 per ton (2022 data unavailable)
- Switzerland: $17,000 per ton (down -33.3%)
- Bahrain: $17,000 per ton (2022 data unavailable)
- New Zealand: $16,532 per ton (up 6.2%)
- Brazil: $16,154 per ton (up 144.4%)
- Ukraine: $15,604 per ton (up 50.8%)
- Denmark: $15,461 per ton (up 72.7%)
- Taiwan: $14,335 per ton (2022 data unavailable)
- Israel: $13,672 per ton (up 8.2%)
- Egypt: $12,753 per ton (up 11.6%)
- Austria: $12,627 per ton (down -55.2%)
- France: $11,702 per ton (up 7.8%)
The strongest inflation for the listed exporters of flower bouquets and related goods were posted by Mauritius (up 1,749% from 2022), Luxembourg (up 304.9%), Slovenia (up 203.9%) and Brazil (up 144.4%).
The most economical 20 exporters are presented below.
- Nicaragua: US$193 per ton of exported flowers (down -2.5% from 2022)
- El Salvador: $222 per ton (2022 data unavailable)
- Nigeria: $271 per ton down -83.2%)
- Ghana: $505 per ton down -89.9%)
- Burkina Faso: $603 per ton (up 857.1%)
- Mali: $619 per ton (up 544.8%)
- Myanmar: $725 per ton down -57.9%)
- Kyrgyzstan: $750 per ton down -50%)
- Benin: $850 per ton 2022 data unavailable)
- Dominican Republic: $1,235 per ton down -37.8%)
- Guatemala: $1,405 per ton down -3.6%)
- Russia: $1,529 per ton 2022 data unavailable)
- Zimbabwe: $1,680 per ton (up 26.7%)
- Curaçao: $2,000 per ton down -60%)
- Grenada: $2,000 per ton 2022 data unavailable)
- Pakistan: $2,004 per ton down -40.8%)
- Laos: $2,081 per ton (up 28.1%)
- Bulgaria: $2,484 per ton (up 3.9%)
- Senegal: $2,522 per ton (up 27.6%)
- Ivory Coast: $2,540 per ton down -13.3%)
The greatest declines for the relatively low-cost exporters belong to those in Ghana (down -89.9% from 2022), Nigeria (down -83.2%), Curaçao (down -60%) and Myanmar (down -57.9%).
Countries Generating Biggest Surpluses Trading Flowers
The following countries posted the highest positive net exports for cut flowers suitable for bouquets during 2023. Investopedia defines net exports as the value of a country’s total exports minus the value of its total imports. Thus, the statistics below present the surplus between the value of each country’s flower bouquet exports and its import purchases for that same commodity.
- Netherlands: US$3.8 billion (net export surplus up 3.2% since 2022)
- Colombia: $2.1 billion (up 1.5%)
- Ecuador: $986.9 million (down -3%)
- Kenya: $667.5 million (up 6.2%)
- Ethiopia: $231.1 million (up 0.7%)
- Nigeria: $145.8 million (up 296.9%)
- mainland China: $88 million (down -22.3%)
- Malaysia: $59 million (down -19.6%)
- South Africa: $58.3 million (down -2%)
- Israel: $54.8 million (down -36.7%)
- Mexico: $53.9 million (down -20.1%)
- Türkiye: $44.3 million (down -2.5%)
- Vietnam: $38.5 million (up 22%)
- Costa Rica: $37.6 million (down -15.9%)
- Taiwan: $36.7 million (up 0.4%)
True to its historical image as a tulip producer, the Netherlands serves as the home country with the highest surplus in the international trade of cut flowers suitable for bouquets. In turn, this positive cashflow confirms the strong competitive advantage that Netherlands has for this specific product category.
Countries Incurring Worst Deficits Trading Flowers
The following countries posted the highest negative net exports for cut flowers suitable for bouquets during 2023. Investopedia defines net exports as the value of a country’s total exports minus the value of its total imports. Thus, the statistics below present the deficit between the value of each country’s flower bouquet import purchases and its exports for that same commodity.
- United States: -US$2.6 billion (net export deficit up 4.9% since 2022)
- Germany: -$1.2 billion (down -2.4%)
- United Kingdom: -$736.4 million (down -13.2%)
- France: -$357.7 million (down -5.4%)
- Japan: -$309.1 million (down -2.9%)
- Russia: -$306.6 million (down -16.2%)
- Switzerland: -$204.5 million (up 2.2%)
- Poland: -$184.4 million (down -4%)
- Czech Republic: -$119 million (up 6.5%)
- Italy: -$115.7 million (up 140.8%)
- Denmark: -$114.9 million (up 20.5%)
- Austria: -$100.9 million (down -1.9%)
- United Arab Emirates: -$97.1 million (up 40.5%)
- Romania: -$90.3 million (up 11.7%)
- Saudi Arabia: -$89.4 million (down -17.6%)
The United States of America and Germany incurred billion-dollar plus deficits when it comes to the international trade of cut flowers suitable for bouquets. In turn, this negative cashflow highlights both countries’ strong competitive disadvantages for this specific product category but also signals opportunities for flower bouquet-supplying countries that help satisfy the powerful demand from American and German consumers.
Flower Bouquet Importing Companies
According to global trade intelligence firm Zepol, the following companies are examples of multinational cut flower buyers.
- Almacenes Vaca (Mexico)
- Hosley International (United States)
- San Antonio Imports (Mexico)
- Viveres El Triunfo (Mexico)
- WalMart (United States)
See also Netherlands Top 10 Exports, Netherlands Top Trading Partners, Perfumes Exporters by Country Plus Average Prices, Beauty Cosmetics and Skincare Exports by Country and Top Sunglasses Exporters by Country
Research Sources:
Central Intelligence Agency, The World Factbook Field Listing: Exports – Commodities. Accessed on August 6, 2024
Forbes Global 2000 rankings, The World’s Biggest Public Companies. Accessed on August 6, 2024
International Trade Centre, Trade Map. Accessed on August 6, 2024
Investopedia, Net Exports Definition. Accessed on August 6, 2024
Wikipedia, Cut flowers. Accessed on August 6, 2024
Zepol’s company summary highlights by HTS code. Accessed on August 6, 2024