Kenya's famous flower business is facing a very big crisis right now. Because of the ongoing war involving Iran, the industry is losing about $1.4 million every single week. This conflict is making it very hard to ship flowers to other countries and is causing demand to drop quickly. Farmers and exporters are worried that if the war does not end soon, many people who work in the fields could lose their jobs.

What Happened?

The Kenya Flower Council, which is a group that looks after flower growers, shared some sad news this week. They said that in just three weeks, the industry has lost more than $4.2 million. This is happening because the war in the Middle East has messed up the way flowers are sent around the world. Usually, planes fly across the Middle East to take Kenyan flowers to places like Europe and Dubai. Now, many of those planes cannot fly, or they have to take very long and expensive paths to stay safe.

Because the planes have to take longer routes, the cost of sending flowers has gone up a lot. Last week, it cost $5.80 to send just one kilo of flowers. This is the highest price seen in ten years. When shipping costs this much, many customers in other countries decide not to buy the flowers anymore. This leaves the farmers in Kenya with millions of flowers that they cannot sell. Even though Europe is the biggest buyer of Kenyan flowers, the trouble in the Middle East is stopping the planes from getting there easily.

At a place called Isinya Flower Farms, which is a short drive from the city of Nairobi, the situation is very bad. Before the war started, they used to send out 450,000 flowers every single day. Now, they are only sending out about 150,000 to 200,000 flowers a day. This means they have to throw away more than half of everything they grow. It is very sad for the workers to see beautiful roses and lilies being tossed into the trash because there is no way to get them to the people who want to buy them.

Key Highlights

The Kenyan flower industry is losing $1.4 million every week because of the war.
Total losses have already reached over $4.2 million in the last three weeks alone.
The cost to ship flowers has reached a 10-year high of $5.80 for every kilo.
Some farms are being forced to throw away 50% of the flowers they grow.
Middle Eastern airlines have stopped many flights, making it hard to find space on planes.
About 500,000 people in Kenya work directly in the flower business and could lose their jobs.
The flower industry in Kenya is worth over $800 million to the country every year.

Why Does This Matter?

This news is important because the flower industry is one of the most important parts of the Kenyan economy. It brings in more than $800 million every year. When this industry hurts, the whole country feels it. The money earned from selling flowers helps pay for schools, hospitals, and roads. If the industry continues to lose millions of dollars every week, the government will have less money to help the people of Kenya. It is not just about the owners of the farms; it is about the health of the entire nation.

Even more importantly, there are about 500,000 people who work on these flower farms. These are the people who plant the seeds, water the plants, and pack the flowers into boxes. These workers have families to feed and children to send to school. If the farms cannot sell their flowers, they cannot pay their workers. Experts are worried that we might see many people losing their jobs, similar to what happened during the COVID-19 pandemic. For a regular person in Kenya, this war in a distant land is now a threat to their own kitchen table and their ability to buy food.

What Are People Saying?

Clement Tulezi, who is the leader of the Kenya Flower Council, said that the situation is very difficult. He explained that movement is slow, and the prices are just too high for most buyers. He is very worried about the record-high shipping costs. He and his team are now talking to the Kenyan government. They want the government to help start direct flights from Kenya to Europe that do not have to rely on Middle Eastern airlines. They hope this will make shipping cheaper and more reliable again.

Anantha Kumar, who helps manage the Isinya Flower Farms, also spoke about the struggle. He said that with the current high prices for shipping, customers simply cannot afford to buy. He noted that while Middle Eastern airlines have mostly stopped flying, European airlines are now charging double the normal rate. He warned that if the war lasts a long time, the flower business will keep getting worse. Everyone in the industry is hoping for peace so that the planes can fly safely and the flowers can reach people's homes once more.

Conclusion

Kenya's flower industry is a symbol of the country's beauty and hard work, but right now, it is under a dark cloud. The war in the Middle East has shown how connected the world is. A conflict far away can stop a farmer in Kenya from selling a rose to a person in London. To save the industry and the half a million jobs that go with it, something needs to change fast. Whether it is through government help with new flight routes or an end to the fighting, the people of Kenya are waiting and hoping for a way to get their flowers back into the air and across the world.