Say it with flowers, but without plastic wrappers

HAve you ever tried taking a newspaper or plain brown paper to the florist to wrap the flowers that you buy? Try it and I can assure you that your bouquet will not only stand out on account of its unique wrapper, but will carry a distinct message about being environmentally-friendly! Those receiving it will also be relieved because all they need to do is tear off the paper and put the flowers in a vase. If you are ordering a bouquet online, do check about how they send the flowers and make sure that the wrappings are eco-friendly.

You may not be aware of this, but the reams of transparent or colourful thick wrappers that florists use to dress up the bouquets are not natural products. They are made of synthetic material, mostly non-woven polypropylene, a thermoplastic polymer. They have become extremely popular because of their durability and resistance to water. And they are also cheap. However, these materials are not biodegradable like paper and if they end up in landfills, they will take decades to decompose.

Experts say they can be recycled, but that process is energy-intensive, and therefore not environmentally-friendly. Besides, there is limited infrastructure for recycling. And their improper disposal can lead to micro-plastic pollution.

There is so much of this plastic packing material around a bouquet these days that I wince every time somebody gives a bouquet. Because first, it requires muscle power and a lot of patience to rescue the flowers from the bondage of long lengths of adhesive tape, synthetic paper and plastic ribbons that tightly hold them together. And it is quite time-consuming as well!

In fact, I find that to add volume and colour to the bouquet and make the drooping flowers stand erect, these synthetic sheets are also used around each flower, thereby adding more plastic. Some of the more delicate flowers are also fitted with small plastic receptacles containing water, and perhaps flower food to help them last longer.

Sometimes, even the flowers and leaves are artificially coloured and I do not know what chemicals are used, but it is quite an effort to wash them off your hands. So much so that instead of giving pleasure, these bouquets tend to make you unhappy, particularly if you are an earth-friendly person.

So, imagine the amount of non-biodegradable plastic that these bouquets are generating every day and on special occasions! In fact, when I see the number of bouquets that newlyweds receive at marriage receptions or even the bouquets that are presented on special occasions, I think of the plastic waste that these would be generating. So, as consumers, we need to shun bouquets that are harming the environment and try to bring about a change in the way the flowers are wrapped in our country. Giving plants instead of flowers makes so much more sense.

Beginning June 5, the World Environment Day, the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has been organising a series of activities around the country which will continue till October 31, as part of its National Plastic Pollution Reduction Campaign. Eliminating the use of plastic in bouquets should also become a major part of that campaign, and plastic or polypropylene wrappers used by florists should specifically be banned under the Plastic Waste Management Rules, which ban identified single-use plastics.

After all, these wrappers are not re-used and are thrown into the garbage after unwrapping the flowers.

Bengaluru, perhaps, is the only city which is acting against florists using plastic, including cling wraps and non-woven polypropylene sheets. According to media reports, on Women’s Day last year, the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) collected a fine of over Rs 1 lakh from flower vendors for using these materials to wrap flowers. On Valentine’s Day last year, the BBMP penalised 959 vendors and collected Rs 2.5 lakh in fines. Other cities and towns also need to emulate this.

I do not know the quantity of waste collected from these drives against florists, but they can certainly pose a very serious threat to the environment, if this practice is not discontinued. An article, quoting waste collection company Business Waste in the United Kingdom, said every year on Valentine’s Day, about four million bouquets of flowers are sold across the UK, generating over half a million square metres of plastic waste from the clear polypropylene film wrapped around them.

Flower food sachets made of plastic and the rubber bands used to hold the flowers together also add to the pollution. About four million rubber bands are discarded on Valentine’s Day, the report said. The waste will take five decades to biodegrade and poses a serious threat to wildlife, which may consume them or get entangled in them, the report emphasised.

So, we need to nip in the bud the use of plastic in bouquets! As consumers, we have a right to be protected from unsafe and environmentally-hazardous goods and the bouquets wrapped in plastic certainly come under the list. While governments and businesses have the responsibility to ensure this, we as consumers should also force a change through our buying preferences and consumption patterns.

— The writer is a consumer affairs expert

Features