Iran’s export of ornamental flowers is valued at about $40 million per year, according to head of the National Institute of Ornamental Plants (NIOP), Pejman Azadi, who noted that the country is still far from its rightful position in the global flower market.
Speaking at a conference focused on production and export of bulbous flowers in Gachsar village of Asara district in Alborz Province, located northwest of Tehran, Azadi said despite having suitable climatic conditions, Iran has an insignificant share in the $150-billion global market for ornamental flowers.
According to a report by IRNA, Iran ranks 170th in the global export of flowers while being the 17th country in producing cut flowers and ornamental plants. More than 2 billion stems of cut flowers, about 140 million ornamental trees and shrubs and nearly 40 million potted flowers are produced in Iran every year.
Pointing out that Iran is one of the largest importers of ornamental plants from Southeast Asian countries, Azadi said NIOP has focused its activities on research projects aimed at improving the quality of domestically produced flowers.
Noting that there are many wild ornamental plants such as tulips, fritillaria, rose, poppy, narcissus, lily, iris, carnation, gladiolus, primula and cyclamens in Iran, he called for more attention to be paid to improving these flowers.
The Iranian Society for Ornamental Plants (ISOP) was founded by the government in 2013 to improve floriculture industry in the country. In 2014, ISOP established the Ornamental Research Center in Mahallat city of Markazi Province with focus on research and collaboration with universities, research centers and private companies inside and outside the country.
