Floriculture is considered one of the engines for economic growth and rural agriculture development. Its role has been substantial, in the change needed to improve returns from agriculture and transform the lives of farmers.
It is reported that penetration of floriculture into the farming system in many Asian countries has slowly converted subsistence cropping into profitable and viable farming enterprises. Besides resulting in higher income generation the floriculture sector has also shown tremendous potential for generating employment opportunities for rural populations, particularly women and youth in many countries.
In recent years, the floral industry has grown six percent annually worldwide. Europe is traditionally a large producer and trader, with a stable production value of about 10 billion dollars (2002). North America has a production value of about 6.5 billion dollars. In Asia production capacity is growing rapidly in several countries. In Africa the production has emerged enormously, but in a risky environment. Oceania is a small producer.
Cut flowers account for 50% of sales, plants were 41%, bulbs made up 9%, and cut foliage accounted for 9%. The major consumer markets are Germany (22%), the United Sates (15%), France (10%), United Kingdom (10%), Netherlands (9%), Italy (15%) and Switzerland (5%). The Netherlands continues to dominate the world market in production and marketing.
It was estimated in 2000 almost 50% of exported floriculture products came from the Netherlands, which includes crops that are grown domestically and crops that are imported, brokered and then resold.
Seven countries export 73% of the value of the world's floriculture crops: the Netherlands, Columbia, Italy, Belgium, Denmark, the United States, and Ecuador. Colombia is the second largest exported at 7.5%, Italy, Belgium, Denmark, the United States, Ecuador and Germany followed with 3% each, Kenya, Costa Rica, Israel and Spain exported 2% each. Presently Thailand, Korea and India too have joined the flower trade.
Floriculture in Sri Lanka too has developed with great strides over the past few years bringing substantial foreign exchange (13.6 USD last yr.) and generating employment directly as well as indirectly. However, Sri Lanka's share in world trade is only about 0.1%, indicating the existence of tremendous potential to expand this sector.
Cut flowers and ornamental young-plants are very important export products for several developing countries in East Africa, South and Central America, and the Middle East. Consumption is on the rise, mainly in emerging markets like Eastern Europe, Russia, China, India, and East Asia. Demand in the traditional markets of Western Europe, North America, and Japan is also growing, albeit more slowly.
Developed countries in Europe, America, and Asia account for more than 90% of demand. International trade in floriculture, to a large extent is organized along the regional lines. Asia-Pacific countries are the main suppliers to Japan and Hong Kong. African, Middle Eastern, and other European countries are the principal suppliers to Europe's main markets, Colombia and Ecuador dominate the market in the USA.
The largest producers are, in order of cultivated area, China, India and the United states. The largest importer and exporter by value is the Netherlands which is both a grower and a re-distributor of crops imported from other countries. Most of its exports go to its European neighbours
Export earnings have shown a drop in 2016 compared to the previous yrs. of 2014 and 2015.
This drop is visible in cut decorative foliage and cut flower categories of exports although an increase in export earnings is shown in live plants. Reasons for this drop are many and varied including unavailability of sufficient quantities of quality planting material and finished products, reduced demand for products in traditional foreign markets, economic factors, climatic changes (specifically reduced rainfall) and higher demands for products in the local market.
Domestic sales
Local sale in domestic trade however is vibrant and has shown considerable growth. This is evident in higher demand for training and in local sales with the Botanic gardens also sponsoring and conducting 336 exhibitions and plant sales Island wide in 2016 compared to 215 in 2015. An increase of over 100 of these exhibitions and plant sales indicates a substantial increase in local consumption of floriculture products. Import of cut flowers for special events and specific dates such as Valentine's Day, Mother's Day etc. is also continuing indicating a demand for cut flowers in the local scene.
Imports of plants especially orchids and anthuriums have also shown an increase once again in 2016 indicating healthy consumption in the local market.
This is a positive sign in the floriculture sector since demand is high locally as well for products such as roses, orchids, lillies and other flowers growers can sell their products without much of a hassle and earn a good income. Besides, all these products can be easily grown within the country under varied climatic conditions.
Observations
Enthusiasm in learning to grow flowers and initiating new nurseries and cultivations has also shown a market increase with demand for training programmes conducted by the Botanic Gardens growing.
This trend indicates an increase in demand and sale for floriculture products locally and thereby the current growth and expansion of this sector. However steps need to be taken to further develop the export segment as well since international trade has a wider market base that the domestic market.
Hence it is most important at this juncture to plan for the future and device new and innovative approaches to meet the current local demand for floriculture products as well as expand our international market share and earn much needed foreign exchange to the country.
Five new technology solutions in commercial real estate
The real estate industry has been more resistant to technological change than other industries, but with so much at stake-$54 trillion globally-the first firms to break through with leading edge technology stand to gain a fortune.
Technological solutions that will provide a competitive advantage include predictive analytics, smart building hardware, and the Internet of Things. Today Lamudi intends to educate you about the 5 New Technology Solutions in Commercial Real Estate
The Internet of Things (IOT)
No discussion about the future of real estate technology can commence without mentioning IOT. The technology that works with smart sensors and apps integrated with a feeder system is going to change how we design, use, and maximise the efficiencies of buildings. In the future, if a building encounters an issue a signal will be communicated to a management center, where a work order will be generated automatically; no need to call a technician.
Clients will be better able to manage their capital spend as the predictability of equipment replacement will be easier to monitor, by using sensors on commercial boilers for instance.
Predictive analytics
Knowing what the future holds is a dream of every investor, but predicting what lies ahead may not be a fantasy for much longer. Predictive analytics can be cleverly used by real estate professionals to decide on the next big investment project. By analyzing information from several data points such as workforce trends, demographic patterns, and the cost of capital a broker can much more easily convince a CRE firm that a building will work well in their portfolio. As predictive analytics advances, agents will have an opportunity to build data in different locations; not just their town, or city. Before an investor makes a decision to buy say, office space, he will expect to have the future rental rates in many competing areas to make a more informed decision.
real-time market comparables
Companies like Compstak are leading the way when it comes to live data for CRE. Investors can easily track competitors, discover undervalued assets, build bespoke market reports, spot acquisition opportunities, and model future trends. Technological advancements will transform investors into omniscient buying machines where no purchase is left to intuition.
Networks for office space
The use of office space has historically been inefficient. New options are available to connect individuals with a broad network of office space suppliers. Even if you are a two person practice that needs just four hours of office space per week that is now possible, and landlords can aim to get full occupancy for their building. The leading companies in the sector offer real-time space availability in a flexible marketplace thus reducing the costs and challenges that come with traditional leasing.
"We get a lot of inquiries from individuals looking to rent an office just for two or three people, but the options are limited if its just a short term arrangement," said Kian Moini, managing director of Lamudi-the global property platform.
The demand for flexible, temporary, and cost-cutting corporate leasing is growing, and companies like Lamudi welcome the tech advancements that meet this new office space dynamic.
Machine learning
Deep learning promises to change CRE in a dozen ways, but one that will save time and costs is a data platform that will support the lease completion process; allowing firms to be compliant with their country's accounting standards in the easiest possible way. Artificial intelligence will help at every stage of the sales process.
Experienced agents will have the data to make educated assumptions about their clientele and market. They will know the best time to send an email or make a call, or what tone to use with each customer. It might take a lifetime for an agent to learn the nuances of each particular market, but a machine can process reams of input data in seconds. The machine will be an agent's loyal servant in the future.(www.lamudi.lk)
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