Growers in South America are concerned about rising costs: in Colombia, wages rose sharply at the beginning of this year, while Ecuador is struggling with high Trump tariffs. Growers turn to mechanisation and automation to reduce costs and hope to negotiate higher prices with buyers.
In the run-up to Valentine's Day, there are concerns about rising costs in the floriculture sectors in Colombia and Ecuador. The key issue in Colombia is the more than 23% wage increase of 1 January, which has put the basic wage there even above that in Ecuador.
This development in Colombia is part of a trend, says Sales Manager Pablo McAllister of Multiflora, a company growing carnations, roses and chrysanthemums, among other flowers, on 120 hectares of land. ‘Since 2022, wage increases have continuously exceeded the inflation rate,’ he explains. ‘I estimate that salaries have risen by 79% in five years.’ Since labour accounts for 50 to 60% of total production costs, this is a major challenge for growers.
