Sustaining the Local Community 

Our farm in Kenya is situated in the Nanyuki region of the country. The farm is run by Tim Hobbs and his wife Maggie. Tim is one of the owners and directors of The Real Flower Company. Tim spent some of childhood in Kenya and, after studying for a degree in Agriculture at University, Tim returned to Kenya to set up the farm. It is our belief that trade not aid is the way for Africa to shake off the poverty trap. Where possible we use man power rather than machinery to do the job so that we can employ as many people as possible. Over 80% of our staff come from within a 2 mile radius of the farm and consequently money from their salaries stays predominantly in the local area. We estimate that every person who has a job supports between 6 and 10 other people so potentially the benefit of these jobs is felt by between 3 and 4 thousand people. We are also the only significant employer for at least a 6 to 7 mile radius and the largest employer for a 20 mile radius.  Water Usage While Kenya has its dry periods it can also be extraordinarily wet. The main problem is that too few people in Kenya have invested in water storage.

In November we could fill huge dams with the water flowing in the rivers and use this during dry periods to support both the farmers and the needs of wildlife. Our farm in Kenya has such a dam and The Burguret River Users Association, of which we are active members, is being used by the Water Authority Manager, Mr Maitima, as a pilot project for other Associations around the country as we help to pioneer water management solutions for the rest of Kenya.

Our water use is totally sustainable and by using our water storage responsibly we have developed 20 hectares of production employing over 470 permanent and seasonal staff.

The Kenya Flower Council

We are now Gold members of the Kenya Flower Council, an industry body that has an internationally respected and recognized code of practice. This covers environmental as well as social standards and is a good reference for anyone buying Kenyan flowers. The standards are accepted by the Ethical Trade Initiative and EUREP GAP (Good Agricultural Practice).

Reducing Our Impact on the Environment

With regard to  the ‘’carbon footprint’’ of our activities it is interesting to note that a recent report commissioned by Sainsbury’s and World Flowers showed that carbon emissions for Kenyan roses, including air freight, were 17% of those for Dutch roses grown out of season. Our roses, incidentally, travel on passenger jets not cargo only flights.

Dr. Hilary Benn, previously the government’s International Development Secretary, told a sustainable food conference in Nairobi: ‘’People want to buy ethically, and do their bit for climate change, but often don’t realise that they can support developing countries and reduce carbon emissions. We should remember that the vast majority of African countries are responsible for a tiny amount of carbon emissions.’’

We are, however, far from complacent and we are looking at the environmental impact in great detail to find ways to reduce the negative impact and build on the positives. To this end we have planted over 20,000 trees over the last 3 years and are part of a local carbon credit scheme.

The Future

So what are our future plans? Tim is developing a 5 year plan for reducing environmental impact, we want our customers to be able to reassure themselves about the responsibility of our supply chain but we also want them to be able to get involved with us in supporting the local community in Kenya. To this end we are looking at school support and reforestation projects through a Real Flower Company Trust that we are in the process of developing.

We strongly believe that commercial and community interests can work together and be a force for good in Kenya if we maintain and continue to develop our ethical and community focused position.

We will continue to keep our customers informed of forthcoming projects in Kenya through our website and look forward to some exciting developments in the coming year.

Click here to visit our Weblog for more information about us and our farms