Produce or Beer Cooler . . .

​Fresh flowers with produce or with the beer – Where do they last longer?

When looking for fresh flowers in the grocery stores, placement of the selections of flowers can alter the freshness of the blooms. Much research has been done that looks at the shelf life of fresh cut flowers.

​When fresh flowers were introduced in the grocery stores in the 1970’s, they were placed in the produce department. That is where the grocers positioned them. Cooler units were filled with fragrance and color. No one told them. They are cutting the shelf life of the flowers in half.

Fresh cut flowers are processed and displayed in containers of cold water. This water is usually treated with a flower preservative and at a temperature of about 37 degrees Fahrenheit. The flowers get their nutrients from this water.

Produce and citrus fruits give off ethylene gas. This natural gas is produced in the ripening process of the fruits and vegetables.  Ethylene gas is actually a plant hormone that regulates a plant’s growth and development. This can significantly cause fresh cut flowers to mature quicker, cutting the longevity of the blooms. Citrus fruits and lettuce produce higher amounts of this gas.

Recently, I visited a new grocery store. In one corner was a cooler the size of a room, filled with beer displays. All of the bottles and boxes are sealed.  This would be an optimum place to display fresh flowers
The air around the flowers in the produce department contain a gas, but the air in a beer cooler does not.