The not-so-fragrant side of fresh-cut flowers
From Grist Magazine http://www.grist.org/article/thorns-and-roses By Tom Philpott
Read more at http://www.grist.org/article/thorns-and-roses
Nations in the global south need foreign exchange and jobs; folks in the industrialized north have plenty of disposable income for buying pretty things. Moreover, land tends to be cheap in the south and dear in the north.
Pursuing the promise of what economists call "comparative advantage," why not set up a vast fresh-cut flower industry in places like Ecuador, designed to supply markets in the United States?
