07-02-2022, 04:46 AM
On arrival at slot Kenya's biggest seaport, Mombasa, the container is loaded onto a ship for a voyage to Europe of around 30 days. Despite their lengthy journey, they will still be sold to European shoppers with a vase-life of about a week.
So, how is this possible?
The flowers will be kept at a temperature of 0.5 degrees celsius throughout the journey," says Elizabeth Kimani, the manager of quality and standards at Sian Flowers.As well as controlling the temperature, the atmosphere system in the container reduces the oxygen level from 20% to 4%, while increasing the carbon dioxide level from 0.4% to 4%.
This technology is all part of the elaborate process of preserving the blooms for as long as possible.Through this [system] you stop all activity in the flowers that, as a result, go into dormancy," Ms Kimani says, explaining that the flowers are put to sleep.