MINNEAPOLIS, MN— Commercial florists are increasingly facing debilitating health consequences linked to chronic exposure to high levels of unregulated chemical pesticides found on imported cut flowers, raising urgent questions about occupational safety standards in the global floral trade. The silent danger forced veteran florist Sarah Chen, 30, to close her thriving Minneapolis business in late 2024 after struggling for years with severe symptoms like chronic fatigue, debilitating headaches, and cognitive impairment she now attributes to daily handling of chemically treated flowers.
The issue stems from a critical loophole: unlike food products, flowers imported into the European Union, United Kingdom, and United States face no statutory upper limits on pesticide residue levels, leaving those handling the blooms daily—from farmworkers to retail florists—at significant risk.
Lax Regulations Endanger Workers
While consumers face minimal risk from occasional flower contact, florists and workers in the industry often handle bouquets for hours daily without adequate protection, exposing them to what experts describe as “toxic bombs” of systemic chemicals. These pesticides are crucial for protecting flowers during long-distance transit from global supply hubs like Ecuador, Kenya, and Colombia, ensuring year-round, flawless appearance. However, research indicates these chemicals can be easily inhaled or absorbed through the skin.
The potential for occupational illness has already been tragically illuminated in Europe. In an unprecedented decision in 2022, France’s Pesticide Victims Compensation Fund formally recognized a link between an 11-year-old girl’s fatal cancer and her florist mother’s prolonged pesticide exposure during pregnancy. Researchers Jean-Noël Jouzel and Giovanni Prete are investigating similar cases suggesting connections between parental exposure in floristry and adverse childhood health outcomes, including cancer and neurodevelopmental disorders.
“The relationship is never clearcut,” Jouzel noted, but added that in the cases they examined, a link is “very plausible.”
Evidence of Exposure Mounts
Limited but compelling studies paint a worrying picture of worker exposure. A 2018 Belgian study analyzed 90 bouquets and identified 107 different pesticides. Alarmingly, researchers found 70 of these chemicals present in the urine of florists, even those who reported wearing two pairs of gloves while working. Exposure to one specific pesticide, clofentezine—classified as a possible carcinogen by U.S. authorities and restricted in the EU since 2023 due to endocrine-disrupting properties—exceeded acceptable thresholds by four times.
For flower retailer Sarah Chen, the realization came too late. After years of mysterious, flu-like symptoms and persistently elevated liver enzymes, she believes the daily exposure from working barehanded for years compromised her health, forcing her to abandon the business she spent eight years building.
Professor Michael Eddleston, a clinical toxicology expert at the University of Edinburgh, contends that the lack of regulation and monitoring removes any incentive for the industry to adopt safer practices. “What you’re telling me makes me think we should be recruiting 1,000 florists and studying their health,” Eddleston said regarding the scant data available.
Industry Lacks Safety Guidelines
Despite the mounting evidence of toxic exposure, the global floristry industry has a significant “education and awareness problem.” Many florists remain unaware of the risks, and comprehensive, publicly accessible occupational hazard guidelines are scarce. The British Florist Association (BFA) confirmed no specific, publicly available occupational hazard guidelines exist for pesticides beyond standard health and safety advice available to paying members.
In contrast to the food industry, supply chain opacity makes it nearly impossible for independent florists to source low-chemical flowers. Most small businesses buy “blind” from wholesalers, where imported flowers often lack critical labeling about chemical usage, origin, or labor practices.
Actionable Steps for Florists:
Recognizing the knowledge gap, experts and affected florists urge greater immediate caution:
- Always Use Personal Protective Equipment (PPE): Wear impermeable gloves consistently when handling imported stems.
- Improve Ventilation: Use air purifiers and ensure studios and workspaces are well-ventilated, keeping windows open when possible.
- Source Locally: Prioritize locally grown or specialized organic flowers when budget permits to reduce reliance on long-haul, heavily sprayed imports.
Following tragic cases like the one in France, some countries are considering reform. The French government has launched a study into flower worker pesticide exposure that could potentially lead to regulatory proposals, including establishing maximum pesticide residue limits for cut flowers—a crucial step toward protecting the health of professional florists globally. Chen, now recovering after leaving the industry, highlights the urgency: “Floristry is beautiful, but there’s a really dark side… that is just not talked about.”