Flowers worth Rs 500 million sold during this year’s Tihar festival

KATHMANDU: During this year’s Tihar festival, flower sales in Nepal reached a total of Rs 500 million, with the largest transactions taking place in the Kathmandu Valley.

Dilip Bade, President of the Floriculture Association of Nepal (FAN), mentioned that this year’s flower trade was almost on par with last year’s figures.

On average, a standard flower garland was priced at Rs 100 for consumers. Bade also highlighted that the flower trade was smoother this year, thanks to the Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC), which designated 46 specific locations for flower sales.

The flower market is growing by 15 to 20 percent annually, but flower production is only increasing by 10 percent.

While domestic production meets the demand for ‘makhamali’ (globe amaranth) and ‘godavari’ (chrysanthemum), marigolds and red roses still need to be imported from India, according to Bade, the president of the Federation of Nepalese Floriculture (FAN).

Flower cultivation for commercial purposes has spread across 52 districts, including Kaski, Chitwan, Makawanpur, Kavrepalanchowk, Gulmi, Palpa, Dhading, Morang, and the three districts in the Kathmandu Valley.

Bade also mentioned that flowers from 450 different species are now grown commercially.

The industry has benefited more than 44,000 people, with 1,184 farmers engaged in flower cultivation on a total of 221 hectares of land.