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A U.S. Customs agent inspects roses from Colombia with a magnifying glass for insects, diseases and drug residue, at Miami International Airport. (Associated Press / The Spokesman-Review)
Associated Press
A U.S. Customs agent inspects roses from Colombia with a magnifying glass for insects, diseases and drug residue, at Miami International Airport. (Associated Press / The Spokesman-Review)

ATLANTA — An expected surge in Valentine’s Day flower purchases this year is proving to be a boon for both South American growers and major shipping companies.

Atlanta-based UPS Inc. and Memphis, Tenn.-based FedEx Corp. are bringing in extra workers and planes to handle all the flower shipments from Colombia and Ecuador, where the bulk of the roses sold in the United States are grown.

And demand is predicted to be high with roughly 175 million roses produced for Monday’s holiday, according to the Society of American Florists.

FedEx this week expects to carry 900,000 shipments of Valentine’s Day gifts, including flowers, teddy bears and chocolates. UPS said it expects to move in excess of 20 million flowers alone.

“While our total volume is roughly the same as last year, our peak day — Monday — is going to be 30 percent higher than last year,” said Jack Muhs, FedEx’s vice president of global network planning.

FedEx doesn’t deliver on Sundays, so that means more shipments of flowers this year will be made on Monday. Last year, the holiday fell on a Saturday.

“Most of the husbands or sweethearts want to get the product there on Valentine’s Day,” he added. “This year, with the holiday falling on a Monday, we’re focusing a lot of attention on the weekend.”

To handle the extra volume, FedEx is adding more than 100 refrigerated trucks and more than 50 flights this week. Spokeswoman Lourdes Pena said about 40 corporate employees have volunteered to help at the company’s Miami distribution hub.

At UPS, the company said that during the run-up to Valentine’s Day, it doubles its number of flights out of South America to handle the flower shipments. Retailers place their orders with growers in Ecuador, who then work with export cargo agents to get shippers like UPS to bring the flowers into the United States.

The National Retail Federation estimates that consumers will spend less on average this Valentine’s Day, though more people will be celebrating the holiday, which could give a boost to overall spending.