Ecuador flower sourcing and Colombian sourcing are often treated as interchangeable for roses, but the 2026 Valentine’s numbers show two very different origins. Colombia shipped about 65,000 tons for the holiday and keeps growing; Ecuador shipped about 39,000 tons, earned less, and sends only part of its crop to North America. Add a tariff gap, and the sourcing math for grocery buyers has changed.
How big is each origin for the U.S. market?
Colombia dominates. Asocolflores says Colombia supplies about 70% of U.S. flower imports and about 80% of the bouquets sold in the U.S., and that roughly 80% of Colombian flower exports go to the U.S. (Portafolio, July 26, 2026). ColombiaOne puts 2024 flower exports at $2.3 billion, with $1.6 billion going to the U.S., and says roses are 33% of exports, followed by carnations (12%), chrysanthemums (8%) and alstroemerias (5%).
Ecuador is a rose specialist with a more global customer list. Roses made up about 70% of Ecuador’s Valentine’s orders, and the U.S. and Canada took 57% of shipments while Europe took 37%, according to Teleamazonas, citing Expoflores. That matters because Ecuadorian farms have other places to send stems if U.S. terms get worse.
What did Valentine’s 2026 show?
| Measure | Colombia | Ecuador |
|---|---|---|
| Valentine’s 2026 volume | About 65,000 tons, up 13% (ColombiaOne) | About 39,000 tons, up about 3% (Teleamazonas) |
| Revenue trend | Not reported in the source | About $274M to $276M vs. about $282M in 2025 |
| U.S. volume | U.S. takes about 79% of exports (2024) | U.S. volume down about 6%; U.S. and Canada 57% of shipments |
| Tariff rate cited by Asocolflores | 12.5% | 6.8% most-favored-nation rate |
Expoflores executive president Alejandro Martinez described an increasingly demanding environment, and the source attributes the revenue drop to tariff surcharges, a 1.4% fall in average prices and weather that affected harvest pace and quality in several areas.
How big is the tariff gap?
According to Asocolflores, Colombian flowers face a 12.5% tariff while Ecuador’s flowers are excluded from the 10% reciprocal tariff under a trade agreement but still pay a 6.8% most-favored-nation rate. Asocolflores argues this puts Colombia at a competitive disadvantage. Rates and exemptions have changed several times this year, so verify the current duty on your entry documents. On Oct. 22 Colombia’s trade minister said a deal could be signed in December but could not guarantee it (ColombiaOne).
What cost pressure is building at the farm?
Asocolflores says Colombian growers’ income fell about 26% over the past year and a half because of currency appreciation, and that labor costs are projected to rise about 30%. Those pressures can show up in pre-book prices regardless of what happens with tariffs. Our Colombia buyer’s guide covers volume and risk in more detail.
How should buyers split volume between origins?
This is editorial analysis, not a rule. Colombia’s scale, bouquet capacity and variety range are hard to replace, particularly for mixed bouquets. Ecuador is the natural option for roses where a lower duty and a different farm base reduce concentration risk. Either way, ask for landed-cost quotes with tariff terms spelled out, and compare freight and shrink, not just stem price. See our guides to supermarket floral pricing and best-selling grocery flowers to test how a cost change flows through to retail.
What else differs between the two origins?
Range and certification are part of the Colombian advantage. ColombiaOne reports that Colombia grows more than 1,600 varieties across 60 species, which supports the mixed bouquets that drive grocery volume, and that more than half of Valentine’s stems carried the Florverde sustainability seal, a program now 29 years old. Ecuador’s Valentine’s mix, by contrast, was about 70% roses. If your program is mostly red and novelty roses, both origins are candidates; if it leans on carnations, alstroemeria, chrysanthemums and filler for bouquets, Colombia is harder to replace.
Ask each supplier for the same data set so you can compare apples to apples: farm-level box and bunch specs, certification status, average days from harvest to arrival, claim history and the tariff rate on the commercial invoice. Then run the numbers through your own margin model, using the approach in our pricing and margin guide.
Takeaways: Ecuador flower sourcing for grocery buyers
- Treat Ecuador flower sourcing as a rose-first complement to Colombia, not a full substitute for bouquets.
- Request landed-cost quotes that name the tariff rate and who bears changes.
- Watch Colombia’s December deal talks, but do not price relief in before signing.
- Expect farm-level cost pressure from currency and labor in both origins.
- Check the current duty on each entry; rates cited here date from July 2026.
Travis Rigby is the publisher of SuperFloral, the news source for the mass-market floral industry. He leads its website and weekly newsletter, covering what matters to growers, breeders, supermarket floral buyers and category managers. Travis studied journalism at the University of Utah, founded and led PosterGarden.com for 27 years, and is president of FlowerBox.com.
