{"id":27656,"date":"2025-04-23T08:55:00","date_gmt":"2025-04-23T06:55:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rewe-group.com\/en\/?p=27656"},"modified":"2026-03-03T16:13:45","modified_gmt":"2026-03-03T15:13:45","slug":"good-for-the-eye-and-nature","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rewe-group.com\/en\/press-and-media\/newsroom\/stories\/good-for-the-eye-and-nature\/","title":{"rendered":"Good for the eye and nature"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Flowers and ornamental plants are becoming increasingly important in REWE Group’s product ranges. Anyone who brings color and freshness into their home or garden pays attention to price and sustainability.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Sustainability<\/p>\n

Preserving and promoting biodiversity<\/h2>
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Goodbye winter gray! With spring comes the desire of many plant and flower lovers to beautify their homes with fresh greenery and colorful blooms. April is the start for our industry. Subsequent frosts are rare and the first cold-resistant plants can be planted,<\/q> says Nadja Haese, Team Leader Support, Process & Sustainability Plants at toom. If you want to be sure that low temperatures won’t kill freshly planted plants, you often wait until May, sometimes even June, to plant geraniums, summer heather or pansies. According to the Agricultural Market Information Company (AMI), these three plants have been the most popular bedding and balcony plants in Germany for years. In spring, however, Nadja Haese adds that garden and balcony owners are particularly fond of primroses and bulbous plants. These are our best sellers at the start of the season,<\/q> she emphasizes.<\/p>\n <\/div>\n\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n

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About:<\/h2>

\n Nadja Haese <\/p>\n\n

Team Leader Support, Process & Sustainability Plants at toom<\/p>\n \n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n

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The flower and ornamental plant industry is hoping that the trend will now point upwards again after a difficult year in 2024. According to figures from the AMI, the overall market only recorded an increase of one percent to 8.8 billion euros last year. Growth that is purely price-driven, according to the industry association. The volumes sold fell in almost all market segments compared to the previous year. The AMI only awarded good marks for the months of March to April. In all other months, the market was at an unusually low level for the ornamental plant sector.<\/p>\n

This development cannot be attributed to capricious weather conditions alone. Rather, suppliers of flowers and ornamental plants are feeling the effects of consumers’ increased willingness to save. Uncertain about the general economy and worried about their own financial situation, many customers are also holding back on buying flowers and ornamental plants. This is a new experience for our industry, because in the past we were able to decouple ourselves from the development of the economy as a whole. People have not let bad news stop them from bringing freshness and color into their homes with flowers,<\/q> says Mirko Sauerbach, Senior Buyer Ultra-Fresh Goods 1 at REWE Group and responsible for cut flowers.<\/p>\n <\/div>\n\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n

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About:<\/h2>

\n Mirko Sauerbach <\/p>\n\n

Senior Buyer Ultra-Fresh Goods 1<\/p>\n \n

\n is responsible for cut flowers as Senior Buyer Ultra-Fresh Goods 1 at REWE Group. <\/p>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n

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The sale of bouquets in REWE and PENNY stores follows different dates to the gardening season. Our five highlights for cut flowers are Valentine’s Day, Women’s Day, Easter, Mother’s Day and Advent,<\/q> says Sauerbach. The best-selling plants in spring are tulips; they are already available in the markets from the second calendar week. In terms of the year as a whole, roses are number one. However, there is a major problem with tulips this spring. Due to the capricious weather last year, significantly fewer bulbs were planted and harvested than usual. There have not been such adverse conditions for decades,<\/q> says the REWE buyer. The shortage of bulbs is driving up prices, but customers are sensitive and are more likely to refrain from buying flowers.<\/p>\n <\/div>\n\n <\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Cut flowers and bouquets from REWE Group stores offer a colorful way to bring nature into the home and give joy, even without your own garden.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div> <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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The reluctance to buy garden plants is not yet as pronounced. According to AMI figures, bedding and balcony plants, shrubs, perennials, herbs and flower bulbs accounted for almost half of industry sales in 2024. Just under 4.2 billion euros meant an increase of just over one percent compared to the previous year. People who love plants and flowers but don’t have a garden also try to use small areas, for example on their balcony,<\/q> says Nadja Haese. According to her observations, it is increasingly important to plant buyers not only to create a visually beautiful garden. Rather, they also want to do something good for nature, for example by creating good conditions for bees and butterflies. Sustainability is also playing an increasingly important role when buying plants. For example, there are more questions about peat-reduced products. <\/q>We have a lot to offer in this area,” says the toom expert.<\/p>\n

A large proportion of the goods sold in the toom, REWE and PENNY stores come from the Netherlands. The neighboring country is the world’s most important trading center for cut flowers. Potted plants, on the other hand, mainly come from domestic production or are delivered from Italy, Spain or Denmark. “And most of our roses come from Africa,” adds Sauerbach.<\/p>\n

The importance of the flowers and ornamental plants product group in REWE Group’s product ranges has increased significantly in recent years. “We are increasingly thinking about new forms of presentation in the stores, investing in vases and furniture and making our product ranges more upmarket,” emphasizes Sauerbach. It used to be difficult to sell bouquets for more than 15 euros in food retail. In the meantime, however, customers have realized that the quality in the market is no worse than in traditional flower shops. In its 2024 annual report, the industry association AMI cites another reason why the food retail sales channel is becoming increasingly important for the green industry: “The shortage of skilled workers has led to a shift in revenue and volumes from traditional specialist retailers to the food retail sector.”<\/p>\n <\/div>\n\n <\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Read more<\/h2>\n \n <\/div>\n
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    Press release<\/p>\n

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    9 March 2026<\/p>\n

    Sustainable, innovative and longer-lasting: REWE Group sets a new standard in hydroponic cultivation with its loose-leaf lettuce<\/h3> <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/a>\n <\/button>\n<\/div>\n <\/li>\n
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    \n \"From\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
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    Press release<\/p>\n

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    19 January 2026<\/p>\n

    Pioneer in the German food retail sector: REWE Group, Landfrisch AG and Producers launch unique partnership model for promising vegetable cultivation<\/h3> <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/a>\n <\/button>\n<\/div>\n <\/li>\n
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