California’s U.S. senators and more than half of its congressional delegation backed a request from the state’s flower growers for $15 million to build a transport hub that would help counter Colombian competition.
The Obama administration should include the creation of a flower distribution center in the bill for a free-trade agreement with Colombia, the top source of imported cut flowers sold in the U.S., the lawmakers said in a July 14 letter to U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk. The letter was signed by Democratic Senators Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer and 29 of the state’s 53 representatives, including Republican Darrell Issa and Democrat Mike Thompson.
Hauling California irises, lilies and tulips from one central site would fill large trucks more efficiently, reducing growers’ costs by 20 percent to 40 percent, according to the California Cut Flower Commission.
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