Liners Aid World First Export of The Rare and Fragile Trillium

re~fresh liners have helped enable the world's first export of the rare and fragile Trillium.

A recent packaging change to Convex Plastics re~fresh liners has helped a small Central Otago packhouse save money, maintain steady export sales, and become the world's first exporters of the rare and fragile Trillium.

Bannockburn Floriculture near Cromwell specialises in growing rare and unusual plants and foliage, and exports approximately 400 boxes per annum of mainly Eremurus (Foxtail Lily), Alchmellia Mollis and Allium. Their Trillium, which they describe as a woodlands treasure-type plant, will now also be increasingly exported thanks to its successful first US showing in October at the Wholesale Florist and Flower Suppliers Association (WFFSA) show in Atlanta.

The export-focused packhouse has used re~fresh flower liners on all their crops for the past three seasons and credit the resulting quality improvements in all varieties for helping them completely eliminate claims, and retain steady export sales despite the strengthening Kiwi dollar.

Believed to be the only exporters of Trillium in the world, Bannockburn Floriculture also credits their consistent use of re~fresh flower liners for enabling them to export the easily dehydrated Trillium, which they claim previously struggled to survive the trip to Auckland.

According to Bannockburn Floriculture director, Jane Preston, "Before we started using liners the Trillium drank all the water in the vials and were wilted before they got to Auckland. Although they do rehydrate, they drink a lot of water and need protection because their transpiration is obviously quite high. Using the liners has made a huge difference. In fact I don't think we'd even be sending them if it wasn't for the liners."

"Our mission statement is `quality elegance in flowers', and the liners have been one of our main tools for helping us achieve that," Jane adds. "I use them on everything I can because I find that the quality is so much better. The flowers always look good and are well hydrated."

re~fresh flower liners have been specifically designed to keep fresh cut flowers fresher longer by minimising moisture and petal loss, thus enabling them to hold their colour and arrive at their destination in prime condition. The liners are manufactured in New Zealand by Convex Plastics and are distributed by Tauranga-based Ellbee Ltd.

According to Ellbee Ltd director, Jane Bryant, using re~fresh liners often results in up to a weeks extra shelf life. They also help reduce packing time for some varieties of flowers by up to 80 percent by eliminating the need to use vials and floss, which has resulted in significant time and cost savings for many growers and packers.

re~fresh liners are currently commercially available for several varieties of flowers, including Hydrangeas, Helleborus, Peonies, Boronia, Leptospernum and Waratah.