MIAMI — Mother’s Day is coming up this weekend, and Miami International Airport is working overtime as flowers are coming in by the tons, literally.
Every single day, roughly 1,500 tons of flowers arrive at MIA, making them the airport’s largest import.
Many of the beautiful blooms come from Colombia.
The flower industry generates about $1.8 billion in annual revenue.
Before those sweet-smelling arrangements arrive in your mother’s arms, every petal gets inspected.
Invasive species could ruin the local ecology, which is almost as bad as disappointing mom with a bug in her bouquet.
“Behind every bouquet, there’s a journey and a responsibility, because the vast majority of these flowers come right here into MIA,” said Daniel Alonzo with U.S. Customs and Border Protection. “Ninety-one percent of all flowers come through here, and that’s where our CBP specialist have been. They’re not just here to move flowers quickly. Their role is to protect the American agriculture, our economy, and really our way of life.”
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