The Rose Industry In Ecuador
Ecuador as one of the top producers of roses
Ecuador is located on the west coast of South America and has a huge abundance of different plants . However the one that stands out the most are domestically grown roses. The industry has grown to be one of the top distributors of roses in the world . Roses remain one of the top exports for Ecuador and has created many jobs along with bringing in millions of dollars to the country .The Diamond of national completive advantage created by Michael Porter hence the name porter diamond is an illustrative drawing showing the advantages some countries have over the their counterparts.
In Ecuador’s case the main advantage is its climate allowing it to mass produce enough roses to supply demand .Michael Porter believed a countries ability to succeed economically was to come up with new factor endowments, which consist of manufacturing new technology and creating a better overall cultural environment. The way the rose industry works in Ecuador pertains to the point on the diamond in way to show how one country can find success from its own natural resources The first point given is factor conditions that are information on how a country has certain advantages in producing goods kind of like absolute advantage. Ecuador has the perfect climate for growing roses as its warm all year around and the location of the fields are unique They are actually based near a volcano at a very high altitude helping the roses receive strong sunlight .Related and supporting industries are advancing industry prompting points of interest in certain fields.
For Ecuador its stronghold is its environment and clean soil has led to a multibillion-dollar industry. The methods used to produce high quality roses and the aviation industry has boomed to compliment the export of the roses. The local development and attempt to make profit in certain industries at later stages depending on the opportunity cost.
The rose industry helps Ecuador when it comes to building its infrastructure Demand conditions are when a highly demanded product is manufactured locally leading firms to put more time in capitalizing trying to get their product out on foreign markets, in Ecuador’s case the export of roses have always been in high demand especially around Valentine ’s Day.
The production of high quality roses has risen along combined with expertise knowledge has helped the rose industry spread all over the world. Before the improvement of the transportation sector of the country has Ecuador had trouble keeping up with the demand but now with air transport increasing, the overall economy has improved exponentially When the roses are finished growing they are moved from fields to delivery areas that are built to protect the flowers until they reach the ship or plane depending on the distance of their destination. After all the years of testing various ways to safely conserve the roses Ecuador has finally improved technology and now the roses can be conserved for up to few weeks. This is good because air transportation only has so much whereas ships have tons of space to help deliver a larger load all at once instead taking a lot of trips Even though the industry continues to boom there are few downfalls because of it. Low pay is an issue especially since its hard labor and there is neglect when it comes to the wellbeing of workers. Most are women but there have been instances issues with children being brought in to work on the fields. The conditions can be harsh due to the hot climate and not being protected from the sunlight. This raises the risk of heat related illness such as heat stroke or severe sunburn.
Around the valentines holiday workers are working more hours and do not get compensated for the extra time put in. What can be done is giving employees some more leeway such as adding an extra hour or providing good equipment. The workers’ health should always come first as a unhealthy workforce can be a hindrance to production.
