I once had a boyfriend who bought me as many roses on Valentine's Day as years that we had been together. We only got to three, but it was still a sweet gesture. And like most gift recipients, I was too pleased with the flowers to care where they came from-what florist my boyfriend had chosen (or more likely, the corner store that obliged him when he realized he'd forgotten the holiday) or, for that matter, to consider where they were grown.

But this past Valentine's Day, I read about a debate raging in Britain about flowers and "food miles"-whether it is better for the environment to buy flowers imported from Africa and flown thousands of miles on carbon-emitting airplanes, or from within Europe, where a comparable amount of energy is used to heat the necessary greenhouses. One columnist from Britain called this scrutiny of flowers just an excuse for environmentalists to add another item to their "killjoy hitlist." I chuckled at the turn of phrase, but I did wonder: Could my flower-buying habits have an impact on the world?

It turns out that anyone buying a bouquet, myself included, is just the end point of a long journey for those flowers, which are cultivated and then harvested into cold storage, shipped via international airlines, trucked to a neighborhood grocer, and-finally-delivered to the vase on the dining room table. Often these flowers travel more miles than their buyer might on a long vacation. And they leave in their fragrant wake pesticide-ridden farms and a trail of greenhouse gases. But from within the floral industry, an awareness of these effects has led to certifications and labels that allow us to buy flowers-without sprouting guilty consciences.

About 70 percent of flowers sold in the United States come from abroad, and most of those are imported from Colombia and Ecuador. This trend toward importing started back in the '60s, when a few businessmen began looking for sunnier climes in which to grow popular types of blooms year-round, according to Amy Stewart, author of Flower Confidential: The Good, the Bad and the Beautiful in the Business of Flowers. Global transportation had improved, and it became feasible for us to ship flowers over longer distances, kicking off an industry that today warrants a closer look.

Today the cut-flower industry is a $6.2 billion business in the United States, according to U.S. census data. While that seems like a lot, we're still trailing other parts of the world in our flower purchases. Americans spend only about $5 per household on flowers every year compared with Canadians, for example, who spend about $11, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). It boils down to this: We want our flowers cheap, we want them perfect, and we want them all year-round. With all these demands, South America is outdoing the domestic flower market, and we don't have the option to simply buy local unless our priorities (or our regional climates) change. So flower executives with a conscience have developed other ways to sell responsibly: by working with growers abroad to develop standards and certifications to foster practices that produce sustainable, and organic, flowers.

But what the heck is an organic flower? Both abroad and stateside, farmers are growing flowers in accordance with the USDA's national organic program: eliminating or reducing the use of pesticides, abiding by practices of crop rotation, minimizing soil erosion, and abstaining from burning crops as a way to dispose of waste.

Perhaps more important, the practice of "sustainable" flower farming is budding because of certifying bodies such as Veriflora and (soon) Transfair's Fair Trade program. The two organizations take a holistic look at how flowers are produced by sending independent, regionally based auditors to visit farms and observe farming practices (pesticide use, water conservation, and waste management) as well as to assess conditions for workers. Veriflora inspectors interview farm laborers, review pay stubs, evaluate protective gear, and scrutinize schedules, making sure that workers don't re-enter areas too soon after the plants have been treated with harmful chemicals.

In addition, Veriflora makes efforts to help flower farms work toward sustainability. Not all of these farms, for example, can afford to completely eliminate their use of fertilizers and pesticides. But they can reduce the amounts they use, and find ways to recycle the chemicals so that less of them winds up in groundwater wells or streams and rivers. Veriflora specialists make recommendations to farmers who want to be certified, but aren't quite there yet. "No flower farm can be expected to wake up tomorrow and just be organic," Stewart told me. "It has to be a transition, and consumers have to reward farms that are willing to go through that transition."

So how do we do that if part of the appeal of buying flowers is the spontaneity? It's one thing to buy flowers on the Internet; simply search for "organic flowers" and find a retailer like OrganicBouquet.com, whose CEO, Gerald Prolman, was one of the pioneers of the organic flower business. But what do you do when you need a bunch on the way to a dinner party, or (in the case of my old boyfriend) when you need three roses, and quick?

To address this need, Veriflora and Organic Bouquet target florists and mainstream retailers, slowly persuading them that the demand for sustainable flowers is significant. The numbers are on their side. Today, organic and sustainable flowers represent the fastest-growing sector in the non-food organic market. In 2005, the industry racked up almost $16 million in sales, according to the Organic Trade Association. Some outlets have jumped on the bandwagon. Stores such as Safeway, Trader Joe's, Kroger, and Bristol Farms carry bouquets that bear the Veriflora label. In Portland, OR, the New Seasons retail chain and some Whole Foods stores sell flowers from Organic Bouquet.

To be sure, only time will tell if organic blooms can become an industry standard, rather than a specialty product. But for me, the choice is clear.

Lithuanian-born anarchist Emma Goldman once said, "I'd rather have flowers on my table than diamonds around my neck." I'd agree. Despite the complex journey that our flowers take to get to our vases, they are a simple pleasure that delights the senses. So, yes, I'll cut back in other areas, reducing my own carbon footprint to compensate for their air mileage. I'll opt to air-dry my clothes and continue to take public transportation. That way, next February, I can guiltlessly stick my nose in a bunch of Trader Joe's Veriflora-certified roses and wait for the next boyfriend to come around.

Certifications to look for

Veriflora This label was established by Scientific Certified Systems, an organization that has evaluated food safety for over 20 years.

TransFair USA A nonprofit organization responsible for Fair Trade labels on other products, such as coffee, bananas, and cocoa.

Demeter Biodynamic Demeter adheres to biodynamic farming principles, which treat farms as living organisms. Biodynamic farmers do not use artificial fertilizers or chemical pesticides; they rely solely on organic material.

USDA Organic This label is based on guidelines established by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and includes regulations on crop production, handling, and treatment of livestock.

Flower Confidential: The Good, the Bad, and the Beautiful in the Business of Flowers by Amy Stewart

"Sustainable Flowers: From Farm to Bouquet," The Beyond Organic Show (podcast), May 2005

"In flowers, too, green is the new red," Amy Stewart, SFGate.com, February 7, 2007

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