He has been busy since dawn and will continue until 10 p.m., working overtime to hit export quotas. Inside the greenhouse the stench of sprayed pesticides makes the youngsters dizzy, but they have no time to rest. Summer is peak season in Colombia for harvesting the flowers that are farmed around Bogota, Cali, and Medellin.
Cut flowers are Colombia's new miracle export, hailed as an alternative to cocaine.
Colombia also exports roses, lilies, and other flowers. But the hidden cost of this trade is high for the children who provide the growers with cheap labor and for the workers exposed to pesticides, some of which are banned in Europe and the United States. When they spray the pesticides, I get sick, but my family needs the money. By law, children from 12 to 14 may work a maximum of only four hours a day, for the same pay as an adult. But as in other areas, the law in Colombia is often a theory, not a practice.