double from last spring. reporter: despite the high prices, people are still buying. sales of valentine s day flowers, candies and cards in the u.s. are expected to rake in $24 billion this year, according to the national retail federation. just two years ago, flower growers in the netherlands, the world s biggest flower exporter, were destroying their stems because of a lack of demand. many florists around the world temporarily closed their business because of covid lockdowns. but the industry is blooming once more. weddings are back on and florists say people send flowers as a way of keeping in touch during the pandemic, and that hasn t slowed down. flower growers in colombia who primarily sell to the u.s. say the biggest challenge this year is keeping up with demand. translator: the difficulties have been huge. the main thing has been to protect the health of the
double, double from last spring. reporter: despite the high prices, people are still buying. sales of valentine s day, flowers, candy and cards in the u.s. are expected to rake in nearly $24 billion this year, according to the national retail federation. just two years ago, flower growers in the netherlands, the world s biggest flower exporter, were destroying their stems because of a lack of demand. many florists around the world have temporarily closed their business because of covid lockdowns. but the industry is blooming once more. weddings are back on and florists say people send flowers as a way of keeping in touch during the pandemic, and that hasn t slowed down. flower growers in columbia who primarily sell to the u.s. say the biggest challenge this year is keeping up with demand. the difficulties has been