Airlines become major flower carriers for Valentine's Day

Airplanes have trumped other forms of transportation this year to carry flowers ahead of Valentine's Day, as many land-based courier companies have ceased operations over the Lunar New Year holiday from February 7 to February 13.

The first working day after the holiday happens to be Valentine's Day, so many airlines have become major transporters of flowers, according to civil aviation authorities in Guangzhou, Guangdong province.

China Southern Airlines has introduced several measures to ensure the rapid transportation of flowers during the week leading up to Valentine's Day.

It transported 43 tons of flowers from Guangzhou City in Guangdong province to Guiyang, Nanjing, Yiwu and Ningbo.

Flower prices have risen by up to 30 percent in Kunming, a major source of flowers, due to a drop in supply caused by frequent bad weather. But the demand from across the country continues to grow.

During the Spring Festival, the most popular good transported from Kunming to Guangzhou was flowers.