Using Fresh Flowers on a Wedding Cake

Fresh flowers can be a beautiful addition to any cake however, there are also safety concerns to take into account when using fresh flowers with food.   As an alternative, you may wish to decorate your cake table with fresh flowers, and use sugar flowers on the cake itself to avoid any problems or concerns.

Below you will find general information on using fresh flowers, as well as a few questions you might ask your florist. Never hesitate to follow up with your florist if you have any concerns.

Fresh Flowers:

• Fresh flowers should always be arranged in containers or taped into corsages to avoid contamination.  For food safety purposes, flower stems should NEVER be directly inserted into the cake.
• If you as the cake decorator arrange fresh flowers for a cake be sure to add this as an additional charge. Include the cost of the flowers plus a $10 – 30 arranging fee (depending on estimated time required.)
• Most cake decorators prefer to place the flowers on the cake for liability as well as food safety issues

Questions to ask a florist before using flowers on a cake:

·       Are the flowers toxic? Unfortunately, many popular wedding flowers are toxic. Be sure to double check.

·       Are the flowers organically grown? These are truly the only way to go as you do not want toxic pesticides near your cake.

·       Does the florist prepare the flowers in some type of container or pick? One simple way to avoid most contamination is to arrange the cake flowers in a container that can be sat on top of the cake, or taping them into a corsage type arrangement which will allow the stems to be placed into a special food safe plastic pick to be inserted into the cake, rather than inserting the flower stems directly into the cake.

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