Floral foam is a product that is widely used in the flower industry to create flower arrangements. It is a soft, spongy, foliage green brick of foam that supports flower arranging and soaks water to preserve and prolong the life of fresh cut flowers. Floral foam is made of phenol, formaldehyde polymers, surfactants, and wetting agents. The foam is treated with detergents to give it the unique ability to soak up water, and it can hold up to 50 times its weight in water. Floral foam was invented by product designer V.L Smithers in the 1950s and has since become an essential tool in modern floral design. However, floral foam has no place in sustainable floral design, and it is contributing to the growing crisis of plastic pollution. Floral foam is a single-use plastic that has as much plastic content as 10 carrier bags. It is not biodegradable and does not fully dissolve in water or degrade in landfill or soil. Instead, it breaks down into smaller and smaller micro-plastics, which can take thousands of years to completely revert into natural elements. Floral foam can cause eye, skin, and respiratory tract irritation.

In summary, floral foam is made of phenol, formaldehyde polymers, surfactants, and wetting agents. It is a single-use plastic that is not biodegradable and contributes to plastic pollution. It can cause eye, skin, and respiratory tract irritation.