Greenhouse growing & Industry trends
Energy cost
The Dutch greenhouse industry has been working on the Het Nieuwe Telen (HNT) project for several years. ‘Het Nieuwe Telen’ translates roughly to New Way of Growing or Next Generation Growing, and it focuses on environmental conditions such as temperature and humidity which can make a significant contribution to a balanced greenhouse climate with less energy.
Strategies to optimise crop production without unnecessary consumption of energy and water include:
• Double screens, one for energy savings and one for climate control
• Active Ventilation Systems for ventilation and de-humidification with minimum energy use
• Energy efficient electrical equipment, fans, pump, etc. The initial investment may be higher but the operational costs over the lifetime of the more efficient equipment will pay back big time.
Labour cost
In Australia, labour costs continue to rise and good people are harder to find, so growers are investing in labour saving equipment like packing lines, crop removing machines and labour registration software- changes like these will be the key to keep labour costs under control.
Hygiene
In the Netherlands a key priority is to avoid bringing in pest and diseases and to avoid spreading them during crop work and harvesting. Royal Brinkman is very successful with implementing hygiene concepts to eliminate any chance of spreading diseases as good hygiene is not just one thing but a combination of measures.
During my last visit to a large gerbera grower in Holland I saw equipment that cleaned and sterilized picking trolleys before they go back in the greenhouse after dropping of flowers in the packing shed.
Reliable quality product (available all the time)
In The Netherlands companies are getting bigger and they all have a common goal- to provide their customers with a year round quality product with a fresh, healthy and sustainable image.
In the last 10 years Spanish growers, with support of their government, have moved away from using a lot of pesticides and they now supply a large part of Europe’s organic produce.
World Horti Center
If you travel to Holland you can visit the World Horti Center. It is the leading innovation centre of the international greenhouse horticulture sector. A platform where business, education and government jointly innovate, connect, create and inspire.
World Horti Center is the knowledge and innovation center for international greenhouse horticulture. A leading platform where business, education, research and government jointly innovate, connect, inspire and share knowledge.
Every year, World Horti Center is visited by 25,000 international professionals, who are looking for connection, knowledge and innovations in horticulture. We connect parties who want to contribute in sustainable food supply and greening the world. Leading horticultural companies and innovations are represented at our year-round trade fair. Here is a complete reflection of technology, supply, floriculture and food horticulture.