Jungle Talks

Several participants shared their recent Mastercourse experience. Many thanks for that! Thomas Reeves, we'll see you at the YIGOTY award event in Essen in January!

Last Friday was a wrap for another Mastercourse Floriculture. It's been a pleasure again working with these young professionals who shared their perspectives, experiences and were also FUN to work with. Sustainability is key for the sector to further develop and professionalize and the visits and discussions in the Netherlands provided more than sufficient inspiration for that. Many thanks to all the partners who worked with us in making this course a valuable experience again. We look forward to follow our participants when ambitiously working towards taking their (often family) companies to the next level in their respective countries. Stuart Vanstaalduinen, Thomas Reeves, David Marín, Gabriela Walravens, María José Herrada Cara, Bart Merkus, Cas Steenbergen, Zhang Baichong, Peter Ault, Quinten Buijs, Bernardo Anaya, DAVID PENAGOS, Tomasz Dźwigoń, mario ricardo otero zuluaga, Renee Snijders, Ed Smit

On Thursday it was time to explore the chain a bit more and go on retail safari to actually see how flowers and plants are sold in the Netherlands in the different outlets and to explore the latest trends and developments. Many thanks to Jeroen Gelderblom for joining us and sharing your insights! For the cut flower professionals among us, a visit to the IFTF was scheduled in the afternoon.

Wednesday at the Trade Fair was a day full of inspiration and celebration. Proud to see 3 young leaders elected as finalists for the Young International Grower of the Year Award by AIPH. Congratulations to David Marín, Thomas Reeves and Stuart Vanstaalduinen! #futureofflowers Many thanks to the AIPH team, Decorum Company, Michael Perry and Pull Position.

Today participants visited the Aalsmeer Trade Fair, but in the afternoon there was also room for some food for thought....Guided by award winning photographer Kadir Van Lohuizen, the group visited Het Scheepvaartmuseum to learn more about his work in relation to the global food system. The Netherlands, but also Kenya, the USA, China and Saudi Arabia/UAE were highlighted in the museum. An inspiring tour and indeed a lot to think about too!

On Monday morning everyone was fresh (enough) again to start another Mastercourse week! At Floramedia, director Benelux Ekko Vermeulen guided the participants around this impressive media company for the green industry and everyone brainstormed on the future of printing. What will plant labels look like in 5 years from now and how can media companies like Floramedia continuously add value to their customers, not only in the Netherlands and Europe, but also markets like Brazil and North America? In the afternoon, future leaders met present leaders at Chrysal International BV. CEO Remko Muntinga together with AIPH organized a networking lunch and interactive session on the challenges the floricultural industry is facing globally. It was nice to see the different generations from all over the world discussing the problems, but also opportunities they all are facing. Hopefully this is the 1st step to a larger network and pro-active approach towards a sustainable sector worldwide. #futureofflowers

We wrapped up the 1st week of the Mastercourse with inspiring visits to Dümmen Orange and Bunnik Creations. In the morning Ellen Mackenbach-Lakeman together with Tosca Ferber-Koevoets and Mon-Ray Shao gave a fascinating insight in what's happening in the Dummen Orange R&D department and how AI is used to improve plant quality. We also talked about AI and its social impact on a global company like Dümmen Orange, a dynamic discussion with valuable input from the participants from all over the world. The afternoon was all about the multitude of projects taking place at Bunnik Creations and Bunnik Plants. CEO Dennis Bunnik energized the group with his fast thinking and innovative ideas. Creating added value in the chain and making that same chain more efficient were some of the topics on the table. At the end of the week the participants concluded that although the days were long and full of information, it was definitely worth it. A big thanks to the partners for making this such an inspiring, dynamic and informative week, challenging our future leaders on so many levels!

Sustainability in the broadest sense is a red thread during the 2-week Mastercourse Floriculture. Producers are indeed working towards a future proof production system. When visiting Viscon Plant Technology – Young Plant Automation (formerly Visser) and Handelsonderneming Van Krimpen BV we brainstormed on an ideal future. How do you want to have your young plants delivered to your farm and what if plastics are no longer allowed in professional horticulture? The afternoon was topped off by a nice and green visit to Ammerlaan The Green Innovator B.V. to see CO2 neutral green plants.

AI turns growers into Tesla drivers on autopilot! On the 3rd day of the Jungle Talks Mastercourse we took a deep dive in the world of data collection and analysis, AI and automation when visiting Logiqs B.V. and Ledgnd. Gert-Jan van Staalduinen explained his vision and challenged the Mastercourse participants on the topic of vertical airflow in creating a homogeneous climate in your greenhouse at LKP Plants. In the afternoon Maarten van Bemmel and Thijmen Calis of Ledgnd zoomed in on the technology to steering plants in the best possible way by installing sensors, collecting and analyzing data into a practical growing advice. A day full of valuable information, data, but definitely also inspiration. #futureofflowers

‘Don’t be afraid of time’ and ‘sustainability is the necessary fertilizer to plants’ were some of the statements made by our participants when discussing the future of floriculture with Koppert. The fishbowl set up proved again a dynamic setting for our discussion, many thanks to Mattijs Bodegom for your inspired guidance and Peter Maes for your wise words and encouragements. At Klasmann-Deilmann Benelux B.V., Fons van Nierop created more awareness around the complexities of finding alternatives for peat. The challenge is great and solutions multifold, it will take time and effort to go forward the coming years and create a new, balanced situation in which the floricultural sector can flourish. When comparing family companies Koppert and Klasmann today, it’s easy to conclude that our journey to sustainability in horticulture is long and bumpy and while the belief in a 100% sustainable sector is there, it will take a lot to get there. It’s always great to see the energy, dedication and conviction of both suppliers and our participants taking on these challenges in not only the Netherlands but also in the US, Canada, Brazil, China, Spain, Colombia, Mexico, Poland and Kenya, because in the end, as was said multiple times during the day, they create well being and happiness and that should never be underestimated. #futureofflowers