Floriculture industry gathers in the Netherlands

For several years now, November is an important month for the ornamental industry. In the second week of November, players from all over the world come to the Netherlands, where besides the two main exhibitions IFTF and FloraHolland TradeFair, many events take place. 

And more happened, like Royal Brinkman acquired Berg Hortimotive, construction for Breeding Technology Center Dümmen Orange took off, Floral companies got their own pavilion at Expo Agroalimentari, OAT Agrio Ltd acquired Chrysal International from Nordian Capital Partners, Orchids4all was declared bankrupt, and the largest plant grower in South Africa announced 5ha expansion.

Royal Brinkman acquires Berg Hortimotive

It was a bit too early for champagne when the contracts were signed yesterday morning, but the takeover of Berg Hortimotive by Royal Brinkman was suitably celebrated with cake. "What we're seeing is that logistics and labor are increasingly important themes. With this step, we're strengthening our base in this…

"World’s largest laboratory for flower research"

NL: Construction starts for Breeding Technology Center of Dümmen Orange

Yesterday the first pile of the Breeding Technology Center (BTC) of Dümmen Orange was ceremonially struck into the ground in the presence of the mayor of Westland, vice-president of major shareholder BC Partners, board, employees, construction partners and the press. This new center will centralize all technical…

South African Cape Flora on the rise

Over the last few years the interest for South African Cape Flora has grown and the high demand really became apparent during the drought in the Cape Province at the beginning of 2018. "The demand exceeded the supply", explains Dave Kaplan of Afrex Trading, an exporter of South African horti-and agricultural products…

Trials till November 10 in the Netherlands and from November 13-24 in France:

Special varieties steal the show at Morel's cyclamen trials

Everyone is looking for something new and special. Also for Morel Diffusion, "What are your special varieties?" is a more often heard  question. Again this year, at their trials there was a good amount of interest in their special varieties and particularly the new Indiaka cyclamen caught the eye of many. According to Johan…

Floriforum provides platform for old friends to discuss flowers

“It is good to stop and think”, Micha Danziger told us. While in the halls of the Expo Aalsmeer the stands were being prepared for the IFTF, which gets underway today, in an adjacent room the Floriforum was held. A mixed crowd of growers, traders, retail and logistics gathered to share their thoughts on the future of…

Cargolite demonstrates workings new packaging concept

It took them about 2.5 years to get things going, but now all hurdles have finally been taken. That is, minus some logistical limitations at the airport in Nairobi, the new Cargolite packaging concept is operational. Yesterday morning, the first boxes sent by Mavuno arrived in the Coloríginz box in Aalsmeer, the…

Photo report IFTF 2018

Last week, from November 7-9, the IFTF took place in Vijfhuizen, the Netherlands. Nearly 300 companies showcased their varieties and services, attracting visitors from all over the world. Every year, the cut flower show is becoming bigger and the number of visitors is increasing. Also this year, the visitor number was…

Photo report: FloraHolland Trade Fair 2018

This year's FHTF attracted more than 16,000 visitors from all over the world. Together with the IFTF in Vijfhuizen, more than 1,000 companies from Africa, South America and elsewhere exhibited at both fairs. So without exaggerating, we can say that the Netherlands played host to the lion's share of the global trade…

Karel Bolbloemen, Ammerlaan-Sosef and Leybaert win Dutch Flower Awards 2018

Marco van Zijverden, CEO of Dutch Flower Group (DFG), announced the winners of the 2018 Dutch Flower Awards at the DFG stand during the RFH Trade Fair. “Sustainability” was the central theme of this year’s honours. This is now the 17th time DFG has put its supply chain partners in the spotlight via the…

Plenty of market opportunities

Russia: A nation of flower lovers

In recent years, the Russian government has made self-sufficiency a top priority. This has already resulted in a large number of new greenhouse projects for vegetable cultivation. But also in flowers and plants, Russia aims to become less dependent on imports. That's not all bad news for foreign companies, however.…

Photo report: Floral industry finds its way to Expo Agroalimentaria

The Expo Agroalimentaria is a real fresh produce show, making it possible for exhibitors and visitors to explore the agricultural opportunities in this rising market in Mexico. The floriculture industry, however, is growing in the country as well and was now entering the show more conspicuously. For the first time, a…

OAT Agrio Ltd acquires Chrysal International from Nordian Capital Partners

OAT Agrio Japan Ltd (OAT) will acquire 100% of the shares of Chrysal from Nordian Capital Partners and management. The transaction is subject to approval by the relevant competition authorities. OAT will help Chrysal to further strengthen their market position by adding new products to the Chrysal portfolio and the…

Netherlands: Orchids4all declared bankrupt

The court of Amsterdam has declared Orchids4All, an orchid nursery in Amsterdam, bankrupt. Orchids4all began growing orchids in 1967. The plants were marketed under various brands. Only recently, the Wonders of Amsterdam brand was expanded with the addition of a new collection. The grower hasn't commented, referring to the curator, Mr. J.W.…

Pieter Mertens, Deroose Plants & Exotic Plant

US (FL): "We grow fast, faster than our space allows us to"

"We grow fast, faster than our space allows us to", says Pieter Mertens, Production Manager at the Deroose Plants & Exotic Plant in Apopka (FL), USA. For this reason, this young and finished plants supplier is looking for opportunities to expand their 3.6 ha nursery in the near future. Last month, we paid a visit…

Jose Luis Vargas, Verdissimo

"Demand for preserved flowers exploded over the last 3 years"

The world of preserved flowers is mostly known for just the heads, although one of the biggest producers, Verdissimo, has been supplying preserved long-stem roses for several years. At the IFTF in Vijfhuizen, Verdissimo showed their newest stem product, preserved garden roses with a short stem (27.5cm). Ready to…

Greenhouse builder Vermako

Largest plant grower in South Africa to expand with 5 hectares

LVG Plants, the company of the Van Geest family, is the largest plant grower in South Africa. The grower has been seeing his business grow in the past years, and so he has been able to invest in sustainable power supply, in new construction, and, next year, in expansion. Soon, 5 hectares will be added, with the help…

John Henderson, Floral Computer Systems:

“Over- or underselling is a thing of the past”

Over the last decade, selling online has become more important. The Internet has offered huge growth opportunities, but also made it more challenging to manage inventory. And when the inventory is not being updated for all channels at once, both overselling and underselling can easily occur. In order to prevent this,…