The first Floriculture Mastercourse Meet Up took place in Holambra, Brazil. This new event, initiated by Jungle Talks and organized by and for Mastercourse alumni proved again the demand and interest from young, talented (future) leaders in floriculture to meet and exchange knowledge and experiences, as stated by Jungle Talks.
Holambra was the stage of a 5-day program with information shared by, amongst others, Mastercourse alumni representing Sitio Kolibri, Ecoflora, Jan de Wit, Symphony, and Joost Kalanchoe. Cooperative institutions like Insumos, Sicredi, and Veiling Holambra provided a view of the current situation of Brazilian floriculture.
Participants were Mastercourse alumni from around the world including the Netherlands, North America, Mexico, Turkey, Slovenia, Kenya, and Taiwan. "It is my first visit," said Marcel Boonekamp, production director of Phalaenopsis at Green Circle Growers, "and I am truly impressed by the cooperative spirit and what they've built here since 1948. To me, Brazil has been a useful reference to what we're doing in Ohio, maybe even more useful than the Netherlands.
Harry Kruger from Kenya added; "I signed up as soon as the announcement for this Meet Up was published, because I didn't want to miss the chance of meeting again with former participants to the Mastercourse. From the moment we arrived in Brazil, we hit it off as if we had known each other for years already. It's been very inspiring to learn more about Brazil and floriculture in this way, together with peers, to me that's also the power of the Mastercourse concept."
The Brazilian alumni, 8 in total, were delighted to receive this international group and show them what is happening in Holambra. "It's been a great way to let people experience what we do here, how Brazil works, and what it takes to build a business here. Multiple generations have been involved in building a blooming floriculture industry and now that the next generation is slowly taking over, I am proud to share how we do this,"said Simone van Oene of Joost Kalanchoe.
Jungle Talks thanks all participants to this first Meet Up and the sponsors they partnered with for this event. "Thanks to the contributions and support of Floricultura, Insumos, Sicredi, and Veiling Holambra, this event was a great success", says Renee Snijders of Jungle Talks. While visiting Veiling Holambra, all participants attended the first Brazilian Young Grower of the Year award ceremony. Linked to the AIPH Young International Grower of the Year Award (YIGOTY), annually handed out during the IPM in Essen, Veiling initiated this national award to put young growers in the spotlight. Winner Gabriela Walravens of Flor y Ser won a spot in the upcoming Mastercourse Floriculture in October/November and will automatically compete for the AIPH YIGOTY award.
A regular Floriculture Mastercourse is taking place from 28 October to 8 November in the Netherlands and welcomes again 15 selected talents from the world of floriculture.
For more information
Jungle Talks
Ed Smit
Email: [email protected]
Renee Snijders
Email: [email protected]
www.jungletalks.com