Last month, our Area Manager Maik Mandemaker travelled to Denmark to meet our local MPS-ABC participants, to update them on developments over the past and coming year and to exchange information and ideas.
This meeting was part of the Danish grower’s meeting that is held once every year. All Danish MPS participants are invited to this meeting regarding MPS and sustainability. This year the meeting was arranged by the association Flora Dania (Danish Ornamental Plants). The subject for the meeting was news from MPS, and the relevance of a CO2 footprint and Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) from a retailer’s point of view.
The meeting started with an informative presentation from Maik Mandemaker on optimalisations in the MPS-ABC record keeping environment and on the reliability index score (RI-score) impact. Maik also explained the reasons for implementing the RI-score and the benefits of it.
Maj Schøler Fausing, Head of Strategy at Plantorama A/S, gave a speech on sustainability and LCA and told how the Danish retailer Plantorama looked at the future and the demand for LCA’s, carbon footprint and sustainability. She pointed out that Plantorama, according to the law, will be required to publish detailed information on sustainability matters. In 2025 Plantorama must deliver an LCA/CO2 footprint in relation to scope 3 and this demand can only be fulfilled in cooperation with their suppliers and amongst them the Danish growers.
For the future, Fausing expects that the growers will be meet with requirements on LCA and CO2 footprint calculations. These assumptions were supported by Maik Mandemaker who mentioned that there already are European retailers wanting CO2 footprint calculation. To make it possible for the growers to fulfill the requirements for CO2 footprint calculation, MPS and their partner LetsGrow.com developed the HortiFootprint Calculator. Mandemaker explained that most of the data that are necessary for the HortiFootprint Calculator can be collected from the MPS-ABC record-keeping and only data regarding pots, packing and transportation has to be added to the HortiFootprint Calculator. For a MPS-ABC participant it takes only few more record-keepings to be able to calculate the CO2 footprint of the company.
All in all, it was a very informative and interesting meeting for both MPS and growers. We’ll see you all again next year!
If you would like to know more about the HortiFootprint Calculator or would like to request a demo, please go to the HortiFootprint Calculator website.
Over 30 years ago, my journey at MPS began after I saw an advertisement in the newspaper. After the birth of my daughter, I was looking to return to work and joined the data entry department. At the time, all data was still entered manually from paper forms. Since then, I have seen the organisation grow and change, and I have grown along with it.Today, I work in the Service & Support department. No two days are the same: one day I help a customer with questions about record-keeping, the next I help them understand requirements from the auction or the UO. It is precisely this variety and the personal contact with customers that make my work interesting every day.
In 2008, I joined MPS through a recruitment agency as a secretary. I then held various positions within MPS and MPS-ECAS, including roles in the Service & Support team and as a planner. In 2018, I left the organisation for a while, but in 2023 I returned to MPS-ECAS as a back-office employee. The people are simply too much fun and the world of ornamental horticulture is so innovative that it kept drawing me back. Shortly afterwards, I started working at MPS as Coordinator Netherlands.
During the final year of my Environmental Sciences degree, I joined MPS for an internship. The internship worked out so well for both sides that I was able to stay afterwards. It felt like a natural next step, because I immediately felt at home here and was given the opportunity to continue developing myself.My work is very varied. I work on different projects and products, carry out research and analyses and contribute to practical solutions. I also manage various systems, support customers with complex technical questions and work with external parties. It is precisely this combination that makes my work interesting and ensures that no two weeks are the same.
I first joined MPS through a friend who worked in MPS’s student team. I continued working here while studying Commercial Economics, and at the end of my studies, in 2004, MPS asked if I wanted to join the organisation permanently. It seemed like a great opportunity, and more than twenty years later, I am still here.No two days are the same, and that is exactly what makes my work so enjoyable. A large part of my week consists of project meetings and translating needs from within the organisation into practical solutions. Thursday afternoon is a regular fixture, which I set aside with a colleague to make MPS 1% better every week. For example, we experiment with AI, build prototypes, improve processes or develop new ideas. The goal is always to work smarter and create more value for colleagues, customers and the organisation.