Spanish family business Deltacactus: “MPS-ABC is a great guide that helps us to objectively assess the correct application of phytosanitary products and sustainable usage”

Located in Tarragona, Spain, Deltacactus was established in 1982 and since then the company has been dedicated to the production of cacti and succulents. They experienced that the optimum growing conditions of cacti depend on a well-tailored combination of high knowledge, high technology and planning.
“In order to cultivate these unique plants, our family company invests time and energy in teamwork, knowledge sharing and production planning,” says Christian Jachertz, manager-owner of Deltacactus.

The company, MPS-A+ certified, grows on 21,000 m² and produces 8 million plants per year, increasing to 10 million when the new expansion has been completed. 60% of this is a transplant plant for European producers. The rest is a final product form for the supply of department stores. Currently, Deltacactus supplies to customers in Europe, distributed in the Netherlands, Belgium, Denmark, Germany and Italy.

Christian Jachertz, manager-owner of Deltacactus

Nowadays, the focus lies on ‘Data Driven Growing’, cultivation on the basis of data. Jachertz: “Our company has seven sectors, where we independently control the energy balance. Controlling it in this manner is special, since it has been developed solely for Deltacactus. It means we do not adjust the temperature to the light intensity, but the system adjusts the par sum and the light curve to the existing temperature.”

These cultivation techniques based on data help ensure that crops have optimal development conditions, with a correct phytosanitary status and balanced growth. Therefore, the company favours the introduction of plants with a greater capacity to fight pests and diseases naturally, restricting the use of phytosanitary products in favour of the activation of the natural defenses of plants.

The MPS-ABC record-keeping allows Deltacactus to analyse the impact on the environment of the company’s cultivation more precisely. “After studying the results of several years of accumulation of records in MPS-ABC, Deltacactus has improved conscientiously and we manage sustainable production very well,” says Jachertz. “Thanks to MPS, Deltacactus is a team, we work like a team and we could say that MPS is part of the team.”

Deltacactus believes it is very important to be respectful to the environment. They believe that every production company should improve its carbon footprint. Therefore, they take different measures and set different objectives. One of their goals is to grow peat free by 2025, due to its high CO2 footprint. Another important point is the goal of achieving a carbon neutral balance. Therefore, they have set implementations such as thermal insulation with the installation of double chamber covers along with the use of conventional thermal screens and match the energy usage of the company to that produced by their solar fields. “We find the most recent innovation of MPS, the HortiFootprint Calculator, very interesting. This software tool covers the complete chain and I’m sure that there will be a specific demand for that in the upcoming years.”

When it comes to implementing the dashboard control in Succulents, there is one company Deltacactus looks up to: OVATA B.V., located in The Netherlands. “I consider managing director Hans Ammerlaan as a pioneer in this field. The vast majority of the knowledge that I have acquired in my professional career, I have learned from Hans. I can say that he has been the most influential person in my professional career and a good friend. Thanks, Hans!”