In 2006, Alstroemeria growers Bernard Zuidgeest and Fedor van Veen began working together. Ten years later, this collaboration led to the establishment of Together2Grow. The company now operates three cultivation locations in the Westland and one in partnership in Ethiopia. Each year, Together2Grow grows more than 40 million stems of Alstroemeria and Florinca, which are sold worldwide. Sustainability plays a key role, says co-owner Bernard Zuidgeest.
Bernard Zuidgeest
“One of the most important sustainability topics within Together2Grow is energy. For example, all our locations have fully switched to LED. We took this step even before the energy crisis, because our product can be grown very well under LED. In addition, it results in significant savings in electricity,” says Zuidgeest.
For optimal energy savings, the LED lighting is combined with double screens. These screen cloths provide an extra layer of insulation, reducing heat loss from the greenhouse, which means less heating is required.
The Poeldijk location has recently been connected to the Polanen geothermal source, another step towards making Together2Grow more sustainable. “We now need to rely less on fossil fuels and, in the long term, potentially not at all, once sufficient electricity can be drawn from the grid. Ultimately, we aim to become completely gas-free.”
100% Green Grown
Together2Grow participates in the 100% Green Grown project (100% Groen Geteeld), in which growers of Chrysanthemum, Kalanchoë, Gerbera, Phalaenopsis and now also Alstroemeria jointly explore how to reduce the usage of crop protection agents. “Alstroemeria cultivation is already very advanced in this respect, thanks to extensive research and practical experience. The final challenges are the most difficult ones. How do you solve a problem when there are no beneficial insects available yet? Together with fellow growers and suppliers Van Iperen and Royal Brinkman, we are working hard on that as well.”
Strengthening crop resilience is essential in this process, Zuidgeest explains. “It is actually similar to people. When you are tired, you are more susceptible. The same applies to plants. The more resilient your crop, the fewer issues you will have with pests. Scouting is very important in this respect, not only for insects but for everything happening in the company. Is a pane broken? Is the insect netting still intact? Is the crop exposed to draught corners?”
Certifications and footprint
The nursery holds several certifications to confirm its sustainable working method, including MPS-A, MPS-GAP and MPS-SQ. “They are good tools to assess where you stand. It is useful to have a multi-year overview, so you can regularly check your current position. Especially with the list of products, you get a clear overview with the colours green, amber and red. That works very practically.”
Zuidgeest is also pleased with the HortiFootprint Calculator from MPS and Letsgrow.com. “It immediately shows where you can take further steps to improve sustainability. It is still a matter of finding the right way to communicate that footprint to customers. As a sector, we should ideally work towards a system with a collective footprint, so that products are not immediately excluded based solely on a higher footprint. Diversity is, after all, one of the great strengths of our sector.”
From your own strength
For companies that want to become more sustainable, it is important that this comes from the growers themselves, Zuidgeest believes. “Take responsibility yourself and do not point to other parties. Build on your own strength. Our sector is sometimes viewed critically, and that is fair. The most powerful response is to work on sustainability based on your own drive, with full conviction. Making your company more sustainable starts with yourself, not with someone else.”
