De Ruiter receives Royal approval
On Wednesday evening November 4, during an evening party at Claus Hoofddorp, rose breeder De Ruiter presented a special highlight of their journey from the past to their present existence. Through a video presentation that featured special effects, older pictures combined with new images, music and catering, guests were led through one hundred years of De Ruiter experiences. The highlight of the evening was presentation of the Royal designation by Mayor Drs. MM van ‘t Veld to De Ruiter directors and owners Henk de Groot and Oscar Peters. From this moment Royal De Ruiter take the opportunity to present its new corporate identity. The new royal blue, which was presented with logo, banners and images, was received with great applause.
Schreurs rose Mayfair! at Harvest Flowers Ltd
Harvest Flowera Limited’s New Top Farm and Top Harvest Farm have planted 0.25ha and 0.05ha of Mayfair! variety respectively. When we spoke to Mr. Julius Oloo the Farm Manager described the Peach color rose as an easy grower, with a production of 180 – 200 stems per square meter at an altitude of 2,400m ASL. At the farm they get a length of between 60-80cm.
Mr. Oloo says that their target market for the variety is to florists in the UK, Sweden and Norway. “The variety is a good transporter. Our clients like the way it opens on the vase and are particularly impressed with the unique color and relatively good vase life of up to10- 14 days,” says Julius.
IFTF Kordes Roses Stand Doused in Floral Colours of Exclusive Limited Varieties
In the present day, there is a trend among rose growers to select varieties that they will produce exclusively in order to achieve a competitive edge in a market that is ‘saturated’ with rose varieties. The various markets that rose growers are targeting demand novelties and innovation that is distinctive and unique, hence the need for exclusive ‘limited edition’ roses. Through Kordes’ comprehensive breeding program, there is always a novelty within the selection of new varieties that sufficiently accommodates more than a select few.
During this year’s IFTF event, the Kordes Roses stand was doused in floral color among which was a display of their range of exclusive limited varieties. These included Roxy from Sonjami Springfields, Limelight from African Blooms, Charmant from Mt Elgon flowers, Nautica from Kisima and Incredible from Vegpro.
Lolomarik to launch Pink Athena
Pink Athena is the latest in a line of Kordes varieties that are being marketed as exclusive or limited. Since Simon van den Burg of Lolomarik discovered this mutation of Athena and Topper Murray, the GM of Lolomarik, has been diligently building up the material. The farm has the first 2ha of Pink Athena planted since October 2015 and should be on the market beginning of 2016.
Fresco Flowers is speaheading the marketing of Pink Athena. Fresco presented a vase during the Aalsmeer show 2015 and according to Gerjan Telleman, the rose has been receiving considerable market response. Kordes is upbeat with the potential of Pink Athena and hopes that Lolomarik will prove it to be an ultimate success.
Alpe d’ Huez – Could This be the White Rose of the Future
The long term vision following the unveiling of Jan Spek’s gorgeous white rose Alpe d’Huez® is one whose nobleness cannot go unnoticed. Alpe d’huez was named after one of the toughest top climbs of the Tour de France. The “Dutch Mountain” as Erik and other racing enthusiasts fondly refer to the section following superb results clocked by Dutch riders at this stage. Similar to the white snow covering the vastness of this part of the alps, the rose Alpe d’Huez® boasts an attractive and clean shiny white.Alpe d’Huez® is an almost pure white variety with a large bud and nicely shaped flower that boasts a unique symmetry. She is also a high producer with good stem-length. A few weeks back, the first bunches of the rose were introduced by Olij Holland and fetched some pretty decent prices.
Private equity firm to buy Dümmen Orange
Funds advised by BC Partners, a leading private equity firm, have reached an agreement to acquire a majority stake in Dümmen Orange, the global leader in the floricultural breeding sector, from H2 Equity Partners and the Dümmen family. The transaction is subject to regulatory approvals and is expected to close in the coming months.
Jean-Baptiste Wautier, Managing Partner at BC Partners, commented: “Dümmen Orange is a thriving, innovative and growing business, led by a talented and experienced management team which has an impressive track-record in floriculture and related sectors. We look forward to backing them as they pursue an ambitious growth strategy, fueled by investments in sales & marketing, advances in breeding technologies, and selective acquisitions.
“ Biense Visser, CEO of Dümmen Orange, commented: “Our partnership with BC Partners will enable us to accelerate our development. They have a distinguished track record helping companies achieve their full potential. With their support, we intend to continue to bring value-added innovation to growers, retailers and consumers, and we look forward to leading the consolidation of our sector”.
Beauty of grassheart roses
This year, when celebrated florist Neil Strain staged his exhibition at The Flower Lounge for The Chelsea Flower Show, he aptly dubbed it ‘A celebration of Roses’. Among the impressive collection of roses in Neil’s amazing showcase, you couldn’t miss the grassheart roses from Olij breeding. According to Neil, these unique roses blended exceptionally in making their luxury hand-tied Haute Couture Bouquets. Back in the day, these types of roses would get zero chance from any breeder. They were considered ugly or deformed, and would not see the light of day in the tedious and long process of variety selection. But then people came to appreciate the aesthetic value of these roses. Florists in their creativity started coming up with amazing arrangements and bouquets. The roses plus their arrangements initially appealed to a niche segment of flower consumers, but now nearly everyone has a soft spot for the grasshearts. The green grass-heart is actually the flower base pushed through the petals by an ‘overzealous’ stem that shoots through the flower. Grassheart roses have no ovaries, pistils or stamen; this sexless nature makes them hardy and longlasting.
Preesman to be Renamed 7
Five years ago the journey of the Dutch rose breeder Preesman started. In these years, they established breeding facilities in Kenya, selection and show locations all around the world, a totally new assortment for all altitudes, new product lines and much more. In short, Preesman has undergone many changes to enhance the quality of their services and products. Now it is time for the final change: a new name. This new name will be announced at their breeding facility in Kenya in January 2016.
Date Valentine’s Day not expected to affect supermarket flower sales
Growers are worrying about Valentine’s Day, as it will fall on a Sunday, however, those who supply supermarkets are not concerned. From experience, flower sales of wholesalers and flower shops will be the ones mostly affected. Supermarkets suppliers, do not expect a drop in sales, even if it is on a Sunday. No drop in supermarket flower sales Flower sales are often lower when Valentine’s Day is on a weekend. However, this does not seem to count for those who supply supermarkets. “We have been in the flower business for more than 30 years now, so we’ve experienced several of these Valentine’s Days on the weekend. Of course, historically speaking, total sales of Valentine’s Day flowers are a bit lower these days. However, this mostly counts for wholesalers and flower shops, we’ve never experienced a drop in sales during this time says a grower.” According to him, the supermarket flower sales might be even higher on such a day as most of the supermarket flower bouquet sales are impulse purchases. “Lovers often have other events planned on the weekend to celebrate this day. So, when visiting the supermarket, before going out they mostly impulsively grab a bouquet of flowers.
Expensive bouquets to impress
Besides that, Valentine’s Day flower arrangements are not only bought to express your feelings to loved ones but also to impress the surrounding people. Often, people buy an expensive flower arrangement bouquet from the flower shop to impress colleagues and friends of their loved ones. However, as Valentine’s Day 2016 will be on a Sunday, there will be no colleagues and/ or friends around. This combined with the fact that many lovers are spending more money on going out at the weekend, a supermarket bouquet of roses will often suffice.
International seminar floriculture industry concludesthere is a broad-based need for sustainability and transparency
Achieving durability and maximum transparency is the responsibility of the entire chain. This was the main conclusion of the seminar “Shaping the Future of Floriculture,” which took place on Monday 9 November on the S.S. Rotterdam. With just under 300 participants, the seminar, organised by Union Fleurs, VGB and MPS, received plenty of attention.
The subtitle of the seminar was “Sustainability and disruptive innovations: turning challenges into opportunities.” Presentations by Marcel van der Hoeven (CEO Van Dijk Flora), Rens Buchwaldt (CFO FloraHolland), Alexander Zoern (CEO Blume2000) and Daniel Velez (CEO Suasuque) dealt with things such as the importance of sustainability and the role that certification plays in this. In addition, they tried to answer the question as to whether a disruptive innovation could turn the flower and plant industry on its head, as was recently the case in the taxi industry (see Uber).
Future certification
Theo de Groot, CEO of MPS, insisted on providing 100% transparency when it comes to achieving sustainability. In addition, he provided a glimpse into the future of certification. “Using advanced technologies, we are working towards a data-driven, real-time environment. Thanks to the availability of sensors, drones, apps, the Internet of things and innovations such as Google Glass, the performance of real-time audits is getting closer every day.” Chain-wide interest With just under 300 participants, the seminar was not only very busy, it also boasted interest from the entire supply chain. All parts of the chain, from growers and trading companies to retailers were represented. In addition, a significant proportion of participants came from abroad. The main conclusion of the seminar was that all the parts within the chain are of the opinion that the achievement of sustainability and maximum transparency is the responsibility of the entire chain. To close the seminar, Herman de Boon, president of the VGB and of Union Fleurs, called for collaboration, also at international level. “We must ensure that there is open communication and maximum transparency, and create a situation in which relevant data is shared.”
IFTF Expo 2015 Best Edition Ever!
The 6th edition of IFTF grew to a peak towards the last day of the show. Both exhibitors as well as visitors were extremely satisfied with the demand and supply at the trade show at Expo Haarlemmermeer in Vijfhuizen, Holland. With a very crowded first day, the high attendance continued on the second day to finish off on the last day with another crowded day. Over 27.000 trade visitors attended the three day expo. Together with the 253 exhibiting companies, the number of participating countries totaled this year 128.
The atmosphere was great and a clear positive business buzz was going around the show. The number of new buyers, and especially the number of new (far away) countries from where these buyers came from, was remarkable. It was also noticeable that Russian buyers were present in considerable lower number. However, overall were the number of visitors was again higher than in 2014 and especially the quality of visitors was of a high content. Everybody was happy and some even were surprised by the excellent turn out of this edition of the trade fair.
Dow and DuPont Merger Imminent
The combined company, which would likely require the businesses to break apart divisions, would require regulatory approval in several countries. According to Reuters, “the combined company could split into material sciences, specialty products and agrochemicals, the people said, cautioning that the plans have not been finalized.” The possible merger follows the failed $45 billion Monsanto bid for Syngenta that generated a great deal of interest earlier this year. Several companies have been exploring options as lower commodity prices have decreased demand for seed and crop protection products. The merger could bring $3 billion in synergies, CNBC says, and the new entity would likely become three separate companies one focusing on agriculture and the others on material services and specialty products.
FloraHolland Trade Fair
A record number of people visited the FloraHolland Trade Fair in Aalsmeer. In total 15.000 compared to 14.000 in 2014. Innovation, positivity and making new contacts characterise the annual international trade fair for the horticultural sector. “Growers and customers are again looking towards the future,” says Wilma van Straalen, trade fair manager of FloraHolland. “The stands are more beautiful each time, and the atmosphere this year was extremely good and positive.” Around 15.000 visitors were registered, which is a record compared to last year. There were 750 standholders, both local and foreign, showing off their company and their product, with 470 plant growers, 180 flower growers, 50 breeders, 7 trading companies and another 50 ‘added value’ stands. All these participants shared the 25,000 m2 floor of the trade fair for 3 days.
FloraHolland House
The FloraHolland House was the centre of the fair with its theme “Home of Opportunities”. The stand had a new design. The inspiring and interactive daily programme of the FloraHolland House in combination with the delicious coffee attracted visitors and inspired them with the three style trends, the strategy wall and the beautiful arrangements by Elize Eveleens. “We deliberately chose an open and spacious design to become the place where members and customers could meet and start talking,” said Servaas van der Ven, Commercie Concern Manager of FloraHolland. “And the idea was successful, it was a TOP trade fair!”