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Agreements have been reached between Floraculture International and leading growers and trade associations in 24 countries. This unique partnership includes a complimentary copy for each member of the registered associations. Floraculture International is proud to announce the cooperation with the following associations.

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T DE N CEN

A S S O C I AT I O N

Table of Contents

May 2013 Volume 23 Number 5

Auctions

Some of Europe’s flower auctions and floral wholesale organisations are going through a tough time. This month, the first episode of Auctions from around the World focuses on Italy’s San Remo flower market.

by Jaap N. Kras and Ron van der Ploeg

European Spring Trials

The European Spring Trials was a ‘hot bed’ of Gold Medal winners according to one company during the week-17 event.

by Ross Ford

The end of yet another wholesale giant

10

‘It’s not fair to ask customers to pay the price for misuse of the system’

FCI asked CC’s Roel de Jong a series of questions about how his plan to end the copy shelf problem would affect customers on critical matters of costs and benefits.

by Ron van der Ploeg

The bankrupt Florimex Group was one of the largest players in the European flower and plant trade with a turnover of € 207 million in 2011. The collapse of the reputed multi-business conglomerate, which employed 300 people, has raised fears over Florimex’s creditors among which are suppliers, who in March were forced to take huge losses following the Ciccolella drama.

14

Star Roses will be celebrating its own breeding programme during the upcoming Flower Trials in the Netherlands by launching an exciting line of beautiful, fast growing pot roses ranging from white to dark red.

18

The Ellepot system on the grand scale

Kenya to host one of the world’s largest flower shows

The flower industry in Kenya is on the verge of another first by becoming the home to one of the world’s largest flower trade shows.

by Catherine Riungu

30

Departments World News Prices International Events Advertising Index

Agromillora’s business in providing planting material demands production in growing media modules that will provide an excellent root environment in the nursery, in a stable unit for handling, packaging and transport. Eight years ago, the Spanish company began to use the Ellepot system to meet these needs.

by John Sutton

26

by Jaap N. Kras

Star Roses to conquer world potted rose market

by Ron van der Ploeg

08

13 27 29 33

Columns

22

From the editor Miami Dutch Comfort Certifiable in California Happy Gardening India Update

07 11 17 25 31 37

May 2013 | www.FloraCultureInternational.com

5

advARMADA042013 12-04-13 13:13 Pagina 1

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In my opinion In my opinion In my opinion In my opinion In From my opinion With With compliments compliments the editor

FloraCulture International (ISSN1051-9076) is published monthly.Worldwide distribution. © 2009 FloraCulture International magazine. All rights reserved. No portion of editorial may FloraCulture International FloraCulture International (ISSN1051-9076) (ISSN1051-9076) is is published published monthly.Worldwide monthly.Worldwide distribution. distribution. © reproduced in any form without written permission of the publisher. Publisher is not liable be ©2009 FloraCulture International magazine. All rights reserved. No portion of editorial may 2009 FloraCulture International magazine.

All rights reserved.

No portion of editorial may for advertisements using illegally obtained Sendof address changes Publisher to FloraCulture be reproduced in any any form without writtenimages. permission the publisher. is not not liable liable FloraCulture International (ISSN1051-9076) is published monthly.Worldwide distribution. be reproduced in form without written permission of the publisher.

Publisher is International magazine, P .O.Box 82, 1850 AB Heiloo, theNetherlands. © for advertisements using illegally obtained images.

Send address changes to innovation, 2009 FloraCulture International magazine.

All rights No portion of editorial may for advertisements using illegally obtained images.

Sendreserved. address changes to FloraCulture FloraCulture FloraCulture International (ISSN1051-9076) is published monthly.Worldwide distribution.

by RonQuality, van der Ploeg sustainability and logistics are words that International P 82, 1850 Heiloo, of theNetherlands. be in anyInternational form without written permission the publisher.

Publisher is not may liable © reproducedmagazine, Quality, innovation, sustainability logistics that often appear in our editorial.

Th is isand a compliment you, the International magazine, P.O.Box .O.Box 82, 1850 AB AB theNetherlands.

2009 FloraCulture magazine.

AllHeiloo, rights reserved.

No portion of editorial FloraCulture International (ISSN1051-9076) is published monthly.Worldwide distribution.

Quality, innovation, sustainability and logistics are aretowords words that for advertisements using illegally obtained images.

Sendof address changes Publisher to FloraCulture © be reproduced in any form without written permission theofpublisher. is not liable often appear in our editorial.

Th is is a compliment to you, the fl oriculture industry; the interviewees and contributors remain 2009 FloraCulture International magazine.

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Ron van find out more about the person behind the story.

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T (31) 53 23 522 F(anabel@fl (31) 72 53 23 34 84International 31Evans 393Netherlands 34 84 32 521 552 info@fbw-woerden.nl Editors: Anabel oracultureinternational.com) the pot and bedding plant growers with the spring sunshine having P.O.Box AB 72 Heiloo, the Working backwards in this issue; in East Africa, explosive flaoriculture growth being reined back,Ethiopia’s but inTheir another market is diffi cult, glimpse of relief isiswas being experienced by FloraCulture T (31) 34 84 31 393 F (31) 34 84 32 552 info@fbw-woerden.nl der Ploeg Working backwards in this issue; in East Africa, Ethiopia’s Dennis move CCa headquarters from Denmark to it the Netherlands was taken Woerden, the Netherlands Ron van Circulation Administration: FBW Woerden P.O. 313, Box 612, Editors: Anabel Evans (anabel@fl oracultureinternational.com) Ron der Ploeg oracultureinternational.com) made well-timed appearance in Europe.

T (31) 72 53 Business 233440 522van FAP (31) 72ECA 53(ron@fl 23 521 explosive fl oriculture growth is being reined back, but in snippet of received from Gray appears that the pot andthe bedding plant growers with the spring sunshine having address: Office 140-21, Legmeerdijk Seriese Editors: Anabel Evans (anabel@fl oracultureinternational.com) explosive flnews oriculture growth isDavid being reined back, but in another another der Ploeg Dennis in order to be closer to the customer.

Delegating more responsibilities to T (31) 34der 84Ploeg 31 393 F (31) 34 84Box 32 552 info@fbw-woerden.nl Working backwards in this issue; in East Africa, Ethiopia’s 3440 AP Woerden, the Netherlands Dennis Ron van (ron@fl oracultureinternational.com) Editorial team: Edward Bent, Chris Beytes, Lotte Bjarke, Arturo Croci, Circulation Administration: FBW Woerden P.O. 612, snippet of news received from David Gray it appears that logistics in East Africa are receiving a boost.

He writes that if made a well-timed appearance in Europe.

1431 Seriese RonGB vanAalsmeer der Ploeg (ron@floracultureinternational.com) snippet of news received from David Gray it appears that Seriese the middle management, will make the organisation less bureaucratic.

We Editors: Anabel oracultureinternational.com) explosive floriculture growth is being reined back, but in another T (31) 34 84Postbus 31Evans 393 1081, F(anabel@fl (31) 34Chris 84 32 552 info@fbw-woerden.nl Editorial team: Edward Bent, Beytes, Lotte Arturo Croci, Hans De Vries, David Gray, Kerry Herndon, HelenBjarke, Moody, Working backwards in this issue; in East Africa, Ethiopia’s 3440 AP Woerden, the Netherlands logistics in East Africa are receiving a boost.

He writes that if infrastructure, communications and transport are the key to the Postal address: 1430 BB Aalsmeer Editorial team: Edward Bent, Chris Beytes, Lotte Bjarke, Arturo Croci, logistics inDe East Africa are receiving a boost.

He writes that shelf if Dennis also questioned Jong about how his plan to end the copy problem Ron van der Ploeg (ron@fl oracultureinternational.com) snippet of news received from David Gray it appears that Editors: Anabel Evans (anabel@fl oracultureinternational.com) Hans De Vries, David Gray, Kerry Herndon, Helen Moody, Petitjean, Marta Pizano, Leaora Policar, Jennifer White Marie-Françoise explosive fl oriculture growth is being reined back, but in another T (31) 34 84 31 393 F (31) 34 84 32 552 info@fbw-woerden.nl infrastructure, communications and transport are the key to the development of horticulture and economies in general the news Working backwards in this communications issue; in East Africa, Seriese T Hans (31) 297 769 095 F (31) 297 365Herndon, 366 De Vries, David Gray, Kerry Helen Moody, infrastructure, and Ethiopia’s transport areand the benefits. key to thePage 14.

Dennis would affect critical matters like Editorial team: Edward Bent, Chris Beytes, LottePolicar, Bjarke,Jennifer Arturo Croci, explosive logistics East Africa arefrom receiving aGray boost.

Hegeneral writes that ifnew Ron der Ploeg (ron@fl oracultureinternational.com) Petitjean, Marta Pizano, Leaora Marie-Françoise Founding editor: Debbie Hamrick snippet ofin news received David itcosts appears that Editors: Evansvan (anabel@fl oracultureinternational.com) development of horticulture and economies in the of: newcustomers roads linking Addis Ababa with Nairobi; a proposed floriculture growth ison being reined but in SerieseAnabel FBW Woerden P.O. Box 612,Jennifer White Circulation Administration: Petitjean, Marta Pizano, Leaora Policar, White Marie-Françoise development of horticulture and back, economies inanother general the news news Claudia Dennis Hans De Vries, David Gray, Kerry HelenBjarke, Moody, infrastructure, communications and are toifnew the Editorial team: Edward Bent, ChrisHerndon, Beytes, Lotte Arturo Croci, snippet of news Founding editor: Debbie Hamrick Cover: California Pack Trials logistics in East Africa areGray receiving atransport boost. writes that Ron van der Ploeg (ron@fl oracultureinternational.com) of: new roads linking Addis Ababa with Nairobi; aa the proposed railway line on the Kenyan Coast from Addis Ababa tokey Lamu; a received from David it appears thatHe Stokreef 3440 AP Woerden, the Netherlands Seriese Founding editor: Debbie Hamrick of: new roads linking Addis Ababa with Nairobi; proposed new Claudia What has been happening behind the scenes?

FloraCulture International Petitjean, Marta Pizano, Leaora Policar, Jennifer White Marie-Françoise development of horticulture and economies in general the news Claudia Hans De Vries, David Gray, Kerry Herndon, Helen Moody, Cover: California Pack Trials Publisher: FloraCulture International B.V. infrastructure, communications and transport are the key to the Editorial team: Edward Bent, Chris Beytes, Lotte Bjarke, Arturo Croci, railway line on the Kenyan Coast from Addis Ababa to Lamu; aa new railway line from Tanzania to Uganda; Delta Airlines about logistics in East Africa are receiving a boost.

He writes that if Stokreef T (31) 34 84 31 393 F (31) 34 84 32 552 info@fbw-woerden.nl Angie Cover: California Pack Trials railwayon line on the Kenyan Coast from Addis in Ababa to Lamu; Stokreef has changed many occasions since its launch 1990(!). last Founding editor: Debbie Hamrick Duffree of:start new roads linking Addis Ababa with Nairobi; aAirlines proposed new Petitjean, Marta Pizano, Leaora Policar, Jennifer White infrastructure, Marie-Françoise Publisher: FloraCulture International B.V. (jaap@fl oracultureinternational.com) development of horticulture and economies in general the The news Hans De Vries, DavidRon Gray, Kerry Herndon, Helen Moody, new railway line from Tanzania to Uganda; Delta about to direct fl ights between Nairobi and Atlanta; a deal between communications and transport are the key to the Editors: van der Ploeg (ron@floracultureinternational.com) Publisher: FloraCulture International B.V. Claudia new railway line from Tanzania to Uganda; Delta Airlines about major change took in January 2013 when both the magazine Cover: Pack railway line onplace the Kenyan Coast from Addis Ababa to Lamu; a and Founding editor: Debbie Hamrick (jaap@fl oracultureinternational.com) T (31) California 20 61 82 666 FTrials (31) 20 61 81 333 of: new roads linking Addis Ababa with Nairobi; a proposed new Stokreef Petitjean, Marta Pizano, Leaora Policar, Jennifer White Marie-Françoise to start direct fl ights between Nairobi and Atlanta; a deal between Kenya’s Astral Aviation and Etihad Crystal Cargo for the Nairobidevelopment of horticulture and economies in general the news Editorial team: Chris Beytes, Lotte Bjarke, Arturo Croci, (jaap@floracultureinternational.com) to start direct fl ights between Nairobi and Atlanta; a deal between Claudia theroads newsletter were relaunched an updated look and new features.

Publisher: FloraCulture International B.V. new railway line from Tanzania Uganda; Delta about Cover: California Pack T (31)Gerber, 20Hollandia 61 82 666 FTrials (31) 20 61 81 333 Printer: Printing, Heerhugowaard railway line on the Kenyan Coast from Addis Ababa tothe Lamu; a Founding editor: Kenya’s Astral Aviation and Etihad Crystal for NairobiAbu Dhabi route; should allwith haveto positive effCargo ects onAirlines the economic of: new linking Addis Ababa with Nairobi; a proposed new Stokreef Audrey Marie-Françoise John Sutton and T Debbie (31) 20 Hamrick 61 82 666 F (31) 20Petitjean, 61 81 333 Kenya’s Astral Aviation and Etihad Crystal Cargo for the Nairobi- push Claudia Meanwhile, the printed magazine also underwent a major marketing Arturo (jaap@fl oracultureinternational.com) to start direct flCoast ights between Nairobi and Atlanta; athe deal between Publisher: FloraCulture International B.V. Printer: Hollandia Printing, Heerhugowaard Designer: Hollandia Media Productions new railway line from Tanzania to Uganda; Delta Airlines about Cover: California Pack Trials Abu Dhabi route; should all have positive eff ects on economic development of East Africa in the medium to long term. railway line on the Kenyan from Addis Ababa to Lamu; a Stokreef Jennifer Zurko Croci Printer: Hollandia Printing, Heerhugowaard Dhabi route; should all have positive effects ontrade the economic thanksAbu tostart new partnerships with leading growers and Arturo FloraCulture T (31) 20 61 82 Kohler 666 F B.V. (31) 20 61 81 333 Kenya’s Astral andin Etihad Crystal Cargo for the associations, Nairobi(jaap@fl oracultureinternational.com) Designer: Hollandia Productions Cartoonist: Bas to direct flAviation ightsto between Nairobi and Atlanta; a deal between Publisher: International development of the medium to term.

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Printer: Hollandia Printing, Heerhugowaard Show is an indication in itself about the pride the nation takes its orchid innovations, in particular for their phalaenopsis exports.

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Andand where substrates controlPrins, of growth Seriese (dennis@floracultureinternational.com) Scandinavia: Lotte Bjarke (lotte@floracultureinternational.com) the vision hardof work of Meiny managing director William perspective.

A group 38,000 registered growers from Kisan’s Arturo Croci (arturo@fl oracultureinternational.com) control above the ground.

Sustainability goes hand inoptimum hand Italy, France: LB Text & Idé, Søndervej 10, Hundslund, T(45) 21 48 75 30 Indian South America: Marta Pizano de Marquez (marta@fl oracultureinternational.com) Labuschagne focuses sustainable programs to assist in T (31)72 53 23 522 FSouthern (31) 72 53 23 521 M8350 (31) 63 03 99 450Denmark of Priva, whose accomplishments have been rewarded with the Businesswoman of theon Year award. from our sight, the crop protection series byalso Louise Angie Duffree (angie@floracultureinternational.com) Armellini LB Text & Idé, Søndervej 10, 8350 Hundslund, Denmark T(45) 21 48 75is30hidden of Priva, whose accomplishments have been rewarded with the of the customer base have had the honour of receiving the first edition William Scandinavia: Lotte Bjarke (lotte@fl oracultureinternational.com) with the vision and hard work of Meiny Prins, managing director Arturo Croci (arturo@fl oracultureinternational.com) South America: Marta Pizano de Marquez (marta@fl oracultureinternational.com) Horti Tecnia Ltda., Calle 85 No20-25 Of. 202B, Bogotá, Colombia control above the ground.

Sustainability also goes hand in hand Italy, Southern France: Businesswoman of the Year award.

LabuschagneBusinesswoman focuses on sustainable programs to assist in optimum Miguel de Marta Leon (info@floracultureinternational.com) SouthMendes America: Pizano de Marquez (marta@floracultureinternational.com) Armellini of the Year award. which isSustainability set to expand rapidly within thesubject Indian territory and Paul William LB Text & Idé, 10, 8350 Hundslund, Denmark 21 48 75control 30 e-magazine, ofthe Priva, whose accomplishments havehand been rewarded withdirector Scandinavia: Lotte (lotte@fl Horti Ltda., Calle 85 No20-25 Of.hortitec@unete.com 202B, Bogotá, T(45) Colombia T (57) 15 30 20Søndervej 36Bjarke F (57) 12 36 oracultureinternational.com) 25 54 with the vision and hard work of Meiny Prins, managing Arturo (arturo@fl oracultureinternational.com) Sustainability crosses over into logistics under the ofthe above ground. also goes in hand (31) 6Tecnia 81543366 Horti Tecnia Ltda., Calle 85 No20-25 Of. 202B, Bogotá, Colombia BlackCroci M Armellini in neighbouring countries alike.

Paul South America: Marta Pizano de Marquez (marta@fl oracultureinternational.com) Businesswoman of the Year award.

LB Text & Idé, Søndervej 10, 8350 Hundslund, Denmark T(45) 21 48 75 30 T (57) 15 30 20 36 F (57) 12 36 25 54 hortitec@unete.com Miami: William Armellini(William@fl oracultureinternational.com) of Priva, whose accomplishments have been rewarded with the Scandinavia: Lotte Bjarke (lotte@fl oracultureinternational.com) Sustainability crosses over into logistics under the subject of eCommerce since the streamlining of shipments is a key outcome with the vision and hard work of Meiny Prins, managing director Paul Italy, Southern France: T (57) 15 30 20 36 F (57) 12 36 25 54 hortitec@unete.com Black Sustainability crosses over into logistics under the72 subject of The whose total number of online FCI subscribers rose per cent Black Horti Tecnia Ltda., Calle 85 No20-25 Of. 202B,21 Bogotá, South America: Marta Pizano deDenmark Marquez (marta@fl oracultureinternational.com) Miami: William Armellini(William@fl oracultureinternational.com) USA, Canada, Central America: Businesswoman ofthe the Year award.

LB Text & Idé, Søndervej 10,(acearturo@yahoo.it) 8350 Hundslund, T(45) 48 75 Colombia 30 eCommerce since streamlining of shipments is aaworld key outcome resulting from using this tool.

Auctions around the alsoin April of Priva, accomplishments have been rewarded withby the Arturo Croci, Miami: William Armellini(William@fl oracultureinternational.com) eCommerce since the streamlining of shipments is key outcome Paul 2013 and has reached 73,000.

T (57) 15 30 20 36 F (57) 12 36 25oracultureinternational.com) 54 hortitec@unete.com Sustainability overtool. intoAuctions logistics under the subject of Horti Tecnia Ltda., Calle 85 No20-25 Of.Lucas 202B, Bogotá, Colombia USA, Canada, Central America: Paul Black (pblack@ballpublishing.com) Nicholas South Marta Pizano de Marquez (marta@fl resulting from using this around the world also facilitate direct sales and world is not leaving Businesswoman of the Yearcrosses award.

Scandinavia: Lotte Bjarke (post@lottebjarke.dk) BlackAmerica: USA, Canada, Central America: resulting from using this the tool.virtual Auctions around the worldthem also PaulTecnia Ltda., Miami: William oracultureinternational.com) eCommerce since theand streamlining of shipments is a key them outcome T (57) 15 30 20 Armellini(William@fl 36 F Of. (57) 12 36 25Publishing, 54 hortitec@unete.com Paul Black (pblack@ballpublishing.com) Lucas Nicholas (lnicholas@ballpublishing.com) Ball 622 Town Road, Sustainability crosses over into logistics under the subject ofthe Horti Calle 85 No20-25 202B, Bogotá, Colombia facilitate direct sales the virtual world is not leaving behind; FloraHolland persists in its ambition to strengthen LB Text & Idé, Søndervej 10, 8350 Hundslund, Denmark Black Paul Black (pblack@ballpublishing.com) Lucas Nicholas facilitate direct sales and the virtual world is not leaving them Lucas “These increases reflect our on-going online activity,” Jaap Kras, Paul USA, Central resulting from using this Auctions around the also William Armellini(William@fl oracultureinternational.com) (lnicholas@ballpublishing.com) Publishing, Town Road, PO 1660, West ILBall 60186, United 622 States eCommerce since the streamlining of shipments is said aworld key outcome T (57) 15 30T20Miami: 36Box FCanada, (57) 36 25Chicago, 54America: hortitec@unete.com behind; persists in its ambition strengthen the marketplace forinto Europe, atool. continuation of theto Dutch auctions’ Sustainability crossesFloraHolland over logistics under the subject of (45) 21 48 751230 Nicholas (lnicholas@ballpublishing.com) Ball Publishing, 622 Town Road, Black behind; FloraHolland persists in its ambition to strengthen the Lucas publisher ofhistory FloraCulture International.

“More and more flower Paul Black (pblack@ballpublishing.com) Lucas Nicholas facilitate direct sales and the virtual world is outcome not leaving them USA, Canada, Central America: PO Box West States Lucas William T(1)6 301660, 23 13 675 Chicago, F(1)6 30 IL 2360186, 15 254United resulting from using this tool.

Auctions around the world also Miami: Armellini(William@fl oracultureinternational.com) marketplace for Europe, a continuation of the Dutch auctions’ long of achievement. eCommerce since the streamlining of shipments is a key USA, Canada, Central America: Nicholas PO Box 1660, West Chicago, IL 60186, United States marketplace for Europe, ato continuation of the Dutch auctions’We are Nicholas professionals are going online read their favourite magazine.

Dr. Sun (lnicholas@ballpublishing.com) Publishing, 622 Town Road, behind; FloraHolland persists in its ambition to strengthen the Paul Black (pblack@ballpublishing.com) T(1)6 30East: 23 13 675Policar F(1)6(eyal@fl 30 23Ball 15 254 Lucas Nicholas Eyal oracultureinternational.com) facilitate direct sales and thearound virtual world is not leaving them USA, Canada, Middle Central long history of achievement. resulting from using this tool.

Auctions the world also Black (pblack@ballpublishing.com) T(1)6 30America: 23 13 675 F(1)6 30 23 15 254 long history of achievement.

Jing Xian Paul Lucas especially delighted to have the International Garden Centre Association PO Box 1660, West Chicago, IL 60186, United States marketplace for Europe, a continuation of the Dutch auctions’ (lnicholas@ballpublishing.com) Ball 622 Town Road, Middle East: Eyal Policar (eyal@fl oracultureinternational.com) T (972) 54 42622 97 002 F Road, (972) 86 58Publishing, 19 07 behind; FloraHolland persists in its ambition to strengthen the Paul Black (pblack@ballpublishing.com) Lucas Nicholas To end at the beginning, in the Sunshine State of California, Chris facilitate direct sales and the virtual world is not leaving them Nicholas Ball Publishing, Town Middle East: Eyal Policar (eyal@floracultureinternational.com) Lucas (IGCA) and the Canadian Nursery Landscape Association (CNLA) on T(1)6 30Eiji 2342 1397 675 F(1)6 30 IL 23 15 long history of achievement.

PO Box 1660, West Chicago, 60186, United States T (972) 54 002 F (972) 86622 58254 19 07 Road, Japan: Yoshikawa (callems@world.odn.ne.jp) marketplace for Europe, a continuation of life the Dutch (lnicholas@ballpublishing.com) Ball Publishing, Town To end at the beginning, in the Sunshine State of California, Chris Beytes has a well-penned article bringing to the behind; FloraHolland persists in its ambition to strengthen the auctions’ Nicholas PO Box 1660, West Chicago, IL 60186, United States T (972) 54 42 97 002 F (972) 86 58 19 07 To end at the beginning, in the Sunshine State of California, Chris Eyal Lucas board and look forward to which, working with them ontheplans for 2013 and Middle East: Eyal Policar (eyal@fl oracultureinternational.com) T(1)6 30 23 13 675 F(1)6 30 23 15 254 Japan: Eiji Yoshikawa (callems@world.odn.ne.jp) EMS Inc., 2-22-8 Matsubara, Setagaya-ku,Tokyo 156-0043, Japan long history of achievement.

PO Box 1660, West Chicago, IL 60186, United States Beytes has a well-penned article bringing to life California Pack Trials, like the auctions, marketplace for Europe, a continuation of the Dutch auctions’ Policar T (1)6 30 23 13 675 F (1)6 30 23 15 254 Nicholas Japan: Eiji Yoshikawa (callems@world.odn.ne.jp) Beytes has a well-penned article relations bringing tooflife theIGCA and CNLA will Eyal 16,400 members T675 (972) 5432 42 97 002 F(81) (972) 86 58 Eyal30 23 13 To end at the beginning, inand thelike Sunshine Statethe of California, Chris Middle East: Eyal Policar (eyal@fl EMS Inc., 2-22-8 Matsubara, 156-0043, Japan T (81) 33 F 33Setagaya-ku,Tokyo 32 oracultureinternational.com) 27 19 93307 T(1)6 3075 23756 15 254 California Pack Trials, which, the auctions, another institution have a long history in long beyond. history are ofThe achievement.

Policar Miami: William Armellini (william@floracultureinternational.com) EMS F(1)6 Inc., 2-22-8 Matsubara, Setagaya-ku,Tokyo 156-0043, Japan California Pack Trials, that which, like the auctions, Policar receive the monthly online format of FloraCulture International Japan: Eiji Yoshikawa (callems@world.odn.ne.jp) Beytes has ainstitution well-penned article bringing to lifein the T (972) 42 002 (972) (81) 3354 32 7597756 FF(consultingflower@yahoo.com.cn) (81) 33 86 32 58 27 19 93307 East Africa: David Gray (gray@africaonline.co.ke) To end at the beginning, in the Sunshine State of California, Chrisfree of Middle East: Eyal Policar (eyal@fl oracultureinternational.com) are another that have a long history presenting innovative ideas and quality products.

China: Dr Sun Jing Xian Eyal T (81) 33 32 75 756 F (81) 33 32 27 933 are another institution that have a long history in Niranjan charge as a courtesy to their membership.

The agreement between FCI and EMS Inc., 2-22-8 Matsubara, Setagaya-ku,Tokyo 156-0043, Japan California Pack Trials, which, like the auctions, Japan: Eiji Yoshikawa (callems@world.odn.ne.jp) Policar East Africa: David Gray (gray@africaonline.co.ke) South Africa: Cilla Lowen (cilla@fl oracultureinternational.com) Beytes has a well-penned article bringing to life the T (972) 54 42 97 002 F (972) 86 58 19 07 presenting innovative ideas and quality products.

To end at thepresenting beginning,innovative in the Sunshine State of California, Deshpande India: Deshpande (team@kisan.com) East Niranjan Africa: David Gray (gray@africaonline.co.ke) ideas and quality products.Chris Eyal IGCA and CNLAPack brings the total of partners T (81) 33 32 75 756 (81)(cilla@fl 33Setagaya-ku,Tokyo 32 27 933 are another institution that have a FCI long history in to 75. Among the FCI EMS Inc., 2-22-8 Matsubara, 156-0043, Japan South Africa: Cilla Lowen oracultureinternational.com) T (27) 22 4857058 FF(27) 22 4857415 California Trials, which, like the auctions, Japan: (callems@world.odn.ne.jp) PolicarEiji Yoshikawa Beytes has a well-penned article bringing to life the T (91) 20 302 52 000 South Africa: Cilla Lowen (cilla@floracultureinternational.com) Eiji Eyal partners are 33 trade associations level and East Africa: David Gray (gray@africaonline.co.ke) presenting innovative ideas and products.

T (81) 33 75 756 (81) 334857415 32156-0043, 27 933 Japan (27) 22 32 4857058 FF(27) 22 are another institution that haveatquality astate long history in 42 at local level.

EMS Inc., 2-22-8 Matsubara, Setagaya-ku,Tokyo Anabel Evans, Editor California Pack Trials, which, like the auctions, Yoshikawa Policar T (27) 22 4857058 F (27) 22 4857415 Eiji FloraCulture International (ISSN1051-9076) is published monthly.

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T (81) 33 32 75South 756Africa: FAfrica: (81)David 33 32 Gray 27 933 Anabel Evans, Editor are another institution that have a long history in Yoshikawa Worldwide distribution. ©2009 FloraCulture International magazine.

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(27) 4857415 liable for22 advertisements using22 illegally obtained images. may Sendbe address changes to Yoshikawa South Africa: Cilla Lowen (cilla@fl oracultureinternational.com) All rights Nopermission portion of of editorial reproduced in any form without written theAB publisher.

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Eiji FloraCulture International magazine, P .O.Box 82,1850 Heiloo, the Netherlands. form without written permission of the publisher.

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T (27) 22 4857058 22Worldwide 4857415 Yoshikawa liable for advertisements using illegally obtained images.

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FloraCulture International magazine, 82,1850 AB may Heiloo, the Netherlands.

All rights reserved.

NoP.O.Box portion of editorial be reproduced in any FloraCulture International magazine, P.O.Box 82,1850 AB Heiloo, the Netherlands.

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Editorial & Administration Offices Editorial Editorial & & Administration Administration Offi Offices ces ‘Concordia res&parvae crescunt’ Editorial Administration Offices Editorial & Administration Offices Editorial & Administration Offices Editorial & Administration Offices

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Send address changes tomagazine, FloraCulture International Postal address: Postbus 6001554_06_Colofon.indd 6 1081, 1430 BB Aalsmeer, the Netherlands. illa Lowen

Cilla Lowen

Ron van der Ploeg, editor ron@floracultureinternational.com

6001554_06_Colofon.indd 6 6001554_06_Colofon.indd 6 6001554_06_Colofon.indd 6 6001554_06_Colofon.indd 6

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27-04-2009 13:08:58 27-04-2009 13:08:58 27-04-2009 13:08:58

27-04-2009 13:08:58 May 2013 | www.FloraCultureInternational.com 7 27-04-2009 13:08:58

27-04-2009 13:08:58

8

Auctions Some of Europe’s flower auctions and floral wholesale organisations are going through a tough time. This month, the first episode of Auctions from around the World focuses on Italy’s Sanremo flower market.

Sanremo’s battle of blooms continues

T

he Sanremo Flower Market is one of the two remaining flower auctions in Italy, which are going through a tough time. In mid January this year, it seemed that one of the worst fears was unfolding; the foreclosure of the market, but the city council of Sanremo found a last minute way to ward off ’f(l)oreclosure’ agreeing to cover operating expenses until February 18 when the financial management came under the responsibility of Amaie Energia Srl. These events marked the end of growers cooperation UCFLOR (Unione Cooperativa Floricoltori della Riviera), which was established in 1972 to manage the Sanremo market.

A relatively good start

by Jaap Kras and Ron van der Ploeg

Commenting on last year’s sales figures, Enrico Sparago, long-time employee at Italy’s largest flower market said, “The total turnover

www.FloraCultureInternational.com | May 2013

realised by UCFlor (auction clock + intermediary service) was approximately €2,6 millions in 2012. One has to add the value of the traditional wholesale activity in the market, representing an estimated € 2 million. In terms of sales volumes UCflor sold 7,5 million stems, including flowers and cut foliage (which are usually sold by weight, not stems).”

Sparago said that 2013 is off to a relatively good start. “As for Sanremo’s cash crops such as Ranunculus, Mimosa, Genista and cut foliage, the average price during the first three months of 2013 has been higher than 2012 thanks to the good weather conditions, which guaranteed a steady and regular production. Easter was early this year. This will influence the sales figures for the second quarter of 2013, which are expected to be lower than in 2012.”

Steady supplies

In the city (in Italian often dubbed as Città dei Fiori or the City of Flowers), Ranunculus, Mimosa, Genista and Ruscus are performing very well. Meanwhile, from the UK to Romania, record low temperatures and unseasonable snowfall have not only affected people’s moods but they also put a damper on this year’s Spring sales.

Can Sparago relate to this? “On the production side, we didn’t suffer extremely low temperatures, which allowed us to have a regular production during the season. As a result we saw regular supplies in the run up to important floral holidays such as Valentine’s Day, International Women’s Day and Easter.”

The union makes the force. Some 15 years ago there were 7 flower auctions in the Netherlands, today there are only two. Nearly all auctions have merged to strengthen

their market position. When asked about the situation in his country, Sparago said, “At the moment, there are no plans to merge. Over the past few years, however we have been working together with other flower markets. One of the last projects carried on by UCFlor (with the support of the Italian Ministry of Agriculture) aimed at creating a ‘network’ of Italian flower markets, in order to increase the offer and to improve the logistics. Unfortunately, the project was cancelled, due to UCFLOR’s organisational problems.”

By focusing on speciality products the Sanremo market differentiates itself on the marketplace.

“We offer a product that is not easily found elsewhere. At first it was the cut foliage such as Ruscus and Pittosporum), now it is Ranunculus, Mimosa and Genista. Also other niche products can be found here representing an opportunity to differentiate from others.”

In terms of assortment, Sparago saw a spectacular growth in Ranunculus sales and a dramatic decrease in roses, especially during the winter. ”Many growers stopped growing roses and switched to spring/summer crops in an attempt to reduce production costs.”

Logistic challenges

Providing a complete range of cut flowers and pot plants is key for an auction. What efforts were made to broaden Sanremo’s portfolio of products? “A large range of products is essential and that’s why we have been contacting other markets and cooperatives, in order to increase the offer of flowers and plants from other Italian regions. At the moment, the main problem continues to be the lack of a well-oiled logistic system and the recent organisational changes have put a temporary stop on further improving the logistical performance.”

All in all, 2012 has been a very difficult year for the Sanremo flower market. “The bankruptcy of UCFlor forced customers to

look for alternatives such as direct sales to traders and cooperatives.

In February 2013, the city of Sanremo appointed a new company to manage the market, while most of the staff remained(albeit with some salary cuts and other measures to reduce costs). Our biggest challenge is to persuade the operators (growers and traders) to come back to the Sanremo market.”

Online sales

In a fast changing world, traditional ways of communication seem to be out, while online is in. How should the Sanremo market react?

“The change to a new management implies a lot of changes to this point of view, too. This is why at the moment the online sales service (that existed in the past) is temporarily unavailable: the online auction is up and running, but honestly we don’t have data available at the present about the turnover and the number of transactions.”

Meanwhile, the website of the deposit service, where the traders can see the products available and the prices (www. sanremoflowermarket.com) is temporarily offline, but it will soon reopen. At the moment, there is a restricted area available on our website. Here, growers can see their transactions, auction sales results and average prices.”

Floral wholesale

In a fast changing world, the traditional role of the floral wholesaler (one of your important customers) is under a great amount of pressure. In the Netherlands

alone, 2 giant wholesalers collapsed over the past few months. Sparago: “Technically speaking, Ciccolella is an Italian company, but besides that, I have no news of mergers or problems in the Italian wholesale (except for UCFlor, of course).

Overall the outlook is not too rosy, but this can be said for large parts of the nation’s economy. The floral business has changed a lot in recent years. It needs to reinvent itself, become more flexible and quicker.

I believe that in the future there will be a major focus on “services” , tailor-made offers and improved logistics. This is something that we still have to work out here, but we will arrive there hopefully soon.”

Regarding the future, Sparago says adapting quickly to the new management is imminent. “The economic downturn obviously continues to affect the market and the people. The best solution is o take the bull by the horns by tapping into new market opportunities. Luckily we continue to be enthusiastic about our job and industry. And this will hopefully make people decide to come back.

Our strongest assets for now are an insurance for the payments, lower tariffs and in general a new attitude in the business. As for the longterm business plans, we will have to take into account the changes that are happening in the floral business: probably in a couple of years we will move to a new place, because the existing market building is oversized. It was built in the 1990s, but many things have changed since and the management costs are now unbearable.” |||

May 2013 | www.FloraCultureInternational.com

9

10

European Spring Trials The European Spring Trials was a ‘hot bed’ of Gold Medal winners according to one company during the week-17 event.

Fleuroselect’s Gold Medal winners occupy pride of place

The European Spring Trials marks the beginning of the 2013/2014 bedding plant season.

by Ross Ford

S

ix gold medals were awarded for 2014 introduction, and no less than half are from leading pot, basket and bedding plant breeder, PanAmerican Seed and Kieft Seed.

Tried and tested

The Fleuroselect Gold Medal is awarded to novel varieties that have been tested by expert and independent judges and are proven to be better than existing varieties in terms of beauty, innovation, and reliability.

Fleuroselect's Gold Medal Winning varieties are tested across 13 dedicated trial gardens throughout Europe and cover a wide range of climates and growing conditions.

www.FloraCultureInternational.com | May 2013

Gaura ‘Sparkle White’

The gold medal introductions from PanAmerican Seed and Kieft Seed include a new Gaura (lindheimeri) ‘Sparkle White’, a new Penstemon (x Mexicali) 'Carillo Red', and a new Zinnia (marylandica) ‘Zahara Sunburst’.

Gaura ‘Sparkle White’ from Kieft Seed, is a first-year flowering perennial and is earlier and more uniformly flowering than other types.

Thanks to its better branching habit, the long panicles with starry white flowers can decorate the garden from late spring to autumn.

Director of Sales for PanAmerican Seed and Kieft Seed and Fleuro­ select board member: Jean-Francois Ignasse said: “The jury from

by William Armellini

Miami

Boomers time In the past, I have written about my advancing age and its effect on my body and mind (all good there so far). But the recent passing of Jake Van Namen and many other fathers and mothers of us Baby Boomers made me think. Jake was a strong man and leaves behind a family much like my own.

He worked hard and life treated him with favour despite some very hard times.

We were labelled Baby Boomers because after WWII things were happening here in America and round the world. That calm after the storm, combined with steady financial growth, produced an environment where cupid ran wild. Everyone was having children, as parents were optimistic about the future and the middle class grew more prosperous.

But that was 50+ years ago and now those men and women that we call parents are being called by their maker in rapid succession. Each week we learn of the passing of some friend’s dad or mom and we offer hope and prayer to those left behind knowing that our own parents, if still around, might be soon to follow.

Fleuroselect loved Sparkle White for its excellent garden performance and strong branching habit.

Because of its compact habit, this Gaura is ideal for container and landscape plantings.”

Gaura lindheimeri is known for being drought tolerant and loves a sunny spot in the garden.

I admit that I rarely shed a tear over these events as they are just part of life and not something to fear. I have shed more tears over a deceased pet then I have over humans. Not sure why but that is how it works for me... so far. My mother says: "we are living too long". I am not sure if that is true, but clearly medical science has given us many extra years and hopefully those years are happy ones and not just prolonging misery.

There are times when everyone must let nature take its course.

All of this death can certainly make one wonder about their own longevity and it is compounded when our peers also start to show up in the obituary pages. It is fun to say, “Live everyday as if it were your last” and while there is a lot of truth to that statement, it is not always feasible.

Penstemon ‘Carillo Red’

A gold medal was also awarded to the Kieft Seed Penstemon, ‘Carillo Red’ due to its eye-catching colour, the high number of flowers it produces and the nice mounded growing habit.

Director Jean-Francois said: “We have been very impressed with how quickly this new Penstemon is able to be produced and how uniform it is.”

Penstemon Carillo Red will flower all summer long and is ideal for garden borders in a sunny spot.

Zinnia ‘Zahara Sunburst’

Finally, the new Zinnia ‘Zahara Sunburst’ from PanAmerican Seed presents a unique colour breakthrough in breeding. Flowers burst open gold, followed by the appearance of a red stripe down the centre of each petal.

Fleuroselect board member Ignasse added: “Cold night temperatures will thicken the stripe, warm nights and the use of PGRs in the greenhouse will lessen the stripe which produces a unique bicolour effect. This product will be very attractive to the consumer due to its colour and to the grower because of its high-resistance to common Zinnia diseases.”

These three stunning new seed raised products will be available from May 2013 and were shown at the PanAmerican Seed and Kieft Seed Spring trials from April 24th until April 26th at the Florensis Cut Flowers location in Rijsenhout.

The full range of Fleuroselect Gold Medal awards for 2014 and previous years can be found at www.fleuroselect.com. |||

I try to live each day to the fullest and remind those around me that I love them and value their friendship and love. I hope these words find you in good health and in a good state of mind.

William Armellini. Editor Flowersandcents.com Williee@williee.com

May 2013 | www.FloraCultureInternational.com

11

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La sélection du Chef  ZA La Perrière - 17, rue Lavoisier 49800 Brain sur l’Authion - France  0033 2 41 54 57 10  0033 2 41 54 57 15  www.seeds-grainesvoltz.com

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FloraCulture International partners with the International Garden Centre Association The international B2B magazine for floriculture worldwide, FloraCulture International is pleased to announce its partnership with the International Garden Centre Association (IGCA). The members and relations of the IGCA will receive the monthly online format of FloraCulture International free of charge as a courtesy to their membership. The agreement between FCI and IGCA brings the total of FCI partners to 75. Among the FCI partners are 33 trade associations at state level and 42 at local level.

IGCA is an independent not for profit organisation committed to the continuous improvement of the garden centre industry worldwide. It is dedicated to supporting national garden centre associations and their members by providing the forums to promote business and networking opportunities, including an annual Congress.

The Congress sees over 200 of the best Garden Centre operators in the world meet together for one week, and visit the best garden centre retailing that the host country has to offer. This year’s Congress will take place from October 6 to 11, 2013 in Melbourne, Australia.

IGCA exists to provide a forum for the mutual exchange of information and benefit of similar minded independent garden retailers on a worldwide basis. Membership in the association provides a communication platform for the young generation to establish them in the garden centre business, and take advantage of the IGCA network. Being part of the association is a great way for independent garden centre owners around the world to exchange information, and see first hand what the trends are in other countries.

The IGCA administration office is located within the office of the Canadian Nursery Landscape Association, in Milton, Ontario, Canada, and is under the direction of Executive Director Victor Santacruz and IGCA Coordinator Julia Ricottone. There are currently 18 member associations that belong to IGCA, providing information to thousands of garden centres worldwide. Association administrators also benefit from the exchange of ideas and activities that can assist individual associations. IGCA is now thrilled to partner with FloraCulture International to provide our members with more valuable information for the garden centre industry.

For more information on IGCA, please visit www.intgardencentre.org or contact Julia Ricottone at julia@cnla-acpp.ca. |||

Be inspired for all seasons

Visit us at the FlowerTrialsÂŽ 11 - 14 June 2013

Flower Trials Location: Rijshornstraat 205, Rijsenhout Lavendelweg 15 | 1435 EW Rijsenhout P.O. Box 265 | 1430 AG Aalsmeer +31 (0)297 387000 | The Netherlands www.royalvanzanten.com

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Logistics FCI asked CC’s Roel de Jong a series of questions about how his plan to end the copy shelf problem would affect customers on critical matters like costs and benefits.

by Ron van der Ploeg

‘It’s not fair to ask customers to pay the price for misuse of the system’ Mr De Jong, on February 6th 2012 you announced steps to end the copy shelf problem.

More than one year later, would you say that you have managed to keep things running smoothly?

“Yes, I would say we have, although the problem is huge and finding the optimal solution is time consuming. But we have taken important steps. Before making any decision we checked whether our suggested course of action was appropriate and if we could count on the necessary support. Therefore, we met with the so-called captains group, which consists of all the captains of horticultural industry. They represent a cross section of Europe’s largest horticultural businesses.

Focusing on Europe makes sense as we are predominantly serving the European market. The meeting resulted in short and long term solutions. The short term solution should be geared towards minimising repair costs. Furthermore, our customers will be given a quota for handing in broken shelves based on the numbers of items they have under contract with CC.”

Roel de Jong, managing director of Container Centralen.

www.FloraCultureInternational.com | May 2013

Copy shelves are not a new problem to the CC Pool System, but over the last two years the pool has been flooded with copy shelves.

The percentage of lowquality shelves is now so high that it affects the general quality of the pool. How many

shelves are there and how many of them are copies?

“For some reason the number of low quality copy shelves has risen dramatically over the past three years. It’s difficult to make an exact estimate, but I guess 40% of the shelves are copies.”

Where do these copies hail from and how can you recognise them?

“Basically they can come from anywhere. They can be bought in the Netherlands or China. It would be wrong to identify them as a typical Chinese product. Everybody who uses the shelve can easily see the difference. Steel and hooks are much thinner, there is no coating and the ply wood and the outer metal rim are attached in a different way.”

Does CC provide a measuring tool to check the accepted minimum thickness of the metal hook on the container shelves?

“In February 2012, we announced that we would stop the repair of low-quality shelves. In order to distinguish fake from real, we introduced a measuring tool. However, we soon stepped back from that as the market was not ready for it.

Subsequently, we started discussions with our key customers at a much more strategic level. This resulted in the quota system and the long term development of a copy proof shelf.”

Why was your initial plan to stop the repair of illegal shelves not the best choice for the market?

“There was a certain amount of resistance, and with valid reason, especially from a few of our larger customers. So after four weeks we withdrew the initial plan, which didn’t really address the problem of misuse. We also omitted to thoroughly explain the idea to our major customers. Some of them felt that there were other options available. Basically, the market should

CC customers will be given a quota for handing in broken shelves based on the numbers of items they have under contract with CC.

have been informed in advance instead of taking unilateral decisions. Here, there was a lesson to be learned by CC.”

the problem. Basically, one should stop the bleeding, which is a challenging task for the management.”

On annual basis, how much does it cost CC to repair copy shelves?

To make sure that our returnable transport items (RTIs) are always in a good and usable condition, CC charges an annual pool fee (€7,36 base plus 3 shelves).

The pool fee is used amongst others to cover repair or replacement of damaged RTIs on a 1-for-1 basis. CC receives the damaged stock and immediately hands out the good – no charge beyond the fixed annual pool fee and no waiting until the customer has a functional RTI. Meanwhile repair costs have accelerated since 2009. What happens if CC’s increasing repair costs fails to keep up with the current pool fee?

“The annual repair costs amount to around €11 million and they continue to rise. As the costs are higher than the pool fee, this is obviously a loss making activity.”

Also, higher pool fees would threaten the very fragile financial situation of your customers…

“We have two main obligations to the market: to maintain and improve the quality and accuracy of the pool. From a management standpoint, we must also strive to bring the best service at the lowest possible cost. CC used to be a somewhat closed world, not very market driven and our cost consciousness was not up to the required level. We have learnt to better understand our customer base that each day has to fight for its existence, with low profit margin and high risks. An increased cost consciousness will hopefully allow us to start lowering the pool fee at

“Either the shareholders have to pay for the losses or we have to increase the pool fee. Both solutions I don’t like. It’s certainly not fair to ask loyal customers to pay the price for misuse of the system. Moreover, you merely put a band-aid over the wound, but that doesn’t really solve

>>>

May 2013 | www.FloraCultureInternational.com

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Logistics some point in the future. As for the recent bankruptcies of Dutch floral wholesalers, this is a real shock for suppliers and employees. But it is also a normal process a sector goes through. The consolidation of a sector always goes two steps forward and one step back. I reckon we are now half way. Meanwhile, there is a strong pressure on the flower industry to deal with image problems. The recent foreclosure of giant wholesalers doesn’t really help to create a positive image. Previously working in floral wholesale for more than ten years, I can clearly see how banks distinguish the good from the bad companies in terms of working capital, management focus and proper insights. Too many companies are seen as a black box where you have turnover and profit but where it remains unclear where costs and revenues hail from. Many companies are undercapitalised while they have to face an extremely difficult market situation where getting paid in a timely matter is a concern for exporters, especially when wholesale customers are concerned. The retailing industry pays in time but margins are very small so one has to run a very effective organisation. Banks perceive it as an above average risk industry.”

So if I understand you correctly it’s time for bold action. Speaking about losses and bankruptcies, is there any risk CC could face insolvency due to the copy shelf problem?

“No I don’t see that happening. CC is a very strong company financially and can deal with some problems if it is not for too long. What we’re talking about is a solvable problem for which we have found a solution.

Coincidentally, we had a meeting with our Danish bank last month and they were very satisfied with the actions that have been put into place. The outlook for this year is positive outlook and we are also on track for 2014. So there is no point talking about insolvency. I wouldn’t even want to use that word.”

After a working group of ‘captains of industry’ was set up, a new plan was worked out. What are the key points?

“Only CC customers will be allowed to exchange broken CC material in future and CC material will be closely monitored. There is no risk for either customers or CC employees that they will be snowed under by paperwork. The system has been up and running since February 1st. Customers can book online via LogLink, our registration system and they use it a lot.

All we need is for customers to register, because then we can follow what is going on. If customers are exceeding the quota we also need a pre-registration for packing up and invoice. We hired temporary workers to cover the extra workload. But these people are all gone, so today the office is back to normal.”

Will the plan work?

Only CC customers will be allowed to exchange broken CC material in future and CC material will be closely monitored.

www.FloraCultureInternational.com | May 2013

“The first signs are positive. But I am still a bit reluctant because I need all the details of the financial impact for a full assessment. The peak season runs from March to May and started late this year due to the exceptionally cold weather.

There is less influx of shelves for our repair shops, but this can also be caused by the late start of the season. So far things are in accordance with our plans and expectations.”

Meanwhile , there might be other problems to solve.

The horticultural industry calls for a new generation of CC trolleys with a different size (60X80, 50x60) for improved loading efficiency.

The current CC trolley is said to be old fashioned?

“The CC trolley made its debut in 1976 when a group of Danish growers developed a trolley in line with the demand from growers and transporting companies. I am not fully aware of the cited problem and would like to speak out against the idea of old fashioned trolleys. What we do need is modern equipment, including the latest technological innovations. In that respect improvements can still be made. We should also increase the focus on CC’s management and its brainchild: the copy proof shelve.

When we are done with that, we will have a careful look at our containers. Everything is open for discussion. It might not be necessary to change the size, but we want to continue to improve the quality of our products. This doesn’t only involve the material strengths and weaknesses of our products but also the dimensions.

The project team continues to focus on a copy proof shelf. How will you be able to guarantee a copy free shelf and when will it be launched?

“The new management abandoned the idea of in-house R&D. Managing the pool on behalf of our customers is our primary responsibility. R&D can require investments between 80 to 120 million. Our task is to steer the process, to indicate the business’s requirements. Growers, traders and transporters have made some preliminary proposals regarding stacking capacity, dimensions, noise reduction, weakness of current shelves. The next step is to invite technical suppliers to come up with solutions that are within the desired specifications. We encourage companies to register their interest for the forthcoming tender or close bids. After the summer, the concept will turn into reality. We have not

Dutch Comfort

by Jaap N. Kras

An auction is a species belonging to the genus wholesaler Ciccolella closed its doors on February 16 (€300 million in wholesale turnover) followed by Florimex (€ 210 million turnover) on April 9. A good number of suppliers are left with unpaid invoices and bankruptcy of these two giant wholesalers is a terrible tragedy for the 550 plus employees.

Commenting on the Ciccolella/Florimex drama, the Dutch Association of Wholesale Trade in Ornamental Products (VGB) and flower auction FloraHolland said, “There is no problem. We didn’t sustain major financial losses and the customers were able to change supplier rapidly and continue to purchase flowers from other sources in the Netherlands.” A 500 million turnover in floral wholesales down the drain and there is no problem??? In psychology they call this ‘denial’.

CC container, 4 shelves plus 10 stacked shelves.

yet stipulated what kind of material the shelf should be made of. Most important is that it meets the functional specs, whether the shelf is, for example, carbon or a combination of carbon and plastic or other materials is really not the most important thing. CC has been promoting the idea of plastic shelves. That might be a good solution but it is not necessarily THE solution.

Given the required production time, I expect the first copy proof shelves to be launched in 2015.”

Last question, CC has gone through much change. It moved its head offices from Odense (Denmark) to Hoofddorp in the Netherlands.

Have you settled in by now?

“Pretty much, CC appointed me as their new CEO in April 2012 and we made three major decisions.

Firstly, we felt the need to bring the company closer to the customers. Although we have some important customers in Denmark, the epicentre of our business is the Netherlands and Germany where up to 70% of our clients are located. Secondly, a large board of directors does not automatically lead to quick decision making. Also, a lot of corporate decisions were not always checked and benchmarked. So our goal is to delegate more responsibilities to the middle management who are closer to our suppliers and customers, turning the top decision into a more management based decision.

Overall, we have dismissed 15% of our European staff.

We reduced the executive management from nine to three. CC currently employs 104 personnel of which 60 are operating from our head office in Hoofddorp.

How can customers benefit from a Hoofddorp-based CC? Well, it should be a proof that CC really listens to its customers and it also symbolises a cultural change.

We are settled now, but there is no time for us to sit back and relax.” |||

The Dutch wholesalers are in deep trouble and the pertinent question is whether in the end the flower auction is not merely a variation on the genus wholesaler? Some people call the flower auction a real estate company. That’s the truth. Another truth, however, is that the property market tries to stay afloat in stormy weather. Huge investments in 125 ha of newly acquired land that are now vast expanses of desolate terrain and nearly 100.000m² of empty buildings on your balance sheet is not something to be jealous about.

I have witnessed it with my own eyes and ears. How the growth of the Dutch flower industry culminated in triumphs ‘We are the biggest producer! We are proud to announce a world market share of 65%! Of course, this was never true, but here again the rule of thumb is: the harder you scream, the less you will be aware of other sounds.

The collapse of Ciccolella and Florimex marks the beginning of a new era where things will be completely different. Apparently, the prices for the growers were not bad last year and for the first months of this year. Forget Mr Sandman (thank you Emmylou Harris and the Chordettes). You have to wake up and stop dreaming. The harsh reality is that the number of business foreclosures reached record levels over the past few years.

Successful directors, CEOs and entrepreneurs, who ran a company during its years of expansion, are per definition and by character not qualified to guide the company through other life cycles. For example: a company in the stage of maturity (only replacement buyers) has to be managed very efficiently and cheaply. In theory, these companies need a bookkeeper as CEO. The next stage (in which the Netherlands finds itself today) needs a turn-around management. Everybody seems to understand that a bookkeeper is not the man to turn around a company.

This doesn’t only count for the CEO but for the organisation at large. ‘The way we do things’ looks like the experiment of the 3rd generation monkeys that still jump up to the empty hook every morning because their grand parents received a banana there. Educated in the period of absolute growth it seems impossible to be successful in a turnaround company that is one of the lessons of Charles Handy’s book ‘God of Management’ from 1978.

Jaap N. Kras jaap@floracultureinternational.com

May 2013 | www.FloraCultureInternational.com

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Potted plants Star Roses will be celebrating its own breeding programme during the upcoming Flower Trials in the Netherlands by launching an exciting line of beautiful, fast growing pot roses ranging from white to dark red.

The company’s agent, Armada International will wave the Star Roses flag and promote the benefits of this revolutionary line of pot roses on the international marketplace.

Star Roses to conquer world potted rose market

Left to right: Gerard Satter and Gerard Lentjes from Armada International.

S

by Ron van der Ploeg

tar Roses has roots dating back to the 1960’s. It all started with Henk Satter Sr, the father of the current company owners, Gerard and Henk Satter.

Initially, Henk Satter Sr has built most of his reputation on being one of the first growers to produce yearround Chrysanthemums. Henk Sr, as the father of a very large family, instilled an independent spirit in each of his ten children by encouraging a sense of entrepreneurship during their youth. Over the years, the second generation of the Satter family expanded the family business

www.FloraCultureInternational.com | May 2013

to encompass a group of independently owned companies plus a wide variety of ornamentals such as Chrysanthemums, orchids and, last but not least, pot roses.

Intensive flower production

In 2003, Star Roses was founded

by Henk and Gerard Satter. ”Back in the day, we provided Chrysanthemums for the UK and faced fierce competition from cheaper imports. We realised long ago that it was risky to be dependent on the vagaries of the cut flower market

and decided to focus on a more intensive form of flower production.

We analysed the market and looked around in UK supermarkets. At that time we spotted an opportunity, especially the UK market where we saw hardly any pot roses.”

After a relatively modest start in a 15,000m2 facility, pot roses are now big business in Poederoijen, the Netherlands. Today, the company produces up to 15 million pot roses, which are sold through the FloraHolland flower auction. Their final destination can be practically everywhere in Europe from the UK

to Finland, from Romania to Spain to Russia. The company employs 60 staff during its busy harvest season to meet the demand from supermarkets, garden centres and wholesalers.

Highly automated business

It is the beginning of April 2013. Gerard Satter beams as he walks through the 8ha of highly automated greenhouse operation.

His business is the biggest seller of potted roses in Europe and though it is only the beginning of the growing season, the nursery owner is already reaping the fruits of his labour. “We are hesitant to call it a bumper crop, but the UK Mother’s Day sales have been just great and Valentine’s Day as well as the International Woman’s Day have given us a head start. Meanwhile, record low temperatures and unseasonable snowfall have not only affected people’s moods but they also really put a dampener on this year’s Easter sales. Sales to garden centres and wholesalers continue to be sluggish.”

Gerard is clearly a man who loves the hustle and bustle of the day to day business and prefers to do his talking in the glasshouse, where he can check the production process and quality of the crop. “This makes all the hard work worth the effort,“ he said while taking a tray with strikingly uniform and vividly coloured pot roses from a Danish trolley. He added “Speaking of Danish, at first we worked with a Danish supplier of young plants. However, the colour range was not broad enough, the crop time too long and it was quite a struggle to get hold of reliable varieties. We decided to take control ourselves by setting up an extensive breeding programme. As time passed we gained experience with propagating. We have now become specialists in all stages of pot rose production, from propagation, using our own virus-free stock, to the finished, saleable product. It is with pride that we announce the debut of our own breeding line of pot roses including 20 varieties with large flowers and bold colours that

don’t fade. All colours display a high level of uniformity and compactness. The series has higher tolerance to mildew than its competitors on the market, it transports well and performs well as an indoor plant and as a patio plant.”

Furthermore, Star Roses are ideal to produce very large numbers of nearly identical pot roses. Gerard Satter, “Their strength is their volume as well as their identical looks.

Supermarkets sell our roses in high volumes and if tomorrow a French supermarket chain orders 300,000 pots, we are able to meet this high demand.”

Crop cycle

The crop cycle is broken down into a number of steps: propagation by stem cuttings, potting (4 to 5 cuttings in a 12cm pot and a maximum of 4 cuttings in a 10.5cm pot), pruning, sorting and packing.

Depending on the pot size, season and cultivar, crop times vary between 9 to 12 weeks. “One achieves the best results if careful attention is given to the crop. Newcomers to pot roses will have to discover the art of growing pot roses,” Satter said. He continued, “Some things work and some don’t. Lighting in winter time is one of the key issues.

In our greenhouses we use light levels ranging between 12,000 to 13,000 lux.”

Star Roses are strikingly uniform.

Besides lighting, height is one of the most important aspects of our greenhouse. The height of our glasshouse structures directly impact on natural ventilation, the stability of the internal environment and crop management. The tall (post height 6m), roof ventilated greenhouse allows us to achieve a more uniform, stable and ultimately superior growing environment for the crop.”

Blooming potential

Gerard sees a blooming potential for Star Roses as they feature vigorous growth, disease resistance, full, but compact bushes and prolific bloom. All in all, they truly bring a full value solution to the needs of ornamental growers worldwide.

Building on the success in the Dutch market, the brand now aims to go global. To boost export sales of genetics, Star Roses recently teamed up with Armada International, which today is its official agent abroad. Having major connections to the wholesale trade, Armada International is the ideal advocate for Star Roses.

A division of young plant supplier and breeding company Armada from De Lier, Armada International is headed by Gerard Lentjes who

Star Roses have a fully-developed root system.

>>>

May 2013 | www.FloraCultureInternational.com

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Brighter than

Stars

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Pearls® is Gypsophila redefined!

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Potted plants

Automatic pruning.

deals with breeder’s rights, licenses and the sales of Star Roses cuttings and young plants outside Europe.

Currently, sales to South Africa, South America, Asia and the Middle East continue to be strong, as in these parts of the world potted roses are still something new. The same goes for the US market, which is clearly on the radar. “With North American production costs continuing to rise, shorter crop times and a uniform Star Roses product can be a major saving for the US-based grower. We would like to find a

Star Roses’ extra-long trucks are the company’s pride.

group of ‘preferred growers’ who are willing to go full steam ahead to expand their potted rose business.

We will need to create a critical mass to build the marketplace.

A few hectares per grower would be perfect.”

With a wealth of experience in establishing sales and international distribution network, Gerard Lentjes is sure to carve a niche in the field of potted roses, which are relatively unknown to the US consumers. “Armada International is an excellent fit with Star Roses and will allow us to extend our reach in the US flower industry where we aim to provide customers with a wide range of tried and tested products and services such as Chrysanthemum and Aster,” stated Gerard Lentjes, CEO of Armada International. “With its high quality products and services, recognised brands and global capabilities, Armada gives us a strong position in the ornamental horticulture and gardening industry and is wellpositioned to benefit from increases in global demand,” commented Gerard Satter. He concluded, “The cooperation between Satter

Propagation is carried out by stem cuttings.

and Armada will mark the beginning of a very exciting chapter for Star Roses. Through this collaboration, we will create a stronger pot rose industry worldwide.” |||

May 2013 | www.FloraCultureInternational.com

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Automation Agromillora’s business in providing planting material demands production in growing media modules that will provide an excellent root environment in the nursery, in a stable unit for handling, packaging and transport. Eight years ago, the Spanish company began to use the Ellepot system to meet these needs. Agromillora remains very satisfied with their experience.

The Ellepot system on the grand scale

From Agromillora’s production laboratory at its headquarters at Subirats, near Barcelona, over ten million plants a year are produced.

T

by John Sutton

he Agromillora Group does what it does on a grand scale. Currently it supplies forty-five million young plants a year to growers across the world.

Among them are up to fifteen million olive trees, each labelled with the company’s Olint trade mark.

It is the largest user anywhere of in vitro propagation technology for fruit. From its production laboratory at its headquarters at Subirats, near Barcelona, over ten million plants a year are produced. In addition to olives, twenty rootstock varieties for fruits are included in the Agromillora product range. Five of them are of their own breeding, and are sold under the Rootpac trademark.

in fruit. The company produces young plants of nearly twenty different types. Peaches and nectarines were originally the most important, but the range now also includes plums, cherries, apricots, apples, citrus fruits, kiwi fruit, berries and several sorts of nuts. Most of these are sold as micrografted trees, (trademarked name Micrograft), and almost four hundred combinations of scion variety and rootstock are offered. Among facilities at the headquarters site is a computerised grafting room.

Agromillora also supplies grape vines to growers in Spain. In association with the world-leading specialist Vivai Cooperativi Rauscedo (VCR).

Fruit

Olive trees

Stone fruit rootstocks are just a part, although an important one, of Agromillora’s much wider interests

www.FloraCultureInternational.com | May 2013

Around forty per cent of the world’s olives are produced in Spain, making the country a natural base for

Agromillora. Founded in 1986, the company now has around five hundred employees worldwide. There are two affiliated companies in Spain, and overseas a further nine, three in South America, and others in the USA, Australia, Turkey and North Africa.

Total world olive production is estimated to occupy nearly 100, 000 sq km of land, an area well over twice the size of The Netherlands. Both production and consumption of olives is growing fast in countries far from the traditional Mediterranean heartland of the fruit. Throughout the developed world there is a rapidly growing appreciation of the health-promoting nature of olive oil, a key feature in the typical Mediterranean diet.

This is driving increased demand, while another important step in boosting the need for young olive trees is a large change in growing

good root environment.” He adds, “The ideal physical properties in our growing media combined with the use of well-designed trays, guarantee perfect drainage.”

200,000 plants per day

Newly rooted olive cuttings are potted into 20mm diameter Ellepots, 40mm high. After approximately six weeks, partly in acclimatisation conditions in polythene greenhouses, the well established young plants are potted into Jumbo Ellepots, using the Step-Up system.

practice. In Agromillora trials, six varieties have been identified as suitable for high density planting. These share features such as naturally dwarf habit and precocity in cropping, resulting in economic yields while the trees are still young.

The hedge-style planting and pruning allows the use of highly efficient over-the-row mechanical harvesting machinery.

Ellepot system

The company’s business in providing planting material demands production in growing media modules that will provide an excellent root environment in the nursery, in a stable unit for handling, packaging and transport. Eight years ago, Agromillora began to use the Ellepot system to meet these needs.

The company now has six of the machines designed by the Danish company Ellegaard at their sites in Spain. Another nine are used by their affiliated companies in other countries, from Turkey on the edge of Europe, to far-away Brazil and Chile.

Step-Up system

Newly rooted olive cuttings are potted into 20mm diameter Ellepots, 40mm high. After approximately six weeks, partly in acclimatisation conditions in polythene greenhouses, the well established young plants are potted into Jumbo Ellepots, using the Step-Up system.

The young plants are robotically placed into planting holes that have been drilled into the larger Ellepots, 60mm diameter and 100mm high. These are already in specially designed trays, allowing the plants just the right space for their continued development. The roots, undisturbed by the move, quickly run out through the short-life sleeving paper of the original small Ellepots into the fresh growing medium of the Jumbo Ellepots. In these they grow on for sale as young trees 3040cm high, each with a single stem supported by a cane. The EP grade Ellepot paper used has a life of eight to twelve months before natural decomposition in the soil.

Root environment

The same final size of Ellepot is used for some of the rootstocks that are to be micrografted by Agromillora, to produce young trees ready for final planting. The company also supplies large quantities of rootstocks to nurseries, and these are grown in smaller Ellepots, 40mm diameter and 50mm high.

“We are growing roots”, says Agromillora technical manager Joan Torrents Pallarès. “If they have good conditions while the plants are with us, the trees will grow well when they are planted out in the field. If we choose the right substrate, and calibrate our Ellepot machines to maintain the correct pressure, we provide a dependably

Ellepot machines can run fast without loss of quality, enabling a throughput of up to 200,000 plants per day on Agromillora’s largest nursery.

Plant stress is minimal when they are removed from the nursery, for packing and transport to customers. No root breakage occurs, and all of the growing medium is retained in place, bonded by the root system. For the customer, planting speeds are high, and when planting is complete, there is no plastic waste product left behind for disposal.

Most importantly, plant roots are undisturbed during planting, and establishment in the new environment is rapid.

Modern science and (Ellegaard) technology

The success of the Agromillora Group comes from the application of modern science and technology to the production of some of the world’s oldest and most important fruit crops. Careful selection of the best clones of the most valuable varieties already in the market place is combined with modern techniques of virus testing, disease elimination from infected material, and in vitro multiplication. Work in laboratory conditions is afterwards backed up by strictly controlled growing environments for mother plants, cuttings and newly grafted material.

All this brings to producers a quality of young plant far in advance of anything available in the past.

For the future, the company has a forward-looking policy of collaboration with universities, research institutions and private breeders, in Spain, Brazil, Russia, France, Chile and the USA. This will play an ever more important part in maintaining success for the company, and for its many customers in every continent. |||

May 2013 | www.FloraCultureInternational.com

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World News The Netherlands IPHandlers well-prepared to start up logistic airfreight services

The date of opening the doors of IPHandlers is coming close. On the 3rd of June 2013 all preparation work will be finalised. On the website www.iphandlers.nl in the news section the progress is updated and visualised.

• I n April an email information bulletin was sent around in which the announcement was given that IPHandlers is the new Independent Perishable Handler in the Netherlands.

• IPHandlers has chosen for an integrated software system with the most modern customs module, which is used by freighters and agents worldwide.

Easy access and log in makes the work load as costs efficient as possible these days.

• The 2 vacuum coolers for 24 ton product cooling per hour are in place and in operation.

• The warehouse is provided with a climatecontrolled installation. Direct after arrival the perishables are under the temperature-controlled process of IPHandlers.

• The team is formed; most experienced employees are attracted to work for this young and dynamic Company.

• Opening of the new set up in Aalsmeer will be soon.

Certifiable in California

by John Ingwersen

Shanghaied The term ‘Shanghaied’ originated in California in the later part of the 1800’s, referring to what happened when an innocent gold miner, cowboy, or general roustabout went into a waterfront bar in San Francisco for a drink or two and got slipped a mickey instead, with the unfortunate then waking up shortly thereafter (most likely with a very nasty hangover) on a China clipper headed for Shanghai. Apparently that was the preferred recruitment method in those days when a captain was short a few deckhands for the run to the Far East.

(I may resort to that recruitment technique soon myself if immigration reform is not passed here in the US.) The allure of China now is much greater than it was in those days, subterfuge no longer being required to attract those of us in the west to that booming market. It’s only natural that one would look to China for opportunity.

I mean, when you’ve been dealing with negative and/or stagnant GDP, or measly growth rates of 1-2% for years, how could you not look to a market where the growth rate last year slowed to a mere 7.7% ? The attraction is obvious.

So off to China I went, not on a clipper, thank goodness (a nice Boeing 777 is a lot faster and more comfortable, at least in business class), for the 15th HortiFlora IPM Expo in Shanghai. My expectations going in were fairly minimal. For all the hyperbole about the Chinese market, it’s no secret that it’s a very difficult place for foreign companies that want to export there. There are numerous barriers to entry, both official and unofficial, not to mention logistical and cultural issues. On the other hand, even a small piece of a very big pie can still be quite satisfying, and once the ropes are learned things usually get easier.

And the result?....For my own purposes, I have to say it was very much on par with expectations. I went into the show with an offering strategy geared specifically for the market, and I’m still confident it was an appropriate and realistic approach. Also, considering the relatively niche nature of my main offering (plumeria), there was more than a fair amount of interest. It’s too soon to say if that will lead to sales, but I’m cautiously optimistic.

What did surprise me was the larger context of the Chinese horticultural market.

Not that it’s geared to high-volume and export, that part goes without saying.

Rather, it’s the lack of sophistication at the retail level domestically. There is a lot of money floating around, but once you go beyond the luxury brands and autos the average Chinese consumer has had a very limited retail experience, and price is about the only value proposition that seems to be universally understood.

For most of us used to pitching our products to buyers in the US, Europe, Japan, and even the Middle East there is going to be a significant education process involved in developing any kind of audience in China, and even that entails significant risk, because in doing so you not only educate the Chinese consumer, you also educate your Chinese competition. It’s a fine line to walk.

Maybe getting slipped a mickey wouldn’t be such a bad thing after all…

You are invited to contact us for most reasonable prices, with the highest services level.

Simon Benard, managing director of IPHandlers b.v.: sbenard@iphandlers.nl / www.iphandlers.nl |||

John Ingwersen graduated with a degree in marketing from Georgetown University in 1990, and founded Jungle Jack’s, Inc. in 1995. sales@junglejacksthailand.com

May 2013 | www.FloraCultureInternational.com

25

26

Floral wholesale Florimex bankruptcy has a long-lasting effect on other businesses down the line The bankruptcy of Florimex marks the end of yet another wholesale giant in the Netherlands.

As FloraCulture International reported on Tuesday April 9th, the bankrupt Florimex Group was one of the largest players in the European flower and plant trade with a turnover of ₏ 207 million in 2011. The collapse of the reputed multi-business conglomerate, which employed 300 people, has raised fears over Florimex’s creditors among which are suppliers, who in March were forced to take huge losses following the Ciccolella drama.

S

tarted in 1925 in Nuremberg, Germany, Florimex expanded rapidly following the Second World War and was soon to become one of the most important players in the international flower trade during the 1980s. Acquired

by Dirbrell Brothers, the company was later integrated into the German wholesaler Florimex, also taken over by Dibrell in the 1980s.

In 2005, the Florimex Group was taken over by Bencis, a Dutch private equity company. Last week, Bencis stopped financing the losses of the Florimex Group, after that the bank also withdrew. The company decided to file for bankruptcy on Tuesday April 9.

A constant battle

by Jaap N. Kras

For years, Florimex and Zurel (founded in 1905) had been each

www.FloraCultureInternational.com | May 2013

other's biggest competitor, engaging in a constant battle for the number one position. Within two months, both companies have collapsed and an era is forever gone: Zurel as a division of the Ciccolella group and Florimex under the umbrella of the Florimex Group.

All other divisions of the Florimex Group, Starkenburg, Baardse, Florimex Greens, Sierafor and Disva (which was only recently taken over from the bankrupt Cicccolella) have closed their doors too.

Flower wholesaler Starkenburg was traditionally strong on the English market, while Baardse was one of the biggest wholesale companies of flowers and plants in the Netherlands. Sierafor, a leading supplier of flower bouquets for super market chains was acquired in the 1990s and added to the Florimex Group.

Florimex Greens was one of the pioneers in the trade for bouquet fillers and greens. This well-known and widely respected company was the first to announce its foreclosure a few weeks ago when suppliers in Central America refused to send new shipments after their invoices remained unpaid.

Sierafor

It might be worth mentioning that Sierafor has always been a very profitable company specialising in bouquets for German supermarkets. In autumn 2012, however, Sierafor was stuck in a fight with labour unions who opposed the fact that Dutch employees were being replaced by Polish contract workers.

Eventually, the fall of Florimex also affected this once very financially healthy company, which faced

Prices

severe losses on their cut tulip growing contracts with the retailing industry. This spring, bouquet makers, such as Sierafor, signed tulip contracts with supermarket chains for prices ranging between 11 and 12 cents. Due to the cold weather at the start of the year there were not enough tulips to meet the orders and the companies were forced to purchase extra tulips at the auction clock. And on some days prices for cut tulips went sky high, rising to up to 20 cent per stem. It didn’t take a lot to realise that these million stem orders with Aldi, Lidl, Migros, Carrefour and Tesco caused mega losses on a daily basis in the first three months of this year. In March, the average tulip price at the auction was around 15 cents and even today the prices are far above the contract prices agreed suppliers and retail chains.

FloraHolland clock sales 2013

Category Cut Flowers

Ghost town

Meanwhile, the Florimex bankruptcy has a long-lasting effect on businesses down the line. Flora­Holland, for example, provided a two-week line of credit via its intermediary service, FloraHolland Connect, and finds itself with 26,000m2 of empty building (the former headquarters of Blumex, which filed for bankruptcy in 2008), which adds to the abandoned Ciccolella offices. There is no need to explain how the economic downturn slowly changes the VBA-Zuid business park, an area built during the auction’s boom years where bustling business was supposed to move forward, into a ghost town with empty offices.

The fact is, that the auction earns more money with real estate than with flowers and perhaps it is time for FloraHolland to review its commercial strategy.

Product Rose large Tulipa single flowered Chrysanthemum spray Lilium oriental Tulipa double Rosa sweetheart Chrysanthemum disbudded Gerbera mini Freesia single flowered Cymbidium large flowered per stem Chrysanthemum santini Gerbera large flowered Hyacinthus orientalis Tulipa parrot Rosa spray

Total Top 15 Indoor Plants

Phalaenopsis

5,975,236

14.1

3.73

3.95

Bromelia

2,755,275

-11.7

1.38

1.49

Total Top 10

7,623,019 1,669,990 4,945,916 14,120,208 13,623,731 1.673,807 900,319 1.948.375 55,244,876

8.5 -6.3 10.8 2.1 -11.3 -12.0 -11.9 -27.8 -2.1

0.61 3.06 0.85 0.47 0.38 2.18 0.70 1.36 1.07

0.70 2.79 0.99 0.48 0.37 2.40 0.69 1.27 1.08

Garden Plants Viola Buxus Bedding plants misc.

Trees/shrubs and patio plants Camellia Total Top 5

11.899,349 644,332 199,740 213,427 286,310 13,243,158

1.8 -50.1 -74.9 -42.2 -16.5 -8.6

0.15 2.69 0.43 2.45 2.66 0.37

0.29 2.29 0.21 2.95 2.74 0.59

Kalanchoe Anthurium Potted rose Potted Narcissus Potted Hyacinthus Hydrangea Indoor plants misc.

Dracaena

The last survivor

Florimex was the last survivor of the big wholesale companies from the good old days. Maanen and van Mantel went bankrupt in the 1980s and Florimex, which was the last remaining has now 33 years later, also closed its doors.

In 2008, the entire German wholesale department of Florimex including seventeen cash and carry stores in Germany, the Kelsterbach facility, the Herongen branch, the Vienna cash and carry market and the transport division Baardse Transport were sold to the Herongen based company Straelener Blumenhandel and Dänners. These companies are not included in the Florimex bankruptcy. |||

Weeks 1 to 15 Quantity % 13:12 Price 2013 Price 2012 573,338,915 -6.8 0.28 0.27 556,213,506 -20.8 0.16 0.12 156,501,289 -12.2 0.39 0.40 24,070,637 -1.4 0.82 0.85 120,620,922 -21.5 0.18 0.14 48,173,679 -21.2 0.12 0.12 34,040,640 1.1 0.57 0.62 119,122,802 -6.7 0.11 0.14 38,781,610 -7.7 0.21 0.20 3,818,195 0.1 2.90 3.19 33,709,219 -5.5 0.30 0.29 23,495,430 -11.6 0.23 0.26 23,483,204 -4.2 0.28 0.26 39,096,480 -19.2 0.20 0.16 31,448,789 30.8 0.26 0.30 1,825,915,317 -13.1 0.25 0.22

Source FloraHolland

May 2013 | www.FloraCultureInternational.com

27

Visit our Flower Trials and admire our newest breeding results In week 24, you’re welcome to visit Deliflor’s chrysanthemum trials and explore the varieties of the future. The trials includes disbudded, spray and santini chrysanthemums. Amongst them, you’ll find some of our latest creations, such as Baltica Lime, Barca, Rhythm and BonBon, as well as many new and remarkable breeding numbers, but also bestsellers like Anastasia, Radost and Baltica.

At the same location, Beekenkamp organises it’s Flower Trials.

11-14 June 2013 Deliflor Chrysanten Opening hours: 09.00 - 17.00 Address: Korte Kruisweg 163, Maasdijk, The Netherlands.

More information: www.deliflor.com / info@deliflor.com

You can’t afford to miss the FlowerTrials®!

Week 24: 11th till 14th June 2013 8 a.m. till 5 p.m.

During FlowerTrials®, 41 leading companies in 3 regions showcase their pot and bedding plant assortments, and present the latest new and future introductions. Essential information and inspiration for your crop planning!

Aalsmeer

For more information, visit www.flowertrials.com and register online for access to all Flower Trials in one simple step.

Register online

www.flowertrials.com m

Westland RheinlandWestfalen

International Events May 2013 7 to 9. United States National Hardware Show May in Las Vegas, NV. www.nationalhardwareshow.com 14 to 15. United States Floriculture Field Days at the Epcot Theme Park, Orlando, FL. www.fngla.org 9 to 11. Thailand HortiAsia in Bangkok. Now in its second year, HortiAsia will focus on the entire supply chain of fruits, vegetables, flowers and plants.

Venue: Bangkok International Trade and Exhibition Centre (BITEC). hortiasia@vnuexhibitions.com www.hortiasia.net 21 to 24. The Netherlands 2013 Spring Mechanisation Fair, the premier trade show for the bulb industry featuring the latest breeding breakthroughs in lilies and cutting edge machinery. www.springmechanisation.com 21 to 24. The Netherlands Dutch Lily Days www.dutchlilydays.com 21 to 25. United Kingdom Chelsea Flower Show. www.rhs.org.uk 22 to 24. Azerbaijan The 7th Azerbaijan international agriculture exhibition, Agrihort at the Baku Expo Centre.

Show founders and organisers: Iteca Caspian LLC (Azerbaijan) and ITE Group PLC (UK) T +994 12 404 1044 F +994 12 404 1001 agro@iteca.az www.agrihort.az www.iteca.az 30 May to 3 June. Ireland Bloom 2013 is Ireland’s most important flower show which will take place in the Phoenix Park in Dublin. www.bloominthepark.com June 2013 4 to 8. Argentina Batimat Expovivienda. From June 4-8, visitors attending Batimat Expovivienda will be treated to the spectacular display of trees, plants and flowers which the Argentine growers are renowned for. Parallel to the show garden in the Blue Pavilion, the Association will held its 35th nursery stock conference.

For further information: www.batev.com.ar www.verdeesvida.com.ar

5 to 7. Kenya International Floriculture Trade Expo (IFTEX) at the Oshwai convention centre, Nairobi. www.hpp.nl 6 to 8. Tanzania Food Agro Africa 2013. Africa’s premier international food, hotel and agricultural products, equipment and machinery trade show at Dar-es-Salaam. www.foodexpo.expogr.com 11 to 12. United States SAF Retail Growth Solutions, a mini conference for florists in St Louis. www.safnow.org/ retail-growth-solutions 11 to 13. United States National Lawn & Garden Show at the Chicago (Rosemont) Crowne Plaza Chicago O’Hare. www.nlgshow.com 11 to 14. The Netherlands Flower Trials in the Aalsmeer, Westland and Rheinland Westfalen (Germany) areas. www.flowertrials.com 16 to 21. Costa Rica Iberiada 2013, the fourth international gathering of floral design schools in Antigua, Costa Rica. roxanabarrientos06@yahoo.com/ alberto.zaverio@gmail.com www.alyrofloralevents.com 17 to 21. The Netherlands Grosci 2013, international symposium on growing media and soilless cultivation. growing media and soilless cultivation at the Holiday Inn in Leiden.

Grosci2013.symposium@wur.nl 18 to 19. United States International Floriculture Expo at the Miami Beach Convention Centre. www.floriexpo.com 18 to 21. United States International Floriculture Expo (IFE) at the Miami Beach Convention Centre.

19 to 21. Brazil 20th Hortitec at the Holambra Convention Centre, Holambra/SP. www.hortitec.com.br 25 to 26. United Kingdom The National Plant Show at Stoneleigh Park, Coventry, Warwickshire, CV8 2LZ, UK T +44 (0)118 9303132 F +44 (0)118 9323453 enquiries@nationalplantshow.co.uk www.nationalplantshow.co.uk

26 to 28. Italy Vestire il Paesaggio (Dress up the Landscape) landscaping conference in Pistoia. vestireilpaesaggio@ provincia.pistoia.it www.facebook.com/ vestireilpaesaggio.provpt

20 to 22. United States The Independent Garden Center Show at the Navy Pier in Chicago. info@florall.be www.igcshow.com

July 2013 13 to 16. United States The annual OFA Short Course, U.S. horticulture’s premier convention and marketplace.

The OFA Short Course was named the 150th largest trade show in the United States by the Trade Show News Network. Venue: Greater Columbus Convention Centre in Columbus, Ohio. www.ofashortcourse.org 21 to 27. Canada Perennial Plant Symposium in Vancouver. PPA 2013 is going to be a true West Coast Adventure. In fact, that's the working title of one of our optional tours. Gary Lewis, your Canada Region Director, has worked hard to assemble a great site committee and a slew of remarkable opportunities. www.perennialplant.org 31 July to 1 August. United States Penn Atlantic Nursery Trade Show, PANTS13 at the Pennsylvania Convention Centre. www.pantshow.com August 2013

21 to 24. The Netherlands Plantarium, international trade fair for nursery stock at the international trade centre Boskoop-Hazerswoude. info@plantarium.nl www.plantarium.nl 22 to 24. United States Pondemonium, the water garden industry’s premiere business and networking event. Held in St. Charles, Illinois, Pondemonium will dovetail with the Independent Garden Center in Chicago, allowing participants the opportunity to attend both events. www.pondemonium.com 22 to 24. United States Farwest Show at the Oregon Convention Center and organised by the Oregon Association of Nurseries.

T (1) 800 342 6401 F (1) 503 682 5099 info@oan.org www.farwestshow.com 28 to 30. China ModernAgri 2013, agricultural trade show at the Shanghai International Exhibtion Centre.

T + 86-21-61851816 F + 86-21-33275350 modernagri@hnzmedia.com hong.deng@hnzmedia.com www.modernagri.cn

14 to 16. United States Plantscape Industry Expo is a interior plantscape conference and trade show bringing nature indoors through living plant. South Point Hotel Las Vegas. www.piagrows.org

30 august to 1 September. Poland 21st edition of Green is Life trade exhibition. A nursery stock and gardening focused show.

Agnieska.zukowska@zszp.pl www.greenislife.pl

15 to 17. United States Nursery Landscape Expo at the Dallas Convention Centre. www.txnla.org

September 2013

16 to 19. Russia SibFlower 2013, 17th International exhibition of flowers, planting material, floristic accessories, garden tools and technologies.

Venue: Novosibirsk Expo Centre, Novosibirsk, Russia. www.novosibexpo.ru 20 to 21. Belgium Florall Autumn Fair at the Flanders Expo, Ghent.

T + 32 9 241 5091 F +932 9 241 5095 info@florall.be www.florall.be

9 to 11. Russia FlowersExpo 2013 at the Crocus Expo in Moscow.

T (7) 495 221 1251 Cell phone (8) 915 185 7903 mail@flowers-expo.ru www.flowers-expo.ru 11 to 13. Italy Flormart at the PadovaFiere exhibition centre. www.flormart.it 10 to 12. Russia Expo Flora Russia at the Gostiny Dvor convention centre, Moscow. www.hpp.nl

May 2013 | www.FloraCultureInternational.com

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30

Trade shows Kenya to host one of the world’s largest flower shows M The flower industry in Kenya is on the verge of another first by becoming the home to one of the world’s largest flower trade shows.

r Dick van Raamsdonk, the organizer of international floriculture trade fairs in different regions of the world, has settled on Kenya as the nation to beat just a year after he brought the International Floricultural Trade and Exhibition (IFTEX) to Nairobi for the first time in his 20-year career in the blooms’ business.

Fully booked

Speaking in Nairobi last month, he announced that the second edition of IFTEX scheduled for June 5-7 at the Oshwal Centre, Westlands, is already fully booked, two months in advance. The show brings together buyers and growers, and according to Mr Van Raamsdonk, this year has attracted auction houses, wholesalers and retailers from all over the world making IFTTEX a unique event. He attributes this to a shift to direct procurement as opposed to the traditional auctions, and buyers are keen to see the produce from the source.

Zero effect

by Catherine Riungu catherine@hortinews.co.ke

Mr Van Raamsdonk laughed off reports that the flower industry

Right to left. HPP’s Dick van Raamsdonk, KFC chief executive, Ms Jane Ngige and HCDA managing director Mr Alfred Serem. when they announced IFTEX 2013.

would be adversely affected by the election of Uhuru Kenyatta and William Ruto as President and Deputy President respectively. The duo are facing charges at the International Criminal Court in the Hague, a development viewed in some quarters as probably leading to sanctions especially in the EU, Kenya’s largest flower market. ‘’There will be zero effect”, Mr Van Raamsdonk said, emphasising that the Netherlands, where the cases are being handled at the ICC in The Hague happens to be Kenya’s largest importer of flowers and there has not been any indication that the business has been affected by the country’s new government.

He added that there is a shortage of flowers at the auctions due to reduced production as a result of climate change in Columbia and Ecuador, the second and third largest growers after Kenya. Europe has also been experiencing extremely cold weather conditions delaying budding.

Flowers instead of holidays

The inaugural IFTEX in 2012 .

www.FloraCultureInternational.com | May 2013

According to the Kenya Flower Council’s CEO Jane Ngige, the high seasons of Valentine’s Day (February) and International Woman’s Day (March) in Russia, the markets faced a shortage of

flowers because, even locally, it has been cold, delaying opening of flower heads, a development that has seen a 7 per cent surge in prizes in this quarter. Ms Ngige added that the West values flowers as a lifestyle and even when things are tough, “they will still buy their bouquets to lighten up their lives”.

She added, “In the West, they can sacrifice things like holidays but not flowers.”

Ms Ngige also said that Kenya’s volumes, currently standing at 40 per cent of the flowers sold in the EU, are irreplaceable and a ban on supplies would plunge markets into a crisis. She cited the January 2008 post-election violence and the March Icelandic Volcanic ash cloud both of which stopped flowers from reaching the markets for a couple of weeks and prices shot up by 50 per cent, due to lack of Kenyan flowers.

“It would take the markets no less than 10 years to replace Kenya, while costs of production would conspire against this,” she said, explaining that production of flowers is shifting to Africa due to rising production costs in Europe, caused by high energy costs required to heat greenhouses and shortage of labour.

In addition, she said, South America is reducing area under production due to increasing land

Happy Gardening

by Anthony Tesselaar

prices and the development of real estate and Kenya is expected to fill up the gaps.

Russia

The managing director of the Horticultural Crops Development Authority, Dr Alfred Serem, said that Kenya is home to 33 per cent of all flowers grown in the world, and projections of a better environment are reinforced by the search for markets in Eastern Europe, a development that has roped in Russia and Japan.

“Russians love Kenyan flowers”, he said adding, “we are now one of the leading suppliers of flowers to Japan and Russia where a new culture of flowers, encouraged by improved incomes, is emerging. The development is also attributed to the introduction of Air Korea that flies directly to Seoul, which is only an hour to Tokyo, making it easier to ship the produce. It is expected that a direct flight to the US would open up a huge market for Kenya’s flowers in the world’s largest economy.

It is also expected that the launch of a cargo service

by Kenya Airways would greatly reduce cost of freight and increase flower trade.”

Pan-African event

In an interesting development, growers from other countries on the continent have confirmed participation in the Nairobi IFTEX, affirming that the Kenya chapter is poised to be a Pan-African event. “South Africa has always been puzzled by the superiority of Kenya’s flower industry, it will therefore be staging a huge stand dubbed South Africa Pavilion’’, said Mr van Raamsdonk.

Not to be left behind, growers from Tanzania, Uganda and Rwanda have also confirmed that they will be attending the fair, which the organiser attributes to IFTEX Nairobi being seen as an international rather than a Kenyan event. Buyers from North and West Africa, said Mr van Raamsdonk, have confirmed participation and according to Mrs Ngige, there is a clear increase in Kenya’s sales of flowers to African countries especially Nigeria, Ghana and Egypt. South Africa is also a buyer of Kenyan flowers.

“These developments have surprised me, not because I didn’t expect Kenya to develop into one of the largest flower show countries, but because of the time it has taken to see signs of this; I projected five years, but it has happened in under a year’’, said Mr van Raamsdonk. |||

Fact file • I n 2011, Kenyan flowers earned Ksh 46 billion up from 36 billion in 2010.

• Kenya’s flower industry has grown annually by 15 per cent in value and volumes defying political and weather uncertainties.

• The sector is growing faster than the projected 10 per cent growth to attain Vision 2030.

• The nation’s flower sector employs an estimated 2 million people directly and indirectly.

Yummy ‘snacks’ Now here’s something I noticed a little while ago. It illustrates a business home-truth that we probably all understand on an intuitive level – that we enjoy attentive service and are happy to pay for it...

I travel for work. Most of us travel for work. And when by the time we’ve managed to get from the airport to the hotel, through the check in, and up to our room, we usually feel just a little tired. Perhaps the flights weren’t onto time (!). Or our itinerary was so tight, the stress left us vulnerable to a head cold. For whatever reason, we have staggered into our room and thrown ourselves oh-so-gratefully across the hotel bed... to wake up many hours later.

So you can imagine my surprise when I recently discovered a basket of complimentary ‘snacks’ waiting for me in my room. I was intrigued.

I sat engrossed in thought, rereading the little card tucked in amongst a selection of healthy and not- so healthy options. It showed that the wonderful people running this hotel understood how most guests felt upon arrival, and so they wanted to offer something to give them a boost – both in mind and body.

That little basket gave my business intuition a severe nudge. It sat there innocently illustrating a business home truth that we should all understand.

That people appreciate service. That (unless they are naive) they understand they are actually paying for it. And that unless they ask for an itemised account, they don’t want or need to be given one.

To explain: let’s look at the ‘basket-of-goodies moment’ expressed as an equation. Hotel “A” charges $100 a night and offers a standard approach to in-room treats with a price list with any items enjoyed added onto the bill at the end of your stay. Hotel “B” charges $110 a night and offers the complimentary basket approach. A quick reality check would reveal that the extra room charge for hotel “B” covers the basket. And if you stayed at both hotel “A” and hotel “B” - and snacked equally - you’d probably pay $110 at either hotel upon check out. So you pay the same. So what’s the difference?

Only one hotel achieved a phenomenal moment of building goodwill of bonding with an exhausted traveller. And the guest was happy to pay for the thoughtful service. The winner is hotel “B” and there’s nothing untoward going on here. The customer knows they are paying for the snacks - it’s just a nicer way to go about it...

Anthony Tesselaar hails from Anthony Tesselaar International, an international project management company dealing in plants, horticultural research & development and strategic water management. www.tesselaar.com / ATesselaar@tesselaar.com

May 2013 | www.FloraCultureInternational.com

31

FlowerTrials@Sion 10.06_15.06.2013 Every day from Monday 10 to Saturday 15 June, you are very welcome to visit us between 8 am and 5 pm, Saturday until 12.30 pm. We have over 200 floral varieties.

See you at FlowerTrials@Sion! www.sion.eu

Winner of Horticultural Entrepreneurship Award!

World News The Netherlands

HPP to expand show floor, add technology exhibitor Now that the Horti Fair 2013 has been cancelled, show organiser HPP has announced a new side-by-side trade show concept.

The concept combines the successful IFTF (cut flowers and potted plants) and the new IHTF (greenhouse technology) which will take place at the Haarlemmermeer Expo in Vijfhuizen from November 6-8, 2013. IFTF, IHTF and the FloraHolland Trade Fair in Aalsmeer will take place during the same week.

This change will create a much-improved experience for international breeders, growers, retailers and manufacturers visiting the show, helping them ‘one stop shop’ the show more effectively than ever before.

Technology exhibitors and especially hothouse builders have been abandoned and left to fend for themselves after the final curtain dropped on Horti Fair two weeks ago.

Meanwhile HPP Exhibitions took full advantage and presented Expo Haarlemmermeer as a very suitable alternative. Several (technical) horticultural suppliers have been signing up for stand space in IHTF since. Besides the fact that there is currently sufficient exhibition space available in Expo Haarlemmermeer (34,000 m²) and as well more exhibition space can easily be made available, also the IFTF trade fair is taking place at this location already since 2010 and with great success.

“This is an important step towards a world horticultural trade exhibition,” said Dick van Raamsdonk, owner and CEO of HPP. “There is an overpowering wish to bring the different trade fairs under one roof and there’s now a fresh chance ahead to achieve this goal.”

HPP’s new initiatives will improve the IFTF visitor experience for its current attendees, while engaging new IHTF visitors in this billion-plus industry. |||

Classifieds HELP WANTED Florasearch, Inc. In our third decade of performing confidential key employee searches for the horticulture industry and allied trades worldwide. Retained basis only. Candidate contact welcome, confidential, and always free.

1740 Lake Markham Rd., Sanford, FL 32771 USA Phone (1) 407 320 8177, Fax (1) 407 320 8083, E-mail: search@florasearch.com, Website: www.florasearch.com

rental Once upon a time there was a beautiful place in the world where one could sit all day just looking out at the bay. A Tiki Hut providing shade from the bright sun while the clear saltwater beckons you to just dive in. Eagles fly overhead and the fish are jumping…

I am spinning this tale to bring to your attention a unique offer that I hope might interest just a select few of you.

My family owns a lovely vacation property in the Florida Keys and we have decided to open it up

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for weekly or monthly rentals. It is a very special laid back place where time is only what you make of it. Relaxing and private this casual property is surrounded by the best sport fishing in the US. We can accommodate from 2 to 5 couples.

Check it out at www.lost-habor.com If you are interested please contact me Williee Armellini Williee@lost-harbor.com US: 786-255-3335

Full program for rolling and mobile benches Width: 330 mm - 2200 mm / length: unlimited Made of best quality ultra high impact polystyrene Long term UV, chemical and crack resistance Up to 3500 m2 in one 40' container Fully Recyclable 27 years of worldwide proven use

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Company

Page website

Hortis USA..........................................................................35........................................www.hortisusa.com Messe Essen (IPM)..........................................................34.............................www.messe-essen.de/en Pöpplemann GmbH..........................................................12...............................www.poeppelmann.com Rijnplant Breeding BV.................................................... 36............................................www.rhijnplant.nl Royal van Zanten..............................................................13............................www.royalvanzanten.com Selecta Cut Flowers SAU...............................................20.......................www.selectacutflowers.com Sion Orchids.......................................................................32.....................................................www.sion.eu Stal & Plast A/S.................................................................33......................................... www.staal-plast.dk M. van Veen.......................................................................35.................................www.mvanveenbv.com VWS Export-Import Flowerbulbs.................................33..............................www.vws-flowerbulbs.nl Williee Armellini................................................................33.....................................www.lost-harbor.com

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May 2013 | www.FloraCultureInternational.com

33

IPM ESSEN The world‘s leading trade fair for horticulture

Plants | Technology | Floristry | Garden features

28 – 31 January Welcome to the global network of the horticultural industry

B E I J I N G · C H I NA

FLOWERS IPM

IPM DUBAI

August 28 – 31, 2013 www.flowers-ipm.com

November 17 – 19, 2013 www.ipm-dubai.com

www.ipm-essen.de

HORTIFLOREXPO IPM

BEIJING

April 23 – 26, 2014 www.hortiflorexpo-ipm.com

Specialized in United States

Plant Patents Expertise in All Ornamental and Fruiting Plants

Presentation of the first

Klaas Schoone Memorial Award 2013

Flat Fee Service

Cost Effective and Experienced info@hortisusa.com www.hortisusa.com Phone: +1 805 987 8609 1602 Grace Court Camarillo, CA 93010 USA

YOUNG PL ANTS • Euphorbia milii • Cupressus Wilma • Ficus varieties • Fuchsia varieties • Impatiens N.G. • Pelargoniums • Petunia A wide selection of cutting raised bedding and patio plants.

Handelskwekerij M. van Veen BV Aalsmeerderweg 725, Rijsenhout, Holland P.O. Box 73, 1430 AB Aalsmeer, Holland Tel.: 0031 297 326516 Fax: 0031 297 328001 info@mvanveenbv.com www.mvanveenbv.com

The winner of this Award will be honoured at Wednesday June 12th. Location: Floricultura “Breeding Greenhouse”, Strengweg 17a, Heemskerk, The Netherlands. Time: from 3 till 6 pm.

The KSMA will be presented to a company or organization which is or has been of great contribution to the orchid sector.

The ceremony is scheduled in conjunction with a mini seminar. Top notch and not to be missed!

Be sure to mark your calendars: June 12th, 2013.

India Update ‘India update’ will bring to you the latest happenings in Indian flower world. Your feedback & interaction will guide us to design the content on this page.

Yes, you can add colour and fragrance to this page. Do contribute news, events, success stories related to floriculture from your region. Images and videos are most welcome, as they bring life to the subject.

Digital format allows us to include all these. Your contribution will reach 38,000+ online readers.

The number is increasing.

If you communicate, one of our team members can also visit your location to cover the event or development.

Let us share knowledge and grow together.

Please write to us at floraculture@kisan.com Soon we will offer an online interface where you can share your content. Stay connected.

Floriculture department in Nainital encourages farmers for Lilly production

J and K farmers get monetary assistance to promote floriculture

April 14,

April 28,

Naintal: The floriculture department

Srinagar: In a bid to make floriculture

in Chafi area on the outskirts of

a viable industry and to expand its

Nainital encourages the farmers to

tourism potential the Government

shift their focus from traditional crops of Jammu and Kashmir is providing to cultivation of Lilly flower, as surge monetary assistance to farmers in in the sales of flowers yield profits for

the Kashmir Valley. Minister for

the growers.

Floriculture Peerzada Mohammad

A grower Sudhir Chaddha said that

Syed distributed and granted 50

due to high demands in foreign

percent subsidy to the farmers.

countries, efforts are being made to

"Our main objective is to encourage

produce good quality Lilies and help

floriculture that leads to employment

them export in the international

of youth, especially the educated ones.

market. "Our hopes are very high

I am happy to see that most farmers

because the flower has very high

are educated.

demand in foreign countries.

Andhra Pradesh urged to promote ecotourism projects April 23,

Visakhapattanam: The government should look at promoting eco-tourism projects instead of ones that require heavy investment, noted environmentalist T Shivaji Rao said.

Speaking at a panel discussion on ‘Eco-Tourism – Floriculture’ organised by GITAM University Environmental Science Department on the occasion of World Earth Day he suggested that the government take the initiative to protect the city environment with eco-tourism

Read more

Read more

projects and said ‘Science

Source: newstrackindia.com

Source: newstrackindia.com

without a human face is a crime Read more Source: The Hindu

Summer wilts a tradition of religious harmony April 24.

Kozhikode: While Karakkadan Abdulrahman and fellow Muslim lotus farmers of Thirunavaya face an uncertain future as the scorching summer has dried up their lotus fields, reducing the yield to a trickle. They had been supplying these flowers for pujas at many Hindu temples across the state for decades.

The families are now making a desperate bid to preserve their family tradition and longstanding association with temples by pumping water from bore wells and water holes in the Valiyaparappur lake to save the remaining crop.

Read more Source: Times of India

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11 -

3 14 JUNE 201

Cut flower Anthurium ‘Mick Jagger®’ with strong colour lines that culminate in a bright pink lip Pot Anthurium ‘Red Success®’ large flowering variety in a small pot size 10,5 cm and above Cold tolerance THE strong feature for Anthurium, now acknowledged by accredited research from Flora Holland

Breeding

Pastoor Verburghlaan 3a • 2678 NE De Lier • The Netherlands T. +31 (0)174 – 44 56 95 • www.rijnplant.com/flowertrials

®