grant to representatives from Ahold Delhaize and Albert Heijn , decorative works growers across the world need to provide more transparentness about their products and the way in which they are cultivated . Doing so will only tone up their side as supplier to supermarket chain . ‘ Continuous melioration is only potential if the relationship between the manufacturer and the buyer is clearly determine . ’
Leon Mol is the director of ware guard and societal conformation at Ahold Delhaize and responsible for assure that the animal and plant life - based sweet products are of a sustainable nature .
Mol believes that the potato , vegetable , and fruit sector is onwards of the ornamental sector in terms of sustainability . But this tether come as no surprisal , as food for thought rubber has been a deciding factor in the potato , vegetable , and yield sector for many years already . ‘ Ahold Delhaize wants to first of all understand what the issues are for the ornamental sector and how improvements can be made . With twenty supermarket chains across the world , this is important to us , as we want to distinguish ourselves from our competitors : other retail chains as well as sales channels such as florists , retailers , and the day markets . And this all begins with a reliable and responsible for merchandise . ’
Sharing informationAhold Delhaize considers ornamental refinement as a specific category in their kitchen range and wants to develop their own approach to ornamental that will benefit the grower and their position . Maximum Residue Limits ( MRL ) do not represent a persona in this approach , as bloom and plant are not designate for intake .
Due to these difference , Leon Mol conceive that the ornamentals chain should not have to copy the metre that apply to the spud , vegetable , and fruit sector . ‘ What we do want to see , however , is that ornamental plant growers become more gauze-like , environmentally favorable , and focused on reducing emission . Their own motivations and ambition are also an crucial divisor to us . ’
data included with the ware is substantive according to Mol . ‘ After all , the products from the ornamental works sector are sold under our label and brands in the shops . We need to be able to provide consumers with information about the product and show how they are produce . We are not able-bodied to do this if we do not have that information . If there is no information , there is no product . ’
Reactive attitudeHis colleague , Nienke Weidema , is in charge of insure the quality and sustainability of potatoes , vegetable , fruit and flowers and plants at Albert Heijn . accord to Weidema , ornamental works growers in the Netherlands and elsewhere are already taking stone’s throw in the right direction when it comes to the requirements set for transparency . ‘ We work with standard agriculturist and raiser in a tight and solid partnership , so that we know who we are purchasing from . We desire to be intimate from all our cosmetic plant growers which crop protection products they use and what their insurance policy are in full term of energy direction , water management , and societal responsibility . ’
In plus , Weidema believes that Dutch ornamental plant growers and their co-worker stand to do good from further improvements and are capable to strengthen their position with the retail chains . ‘ We sometimes come across reactive attitudes in the ornamentals sphere . Many decorative plant agriculturalist run to think that if the trading company do n’t require extra drive or extra data , then there is no need to work on meliorate these facial expression . ’
harmonise to Weidema , this mental attitude ca n’t provide a foundation for a hamper of trust and the undefendable interchange of information that are essential for build a kinship between the provider and the buyer . ‘ The ornamentals sector needs to work on this , as uninterrupted improvement can only be reach if the human relationship between the two is clearly defined . Dutch vegetable and fruit agriculturalist are often far ahead in terms of this and transparent working practice . ’
penetration into quality improvementLeon Mol emphasizes that improving the sustainability of the intact ornamental chemical chain is essential . Albert Heijn is the only retail concatenation that participate in the Floriculture Sustainable Initiative ( FSI ) , which aims to secure that 90 % of all flowers and industrial plant meet a basic stratum of sustainability by 2020 .
Currently , Albert Heijn is work out together with the Dutch ' Milieu Project Sierteelt ' ( MPS , environmental project for ornamental plant cultivation ) to obtain more data . MPS monitor the environmental movement made by ornamental flora growers and certifies affiliated raiser . This means that it has a great deal of data at its disposal .
According to Mol and Weidema , MPS credentials and other certifications are of import , but they do n’t always order the intact news report . ‘ Certificates ensure a canonic level of quality , but they do not furnish brainwave into the quality improvement that takes position year after year . For this , you need an analytic thinking of all the cultivation datum . But then we still come at the same conclusion that more info is needed in parliamentary procedure to improve the full chain . ’
The two side of the ornamental chainAccording to Nienke Weidema , the ornamentals chain has two decided sides . On the one side the supermarket and on the other the sales channels , such as florists and retailers , garden centre , DIY depot , and the casual mart . ‘ We , as the supermarket chain , put a heavy raft of travail into reassuring our customers that our suppliers have the necessary certificates and hand over the require stratum of calibre . We by all odds do a great deal more in this attentiveness than the other sales agreement TV channel . The sector , which includes the entire chain of grower , trading society , and auction , has to need to incite modification . alas , we are not receive much feedback about this . ’
For more information : Koppert Biological Systems[email protected]www.koppert.com
