Despite the popularity of the lisianthus at the Royal FloraHolland flower auction, it is unlikely that the supply from the Netherlands will increase in the coming years. This is stated by Erik Pullen of Rabobank. ‘It is a capital-intensive cultivation that requires an enormous amount of management. The challenges are great.’
The Netherlands still has ten lisianthus growers, who together produce 250 to 300 million stems on 50 hectares. “So it is a very intensive cultivation,” says Rabobank account manager Erik Pullen in a podcast about the future of lisianthus cultivation in the Netherlands. Pullen is the point of contact for lisianthus growers in the Bommelerwaard. Four out of ten growers are located in that region, the rest are in Westland.
The lisianthus is a crop that thrives under high temperatures. So a lot of energy is needed for cultivation, says Pullen. ‘In the time of high energy prices, this brought with it the necessary challenges. Entrepreneurs immediately started asking the question: how can we limit costs?’. The account manager explains that the foundation has been laid for the experiments with lower greenhouse temperatures and LED lighting.
Climate neutral by 2040
To the question of whether lisianthus can be grown climate neutrally in 2040, Pullen has to give a two-part answer. ‘Technically I think this is certainly possible. Especially with the help of electrification and renewable energy sources. But whether it is also economically feasible is another matter. I don’t have an answer to that yet.’
According to Pullen, a challenge also lies in the fact that the cultivation of lisianthus requires leadership. ‘Growing lisianthus is like driving a fast car, a Ferrari for example. If you are going to turn the knobs, for example in the field of energy, you have to hold the steering wheel firmly. And then you can either move forward quickly or veer off sharply. That is experimenting. Growers are now in that phase.’
Dominant on the world market
That craftsmanship is one of the reasons why the account manager thinks an expansion of the range in the Netherlands is unlikely. ‘It’s certainly a popular product. And because the market wants the product, you would expect there to be room for further growth. But as mentioned, growing lisianthus requires a lot of skill.’
According to him, you don’t just switch to cultivation. ‘In addition, it is a capital-intensive cultivation.’ Pullen also points out that demand is stabilizing. According to him, this is also reflected in Royal FloraHolland’s auction figures. ‘The floriculture sector has taken a step back.’
Rabobank’s account manager does not fear that the Netherlands will lose ground to competing countries. ‘The Netherlands dominates the global lisianthus market. This is due to the good quality, using our conditioned greenhouses. During the summer period there are other countries that come onto the market with some product. But even then the Dutch grower wins.’
