TOPSECTOR
&
HORTICULTURE
STARTING MATERIALS
Global solutions
to global challenges
Top Sector Horticulture & Starting Materials
Top sector with top performance
The Dutch Horticulture & Starting Materials sector ranks among the top in the world in terms
of entrepreneurship, innovation, knowledge and craftsmanship. The business community,
knowledge institutes and education sector are working in tandem with the government in order
to solidify this sector’s position among the top in the world.
The domestic and global economic opportunities and prospects for the Horticulture &
Starting Materials sector are good. Ideas in the Top Sector Policy (backing the winners) can
be harnessed to exploit the low-hanging opportunities that address the most pressing global
societal challenges such as population growth and ageing, climate change, economic and
social inequality, and urbanisation. The Horticulture & Starting Materials sector offers solutions
that contribute to food safety and security, quality, health and prudent management of raw
materials, the environment and biodiversity.
Our goal is to be the global market leader in 2020 as a source of sustainable solutions to
societal challenges.
Production value:
floriculture € 5.3 billion fruit
& vegetables € 2.6 billion
Export value: € 15.6 billion/
Import value: € 8.2 billion
Share in total agricultural
production value: 40 percent
Global market leader in
plant starting materials:
€ 2.5 billion
Share in global floriculture
(export) trade: 60 percent
World’s largest exporter
of fresh vegetables
Sector technology and
supply: € 2 billion
World’s largest exporter of
vegetable seeds
Labour force: over
400,000
Expanding leadership position
There are nine top sectors
in which The Netherlands
is particularly strong. The
Horticulture & Starting Materials
sector is one of them, thanks
to its internationally operating
and innovative businesses. Our
international growth will mainly
be accomplished from a strong
home base: the Netherlands.
The Horticulture & Starting
Materials sector comprises all
plant product chains in the
horticulture complex, and
the entire horticulture and
agricultural complex for starting
materials. It is a broad sector
with sub-sectors in fruit and
vegetables, plants and trees and
flowers and bulbs. The starting
materials sector is involved
in the production of seeds,
seedlings and young plants.
As we continue to expand our
position, we will focus on:
• Knowledge and
innovation
• Human Capital Agenda
(HCA)
• Internationalisation
The top sector focuses on
knowledge, from
fundamentally strategic
to applied research and
valorisation, based on four key
innovation themes:
More with Less: innovative
solutions to produce highquality food and sustainable
products using less space,
water, energy and minerals.
Food safety and
security: developing
innovative solutions that help
prevent or reduce diseases
and pests (associated with
horticultural products) that
are harmful to public health.
In food security, we focus
on producing sufficient and
varied food.
Health and well-being:
innovative solutions that
help promote healthy food
and a healthy living and
working environment using
horticultural products.
Top sector Horticulture
& Starting Materials
integrates together with
the business community
umbrella organisation
Greenport Holland,
headed by Loek Hermans,
a network of economic
clusters and regions
where together the
various horticulture
supply chains, services
and knowledge institutes
have a strong competitive
position.
Collaborating value chain:
innovative solutions that
contribute to efficient
and sustainably designed
and economically viable
horticulture supply chains.
In crossovers, the
Horticulture & Starting
Materials sector
specifically seeks
partnerships with
Agri & Food, the Creative
Industry, ICT Roadmap,
Biobased, Water and the
Hospitality Economy.
Enjoy freshness
Capitalising on future challenges
The continuity of the
Horticulture & Starting
Materials sector depends
strongly on the presence of
a dedicated workforce at all
levels of the chain.
In the Human Capital Agenda
(HCA), the education and
business community set
the policy for the future of
(vocational) education in the
Netherlands in order to align
professional education and
training with the needs of the
labour market.
The HCA strengthens the
connection between the
education and business
community through:
• Efforts to improve the
sector’s image
• Centre for Innovative
Craftsmanship (CIV,
secondary vocational
education) and Centre
of Expertise (CoE, higher
vocational education/
university)
The Centres for Innovative
Craftsmanship (CIV) and
Centres of Expertise will
create better alignments
between secondary
and higher vocational
education and the business
community. Education
institutes, the top sectors
and the government will
jointly invest in these
partnerships.
•
Redefining of the
authorisation regulation
• Working on
internationalisation
Growth in world population
has led not only to emergence
of the Western European
market but also to growth
markets outside Europe,
as well as higher per-capita
purchasing power, thereby
creating a market for (even)
higher quality horticultural
products at an even higher
price.
And knowledge development
occurs rapidly in response
to the ever-increasing
international competition.
With its proactive
internationalisation strategy,
the Horticulture & Starting
Materials sector provides
a vital contribution to the
solution to global challenges.
It possesses the knowledge to
produce more with less; and
better. While accomplishing
two objectives: a well-
Within the
internationalisation
strategy, on-going
involvement of the business
community and education,
research and information
sectors is essential. For
instance, via trade missions,
market information,
network meetings. And by
designing instruments that
can be effectively utilised
by the (SME) business
community.
developed private sector in
developing countries can
help communities move out
of poverty. The Netherlands
can pursue commercial
opportunities. In coordination
with the business community,
knowledge institutes and
the government. This, of
course, will be driven by
demand from the countries
themselves.
Sector sustainable and healthy
LED’s make plants better
Light is made up of different
wavelengths. In greenhouses,
LED lighting is used to provide
plants and vegetables with the
necessary wavelengths needed for
photosynthesis, which enables them
to grow better and the lights use 30
percent less energy. Dutch producers
are pioneering new techniques with
these applications.
Daffodils offer relief for Alzheimer’s
The active substance galantamine, which
has an inhibitory effect, is used to treat
the symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease.
Large-scale synthetic production of this
substance is difficult and expensive.
However, galantamine occurs naturally in
snowdrops and daffodils. Together with
the Leiden University, three bulb-growing
companies have found a species of
daffodil in which a high concentration of
galantamine can be grown.
Just in time and sustainable transport
Fresh Corridor was launched to make
trade and distribution of fresh vegetables
and fruit faster and more sustainable.
This project promotesthe multi-modal
transport of fruit and vegetable containers.
Purpose: to convert the current fruit port
into a modern multifunctional Cool Port, a
network of terminals and connections for
the transport of fruit and vegetables by
inland shipping.
TOPSECTOR
&
HORTICULTURE
STARTING MATERIALS
Crossovers are an important segment of the market for the Top Sector Horticulture &
Starting Materials. Because innovation occurs at the intersection of different top sectors.
Specific crossover meetings are held, for example, with ICT or the Creative Industry. Joint
programmes are set up with Agri & Food and Biobased Economy.
The Horticulture & Starting Materials Board consists of:
Loek Hermans, chairman (Greenport Holland, business community)
JanWillem Breukink, SME representative (INCOTEC)
Ernst van den Ende, representative of Knowledge Institutes (Wageningen UR)
Hans Hoogeveen, National Government representative (Ministry of Economic Affairs)
Contact:
Top Sector Horticulture & Starting Materials/Horticulture & Starting Materials Board
Bezuidenhoutseweg 12, 2594 AV The Hague
PO Box 93002, 2509 AA The Hague
+31(0)703490301
[email protected]
www.topsectorTU.nl