The theme of the meeting organised by fruit cultivator Domus de Jonge from Kapelle was ‘Being an entrepreneur in a changing world,’ and was organised to bring attention to, among other things, the kiwi berry cultivation. In a ‘conversation with himself’ he explained his vision and ambition. “Instead of always worrying what the so-called market wants, I think it is much more interesting to wonder: What do I want for myself, or for my company? Where do I see myself in one year, five years or seven years? What sort of entrepreneur have I always been, and what sort of entrepreneur should I become in a changing world?”
Domus de Jonge and Frits de Bruin of Nature’s Pride
“Important questions that actually go back to that one question: How do I get the most out of my company and what resources should I use for that? Return is decided by selection of variety, the right chain partners and value-added,” De Jonge continued. “One condition is that I have to position myself in such a way that I am an interesting partner to do business with. If I do not succeed in that, it is my own fault and not someone else’s. I want to try to get by on my own strengths, and to decide for myself what I want to invest in, and what I do not want to invest in.”
Much interest in the presentation
“No one told me to cultivate fruit, so I cannot blame anyone when my fruit is not profitable enough. If I want to produce a better return on my products, I will have to do things differently and smarter, and I will have to acquaint myself with which strains and concepts fit me best,” De Jonge concluded. “In my opinion we are currently cultivating the wrong apples. The trend is for hard, red and sweet, and a natural product that is perfect cosmetically, but we cultivate strains that are no longer in demand in Europe.”
Herman van Rooijen, Frupaks-Vernooij and Peter van der Starre, Nature’s Pride
“To have power within the chain and to create a revenue model, initiative should lie with the individual cultivator, and then only in cooperation with multiple chain partners, who reinforce one another rather than compete with each other. The time is past that I sell only to one partner. I choose broader cooperation with multiple partners in the chain.”
Rik de Jonge, KG Fruit, with Wilfred Gaïkhorst and Rogier van Berlo of Scherpenhuizen
De Jonge then explained the rigorous step he personally took in the last five years. Five years ago he started cultivating the Asian kiwi berry on five hectares, as a supplement to the cultivation of apples and pears. “What was so urgent that we had to change direction? It really was the feeling that other people were deciding what I should and should not do. Because of our kiwi berry project I discovered which way the wind is blowing, which conversations needed to be had, how business houses work and how retail does what it wants.”
Chickens among the kiwi berries
“I have a vision: to grow to 250 hectares, from the 120 hectares we have now, within three years, so that KG fruit can be positioned in such a way that we can enter into a collaboration based on equality when demand arises. Is that madness or boasting? I do not think so. It does not have to be owned. So many strains of kiwi berries in this place, so many varieties of apples in that place, and a sorting station in the centre. As a group you would then have a business model.”
Kiwi berry
The cultivation of kiwi berries is a niche market for KG Fruit, even though it is by now the largest player on the Dutch market. “By trial and error, a market was created by Nature’s Pride, with 30 hectares now for two large parties. But that does not mean we can now rest on our laurels, for if we want kiwi berries to remain successful we should have a knowledge centre, because KG Fruit is too limited to meet expected demand. Construction for this knowledge centre could be started today. All ingredients are available: from trade to research, enthusiasm, cultivation technology, education and government.”
Marketing partner Frits de Bruin of Nature’s Pride was enthusiastic about the potential of the kiwi berries. “The availability is a large challenge. Besides Dutch cultivation we have supply from Chile and we will start in Portugal. Demand is great. We mostly supply the kiwi berries to Norway, Germany and the Netherlands. The kiwi berries are packaged in shakers of 125 grammes, under the Ready-to-Eat label. It is a long-winded project, but I am convinced it will be successful.”
Bastiaan Hoogerland of Murre Techniek gave an explanation on the kiwi berry line, which KG Fruit introduced from ‘de-viner’ to hydro cooler and sorting machine. Huijbregts Koeltechniek takes care of cooling and Sorma takes care of the packing machine. In closing the potential of kiwi berries for cosmetics was explained. KG Fruit cooperates with CRB Benelux in Maastricht, which tests raw materials and technologies to create new formulas and products for make-up, skin and hair care. Talk about being an entrepreneur in a changing market…