“We exist at the mercy of our members”

With a turnover higher than ever, Veiling Zaltbommel will celebrate its 100th anniversary this year. Yet they remain modest. “We exist at the mercy of our members,” says chairman Toon van Tuijl. With manager Peter van Osch, he discusses the role of the auction in a changing environment. “We are sympathetic to the auction, but not blind to developments on the market.”

In 1917 a group of strawberry growers from Zaltbommel decided to strengthen their position on the market by selling their produce at one mutual auction. That became NV Veiling Zaltbommel. A century later, the conviction of joint power still exists, but the auction is no longer a public limited company. Since the 1950s it has been a cooperative. An important change, says auction chairman Toon van Tuijl. “For us, the most important thing is that we are a cooperative of growers. We are not unique in that, but it is the core of our actions. If the majority of members are not supporting it, it won’t happen.”

Those members cannot be compared to the growers of the past. While Veiling Zaltbommel once knew almost 1,000 suppliers, mainly from the region, the cooperative now has around 130 members from all over the Netherlands. “There is a big difference between a supplier and a member,” says Peter. “The companies have grown, and so the knowledge of companies has also increased considerably. Horticultural entrepreneurs are now used to thinking about the operational management of the business, to make decisions. They have an opinion about the cooperative.”

Is that more difficult than in the past? After all, it also means that the members don’t always agree with the ideas or visions of the board. “That doesn’t happen often,” Peter says. “A lot of ideas come from the growers themselves and are therefore already supported. And we spent a lot of time having discussions. But sometimes it happens, for example, by rolling out new concepts or market ideas. Sometimes not all members are excited about something. Sometimes we then start in smaller groups, and sometimes we table it.” Peter doesn’t think that’s a shame. “That's how our company works. Growers are not anonymous numbers. And just the involvement and support of growers is a great comfort. It is the core of the auction. Our actions are driven by members.” Its strength was confirmed last autumn. The auction’s GMO multi-annual plan ended and the new rules were so unclear that auction management suggested a year long break. The growers agreed unanimously. “We explained why we found the risks too high. We don’t want to be dependent on that. We continue to be recognised as producers' organisation, but do not use the subsidy options. The entire association supports this.” Next year, the auction’s direction will be reviewed again. “That depends on the regulations and on what the growers want.”

In 2016, the auction broke its own sales record, with sales amounting to 53.2 million euro. “Of course growth is an objective. The auction cannot survive without it. We would lose our members if we were to do nothing to achieve steady growth,” Peter continues. That’s why the auction is working on volumes on one hand, but especially on returns on the other. “If the entire top fruit market is having trouble, we naturally notice that as well. But within that framework we try to do the best,” Toon adds. Part of that is, for example, marketing brands and concepts. By now, Veiling Zaltbommel has its own fruit brands Suprimo® and Kwanza® in their range, and part of the bell peppers are sold under the Flandria label in Belgium. Peter expects to expand the number of brands in the coming years. “It’s an opportunity to distinguish yourself in the market. If your product distinguishes itself in any way, it can be of added value to communicate that as well.”

One of the quickest ways to grow is a merger or an acquisition. Is that a prospect? It’s a simple question for Peter. “In the past, members decided not to join the merger process that eventually led to the creation of The Greenery. That was a clear choice and this didn’t result in a loss of membership for Veiling Zaltbommel. This makes it clear to us.” Peter doesn’t want to comment on any conversations with Van Nature, the organisation with which Veiling Zaltbommel works intensively and which tried to merge with Best of Four last year. “It wouldn’t be decent. But we certainly did not feel left out because of the merger talks between Van Nature and Best of Four. We personally see more in long-term partnerships. We select parties and products that complement our supply.” The organisation works with Van Nature and Veiling Hoogstraten. With service agreements, members’ product is sold through these channels. “You can strengthen each other with mutual respect for each other's position that way.”

The area of soft fruit is growing for Veiling Zaltbommel. According to Toon, the auction has been devoted to that for a few years now. “More than five years ago, we saw demand for soft fruit increasing, first strawberries, then the rest. We discuss all developments on the market with growers: which demand do we see, what can’t be met yet? The supply of soft fruit is now becoming broader. After the ​​strawberry area increase, the area for ​​raspberries is now growing rapidly.” The area of ​​blueberries is also increasing. “Of course, we are still a small party compared to the volumes from Spain, but for us, it’s not about the volumes. We care about the quality of the Dutch product. Large products, grown for flavour and hand-picked, there’s a market for that.” The growth of soft fruit is especially visible with fruit and vegetable growers who started doing soft fruit on the side. “It's not yet at the expense of smaller companies, which could be seen in the increase of greenhouse vegetables a few years ago.”

On the other hand, there are the top fruit companies, that are going through a number of difficult years. “That repetitive character is inextricably linked to horticulture,” Toon continues. “That fluctuation is constantly returning.” That’s why the greenhouse and outdoor market has completely turned around. “We see a new generation arriving at farms. Even in the greenhouse horticulture and outdoor, for which the situation was more worrisome about ten years ago, the growth has returned. Only in top fruit do we see relatively few successors. This, of course, has to do with the profits in that segment. If it doesn’t improve, the area will shrink even more.”

Making product available year-round is also an important topic for Veiling Zaltbommel. “The Dutch border does not have to be a limit for us,” says Peter. “That's not really relevant yet, but we're not ruling it out. However, internationalisation is not a requirement to remain relevant. We also see more opportunities with illumination to supply customers year-round. Multiple roads lead to Rome.”

“We care about the auction, but are not blind to developments on the market,” Peter explains. “In recent years, mediation has become more important.” By now, 70 per cent of the product is sold through mediation and 30 per cent is sold at auction. In absolute terms, the auction sales remain the same, but in percentage terms it’s slightly decreasing. “The sales increase is mainly due to mediation.” Yet Veiling Zaltbommel believes in the future of auctions. “Perhaps it may decrease, percentage-wise, but there will always be a percentage of trade at auction,” Peter says. He also sees room for new products at the auction. “Niche crops in vegetables, such as turnip tops or greenhouse French beans. We’ve noticed that during the season customers asked for these in relatively small volumes. That could naturally be realised person to person, but at auction you could set up free availability of the products and realise many outlets within a transparent system. We see a future for the auction with a wide range of products.”

Is it also necessary for Veiling Zaltbommel to keep the distinctiveness compared to, for example, ZON or BelOrta? “A major exporter from the West can buy anywhere - and he probably does so as well. But within certain regions and areas, you'll see that buyers stick to their own auction. We want to offer them a complete range,” Peter says. “But distinction isn’t just in your assortment. We ensure short lines, deliver product directly and make no distinction in our service to the mediation buyers. At the auction, relationships and trust are as important as in mediation.”

“You’d think that the number of buyers at auction might be decreasing, but it’s actually not that bad,” Toon continues. “The number of buyers might be decreasing, but so is the number of parties available for buyers. On average, it may be slightly less than in the past, but especially with the commissioners you will see the increase of young people.”

On 31 March, Veiling Zaltbommel celebrated its centenary with customers and relations. On Saturday 1 April, there was a repeat of the party: for Kom in de Kas (Enter the Greenhouse) a number of growers opened their greenhouse doors to interested parties, and people could also visit Veiling Zaltbommel. Please visit website www.komindekas.nl for more information.

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Veiling Zaltbommel