"Netherlands: "Ultimately its all about being different"

On 1 October last year many growers made known that they wanted to make the switch to FresQ. Since 2012 the sale of the products of most of these new members have been brought under FresQ Fresh ConneQt, one of the six sales subsidiaries of FresQ. "We are pleased that such a large, important group of growers have made the choice for FresQ. This offers possibilities for bundling of acreages", Arnold reflects. "We are pleased with the expansion of our aubergine production, because our objective is to have a year round supply of greenhouse vegetables. We had this extension planned further on the horizon, scheduled for 2013 or 2014, but it has all happened much sooner."

"For an organization like FresQ such enlargement has consequences. Many of our members were already long-term members, and then there is a real FresQ-culture. Also for the organisation, finance and automation there is a lot to do if you get so many new people in your organization. But I can say that the organization currently stands, even though for one grower it's always faster than the another," said Arnold. "You now can find that people, for example, the Dutch Government, but also foreign retailers look at you in a different way."

"Distinction is just another condition. A large amount of our products have that distinctive character and I give examples, such as the Vitapep, Red Star Romantic, but also products like a vine tomato, which is offered year around. But added value is not only delivered on product level. Thus we have sales subsidiaries, specializing in certain services, whereby the customer at any time of the week can be supplied according to their wishes."

Local-for-local

Another possibility for Dutch growers to distinguish themselves is by local cultivation abroad. FresQ-growers were also quick to realise this. The best-known example of this is in England, at Thanet Earth where the Kaaij Group, Rainbow and A&A Growers grow tomatoes, peppers and cucumbers for the British market. Also other members are working together with growers in countries such as Turkey, Morocco and Spain, but the limited financial possibilities make the investment in a foreign cultivation project more difficult. "Ultimately, we are looking for opportunities to expand the cultivation in the winter period, to offer a year around product/service to the retailer. In this we are already successful with full ground cultivation in Netherlands. In addition, it can now be attractive to search for a partner for your own product abroad."

A distinctive product, recognisability and consumer marketing are all important here. The increasing attention and investment of the sector and Government in promotion campaigns such as MyTomato, Colourful Taste and the now generic launched campaigns to strengthen the position of the glass products in Germany are necessary in order to further strengthen our position and continue."