CO2 emissions in greenhouse horticulture will be significantly reduced in the coming years. To this end, on 30 November, the Ministries of Agriculture, Economic Affairs and Climate Policy and Finance signed the Greenhouse Horticulture Energy Transition Covenant 2022-2030 with the greenhouse horticulture sector. The parties will work on measures for energy saving and sustainability that are necessary for healthy and profitable greenhouse horticulture.
Signing
The signing took place at Beekenkamp Group, attended by Minister of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality Piet Adema, Minister for Climate and Energy Rob Jetten and State Secretary for Finance Marnix van Rij, among others. An Beekenkamp, Managing Director of Beekenkamp Group, welcomed the ministries and other attendees from organisations including Glastuinbouw Nederland, Greenports Nederland and the Municipality of Westland with a presentation and told them more about the focus of the family business Beekenkamp Group. Philip van Zanten, Project and Energy Manager at Beekenkamp Group, then gave a tour of the combined heat and power (CHP) plant and the geothermal connection. Afterwards, the group, dressed in hygienic clothing, entered the greenhouse to take a tour of the cutting machines and departments with plants growing under LED lighting.
Importance
An Beekenkamp: ‘It is important to keep talking to each other in times of crisis, and I was pleasantly surprised by the invitation. I was happy to take the opportunity to support the importance of the energy transition and to show what we are already doing about it as a company.’ Philip van Zanten adds: ‘It is good to emphasise once again the need for rapid, concrete measures to address the current energy situation, because there is still a lot of work to be done. It is important that government ministers gain a clear understanding of what is happening in practice, and this has contributed to that.’
Reactions
This covenant is a follow-up to previous multi-year agreements in which the Greenhouse as Energy Source programme formed the core. Piet Adema, Minister of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality, said prior to the signing: “I am extremely proud of the greenhouse horticulture sector in the Netherlands. It is a global leader in sustainable production. But I am also aware of the serious concerns that entrepreneurs have about high gas prices. At the same time, we are jointly facing a major climate challenge in greenhouse horticulture. That is why this covenant is so important. We are going to accelerate energy savings and sustainability in the coming years, so that the sector can become climate neutral by 2040 and remain a global leader.”
On behalf of Glastuinbouw Nederland, Adri Bom-Lemstra commented on why a covenant was needed: “With the covenant, the government and the sector are indicating that cooperation is a prerequisite for the complex task of energy transition. By working together, knowledge, commitment and the innovative capacity of the sector can be utilized and supported, and the right balance can be achieved between stimulating and encouraging entrepreneurs to reduce the sector’s CO2 emissions. In doing so, we count on stable policies from governments, only then can the sector make good plans and get moving.”
Future
Beekenkamp Group is proud to have been part of this impactful event and looks forward with confidence to the future of the Energy Transition in Greenhouse Horticulture 2022-2030.
