The tomatoes and bell peppers in our supermarkets are never more than a day old because our greenhouse agriculture is essentially urban farming. Don't discard it, embrace it! No city has such an abundance of fresh vegetables this close, warns Hidde Boersma on social media platform X in one of the many debate items about the future of today's greenhouse horticulture. Boersma is well-known in the horticulture scene from films such as Paved Paradise and Stop the Food Fight.
Boersma posted two messages following an opinion piece by Dick Veerman on Foodlog. Veerman responds to economists Knot and Van Duijn's criticism of horticulture. Veerman finds the dilemma surrounding labor migrants and the horticulture sector is not just a matter of economic efficiency. "Van Duijn's criticism also stems from a wish for social cohesion in neighborhoods, sufficient housing, and appreciation of local food production."
Veerman poses the question: Would a fully automated horticulture be allowed to remain? "Probably not, namely, those with above-average earnings would prefer not to live close to the country's fresh vegetable and flower factories, which are not necessarily of exceptional architectural beauty."
According to financial experts, The Netherlands apparently wants to be a wealthy country that only wants to produce expensive goods and services for other wealthy people, writes Veerman. Veerman wonders whether our neighboring countries were informed about the impending abolition of Dutch horticulture. And whether growing closer to foreign customers had already been considered before.
Finally, he points to the often-mention statement that a certain amount of greenhouses is necessary to maintain the Netherlands' renowned leading role in horticultural innovation. Veerman's contribution to Foodlog can be read here (€).
The tomatoes and bell peppers in our supermarkets are never more than a day old, because our greenhouse agriculture is essentially urban farming. Don't discard it, embrace it! No city has such an abundance of fresh vegetables so close by. https://t.co/Z3pz80UT9z
— Hidde Boersma (@Hiddemhigh) February 20, 2024
5-10x more yield than outdoors, hardly any water, hardly any pesticides. Healthy food, ridiculous value added per hectare. And then to give it up???? https://t.co/7kntaMr1co
— Hidde Boersma (@Hiddemhigh) February 20, 2024