During the General Members' Meeting of the growers' cooperative Oxin Growers on 27 November, John van Heijningen was elected as the new chairman of the board. He succeeds Jan Oosterom, who is stepping down after 21 years of chairmanship, including five years as chairman of Oxin Growers.
John is a member of Oxin Growers and, along with his brother Johan, grows loose tomatoes at their nursery in Maasdijk. He joined the board of the former growers' association Van Nature in 2014. Since the merger in 2020, he has served as a board member at Oxin Growers, acting as vice-chairman for the past two years. Members and the board expressed a preference for a chairman from within the membership rather than an external appointment, ensuring closer communication and leveraging the practical cultivation experience of a member. The board is pleased with John's candidacy and views him as a worthy successor to Jan Oosterom. John himself sees this as an opportunity to contribute to the cooperative while also pursuing personal growth in his new role.
"It is a privilege to serve as chairman of a professional and growing organization like Oxin Growers," John said. "I look forward to dedicating myself, alongside the board and management, to achieving our ambitions and addressing the challenges we face as growers and as a sector. The interests of our members will, of course, remain at the heart of everything we do."
Outgoing chairman Jan Oosterom began his leadership journey 21 years ago as the chairman of the newly established growers' association Tradition, which started with 30 greenhouse vegetable growers. This association later merged into Best of Four and eventually became part of Oxin Growers five years ago. Jan reflects on rewarding and formative years, during which he dedicated himself to advancing the various growers' cooperatives under his leadership.
"When I see where we are now as a growers' cooperative, I feel incredibly proud!" Jan said. "Back then, we started as Tradition in a small office space, and after several mergers, we've grown into a thriving and professional organization with around 230 members and a highly skilled and enthusiastic office team. Letting go is difficult, but I stand by my decision. After 21 years of weekly commitment to board positions, I want to free up more time for my family and business. I look back on wonderful years and hand over the baton to John with full confidence."
Over the past five years, Oxin Growers has become one of the largest growers' cooperatives in the Netherlands, with over 230 members. The cooperative oversees 1,142 hectares of greenhouse vegetables, 2,057 hectares of outdoor vegetables, and 1,382 hectares of hard and soft fruit.
"And the organization continues to grow! More and more growers see the added value of joining a cooperative like Oxin Growers and feel at home with its unique approach," the cooperative explained.
Unlike other associations, Oxin Growers provides its members with the freedom to manage their businesses independently. The cooperative handles sales in consultation with the growers ensures payment security, and offers additional services such as administration, certification, purchasing, and product and concept development. Logistics and packaging can either be managed by members themselves or arranged through buyers. This flexible formula has proven appealing to many fruit and vegetable growers.
For more information:
Oxin Growers
Tel: +31 (0)180 203 203
[email protected]
www.oxin-growers.nl