We have many agricultural customers, that’s why it’s good for us to be involved with Greenport," according to Van der Horst. "Our customers also ask us to represent their interests in several places and in various platforms. In the past, many things were organized locally. But nowadays borders have lost most of their importance. The agriculture and horticulture are not bothered much by municipal border lines. Lots of things are happening in a regional context, certainly with Greenport."
Nursery
"This region really is the breeding ground for the development of horticulture. Even when it comes to regulations," continues Prins. "Within this sector there may be complaints about the strict requirements for food safety. But because Dutch companies comply with these regulations, a number of countries allow us to supply on an exclusive basis! At the same time, there is still too little awareness of the strength of our horticulture, also at Government level. An increase in lobbying activities would be positive."
"This region really is the breeding ground for the development of horticulture. Even when it comes to regulations," continues Prins. "Within this sector there may be complaints about the strict requirements for food safety. But because Dutch companies comply with these regulations, a number of countries allow us to supply on an exclusive basis! At the same time, there is still too little awareness of the strength of our horticulture, also at Government level. An increase in lobbying activities would be positive."
Complementing each other
Rabobank Westland previously joined the Greenport. So why not South Holland Central, one might be wondering. Prins: "The Westland region is almost exclusively greenhouse industry, in our business area you will also find a lot of agriculture, such as in Central Delftland. The themes in both regions often fit together seamlessly. In addition, in our region there are a number of issues that have been approached in a slightly different manner, such as the restructuring, the Holland Rail Terminal and the connection to the waste heat pipeline to Leiden. This enables us to complement each other perfectly within the Greenport."
Cross-overs
"As a bank, we have a vast network, not only in agriculture, but also in other industries, such as health care and IT. For example, we are also a partner of YES! Delft and closely involved in RoboValley and the National Robotics Week, which takes place in April”, says van der Horst. "The horticulture sector could start interesting cross-overs and collaborations with such industries. We see it as our role to bring these networks into contact with each other."
Young entrepreneurs
An important theme for Rabobank Zuid-Holland Midden is to develop know-how and expertise and the exchange thereof. The Rabobank works together with educational institutes like Inholland and the Technical University (TU) Delft that train the entrepreneurs of the future. Van der Horst: "Until now, a lot of attention has been directed to production and efficiency. But there are many more opportunities if we look at improving sales and the market. This is the type of expertise that the young entrepreneurs can provide.”
Banking for Food
Rabobank stands for Banking for Food: a global program to make our expertise and network available for the world food problems. Prins: "The global population is growing. To feed all those people in a responsible manner requires know-how amongst other things about food cultivation, consumer behaviour and the supply chain. The Dutch horticulture sector has this know-how."