"Increased focus on hygiene is good, but not good enough"

Jos Veugen of Veugen Bedrijfshygiëne (Industrial Hygiene): "One of the reasons that more attention is paid to hygiene is the reduced resistance of plants. Plants cannot withstand an attack by viruses and bacteria. Breeders in general spend a lot of time and energy boosting the resilience of crops. But so far the battle is on-going.”

Veugen chalks up the increased attention to hygiene to the likewise increased demand for disinfection after crop rotation. That is a very understandable reaction. Rob Veugen: "On the one hand, we see a great awareness among growers. On the other hand, it seems to me it's not enough. It never ceases to amaze me how we’re never asked to perform samplings. Confidence is important, but confidence alone doesn’t offer the kind of fail-safe needed to ensure a healthy crop.”

At present, a large corridor is being installed at Sun Select in Tehachapi (California USA). There, a 100 carts per hour will be disinfected before they go into the greenhouse. 4 carts are simultaneously treated with hydrogen peroxide in the 12 meter corridor. Jos Veugen: "The great advantage of this method is that the dry fog (droplets are <8 microns) does not wet the carts. We are working with hydrogen peroxide because it leaves no residue and works fast.