Netherlands: Growing demand for high-pressure fog systems

Thanks to the growth of the Dutch soft fruit acreage, more customers from other crops, and strong international development, the demand for MJ Tech’s high-pressure fog systems is increasing. The company grew out of its building and moved to a new location.

The demand for high-pressure fogging systems has long been growing in the Netherlands. This is due to the increase in soft fruit acreage, where the systems are widely applied. Tomato growers are also opting for fine mist more and more and internationally sales are notably taking off. "Here a misting system is one of many climate control tools. Growers in the Netherlands want to maximize on every inch and pull out all the stops to achieve this," says Ruud van Aperen of MJ Tech. "In the US, mist is one of the first and most important tools to control the climate. The climate is hot, the air is dry. Growers suffer losses. With a fog-system much better quality can be obtained from the greenhouse."

Besides the US, the systems also often go to Australia, where conditions are also warm and dry. The misting systems are attuned to these conditions. "The capacity of the installations for the Netherlands is insufficient there. We make them two to three times stronger." This also appears to be one of the points in which the Dutch distinguish themselves from the local market. "Our nozzles give a very fine mist with continuous equal droplet sizes and the pressure is maintained at the same height. This quality is in demand."

But the growing market also represented a drawback: the company began to grow out of the building! This is why they moved this summer, from Wernhout to Etten-Leur. "We're right on the highway and we have much more space," Van Aperen explains. "We’ve gotten used to it quickly."