Recently a modern greenhouse supplied by the Netherlands was delivered in Ishinomaki City in the Miyagi prefecture in Japan. The official opening on Saturday 29 October 2016 caused a lot of media attention.
The complete project consists of a greenhouse complex of 2.4 hectares, of which 1.1 hectares is intended for tomato and 1.3 hectares for pepper production. Owner is the local horticultural company ‘De Liefde Kitakami’. The name of De Liefde refers to the first ship with which the Dutch visited Japan over 400 years ago.
The company was founded by local farmers who suffered severe damage after the massive earthquake and tsunami in March 2011.
The company was founded by local farmers who suffered severe damage after the massive earthquake and tsunami in March 2011.
De Liefde Kitakami greenhouse in Ishinomaki City
The project cost 1,379 million yen (€12 million) in total, of which 839 million yen (€7.3 million) has been financed with government grants. The remaining costs were covered by De Liefde Kitakami.
The annual harvest is estimated at 350 tons of tomatoes (November to July) and 280 tons of peppers (January to September).
The annual harvest is estimated at 350 tons of tomatoes (November to July) and 280 tons of peppers (January to September).
Hiroshi Kameyama, Mayor of Ishinomaki City and Evert Jan Krajenbrink, Dutch Agriculture Counselor in Tokyo.
The design and construction of the greenhouses were executed by several Japanese companies, including Tomita Technologies and Daisen Co. Five Dutch companies (Green Square International, Priva, VB Group, Royal Brinkman and KUBO) closely collaborated with the Japanese contractors.
The project De Liefde Kitakami is one of the ten major greenhouse operations in Japan encouraged by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF). The ministry extends grants for ‘next generation’ greenhouses to stimulate agriculture.