The Delissen brothers from Holland have withdrawn their building application for a gigantic lettuce greenhouse in Wiesentheid. The project has stalled for the time being, reports BR24.
A planned lettuce greenhouse in Wiesentheid will not come after all. "The Delissen brothers have informed us in a letter this Thursday. This means the planning permission process is frozen," said Kitzinger District Councilor Tamara Bischof at the request of BR. Since 2016 agricultural entrepreneurs Mark and Roy Delissen from the Netherlands had pursued plans for a lettuce greenhouse in Wiesentheid.
Greenhouse should cost 20 million euros
For the greenhouse, the entrepreneurs wanted to invest 20 million euros. On an area of 17 hectares, they wanted to grow lettuce under glass, cultivated using robotics and LED lamps. The Delissens wanted to produce for all Bavaria and East Germany. Mark Delissen spoke of a radius of about 350 kilometers, which the company wanted to service.
"Lettuce factory" met with criticism
The opponents of the project spoke at the greenhouse of a "lettuce factory". The biggest concerns were mainly about where to get the water. The Dutch investors said it would be collected as rainwater on the glasshouse roofs, after which it would be stored in two large tanks. A citizens' initiative expressed doubt on this succeeding in the extremely dry region. On 27 June, 300 citizens demonstrated in Wiesentheid against the "lettuce factory".
Lettuce entrepreneurs are retreating
At the beginning, the local council in Wiesentheid had spoken out with 10: 7 votes for a so-called concentration area. The greenhouse of the Dutch, with 15 hectares under glass, should be located next to an existing nursery. Wiesentheid's mayor Werner Knaier said back then that this concentration area would be included in the zoning plan. This would have delayed the building application of Dutch entrepreneurs until the end of the year. "Maybe the Dutch can make more progress elsewhere, so they will give up the planned location Wiesentheid," said Knaier in July. And that's exactly what the Dutch have done.