"Licensing issues driving consolidation wave"

Den Berk Délice's growth plans fit a general trend of scaling up in greenhouse horticulture, VILT notes. Flanders' largest tomato grower is entering Dutch hands. Den Berk Délice, accounting for 80 hectares, will be acquired by investment company Egeria, which will take a majority stake. In Morocco, an earlier growth step was recently taken with new construction.

Hans van der Hallen, also following recent developments at Stoffels Tomaten, points to licensing issues as the driving force behind what he calls a "consolidation wave" in greenhouse horticulture. "Whereas companies used to be able to grow by building on, this is increasingly difficult with the current licensing policy. So if a company wants to grow, it has little choice but to take over existing companies. As a result, you see a number of large groups of tomato companies emerging, and to realize growth ambitions, attracting external capital is often appropriate."

Stoffels Tomaten recently acquired fellow grower Baanheidehof and will convert the greenhouse from growing peppers to growing tomatoes later this year. Joining Stoffels in 2018 were BNP Paribas Fortis and Invale.