After a seven-year search and quite a few setbacks, Herenboerderij West-Friesland has found a location for their small-scale farm. The cooperative will lease a piece of land of more than four hectares in the village of Hem. And the cooperative is only too happy with that: “We can finally start.”
The search for a suitable location in West Friesland was very difficult for years due to scarcity and high prices – both rent and lease – of agricultural land.
“We had quite a few kitchen table discussions with farmers on which we had made a lot of progress, but in the end it didn’t happen at the last minute,” explains Anne van de Graaf, one of the initiators.
Until a farmer from the West Frisian village of Hem, who still had a plot of 4.4 hectares available on the Hout, knocked on Van de Graaf’s door and wanted to work with the cooperative. “We can lease this plot for ten years and we are really happy with that,” she says.
Even though the plot is a lot smaller thanthe intended twenty hectares Van de Graaf is happy that the cooperative can finally start on January 1, 2027. “Cauliflowers are currently still being grown on this plot, but they will be harvested in August. Then we can start preparations such as sowing green manures and installing greenhouses,” she says.
They set up a small-scale, cooperative farm where they grow their own food under the supervision of an employed farmer – as organically and circularly as possible.
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The farm will grow about fifty different types of vegetables, says Van de Graaf. “Leeks, garlic, pumpkins, potatoes and onions,” she lists, “but also small fruits such as blackberries, raspberries, strawberries and berries.” The cooperative focuses on the cultivation of seasonal crops. “We also want to build up large stocks for the autumn and winter.”
To extend the growing season, greenhouses are placed at the farm. Because the plot is too small for the cultivation of top fruit such as apples and pears, the farm works with an organic fruit grower from the village.
Unlike other Herenboerderijen in North Holland, no livestock will be kept on the plot for the time being. “For now,” she says. “If we can expand our plot, we can also start keeping pigs, for example.”
Healthy soil
However, there will be Indian runner ducks walking around on the farm, which eat snails and snail eggs. “We also promote biodiversity, attracting insects such as ladybugs and earwigs, which eat aphids,” she says.
The cooperative also wants to work on healthy soil in the coming years to increase the resilience of the crops. This is done with compost and manure, among other things. “We will undoubtedly encounter things such as downy mildew (a water fungus that attacks plants, ed.). We use a mixture of skimmed milk and water for this,” Van de Graaf explains.
Enough places available
96 households have now registered. And, Van de Graaf emphasizes, there are still places available. “We can feed about 350 mouths, so there is still room for about seventy households,” says Van de Graaf.
To encourage potential members to join the farm, the cooperative is organizing an information evening on June 8 in Enkhuizen and June 16 in Hoorn.
