If the government does not come up with a good support plan soon, 40 percent of greenhouse horticulture companies will not make it to the end of the year. That is what Mari van den Heuvel, Brabant/Zeeland regional chairman of Greenhouse Horticulture Netherlands, says. Energy costs have skyrocketed in the past month. Growing vegetables such as cucumber and tomato requires a lot of heat and energy. “It’s five past twelve for greenhouse horticulture.”
“There is a lot of talk in The Hague about solutions, but nothing gets off the ground,” says Van den Heuvel. Small companies in particular are having a hard time. They have less fat on their bones. The price of a cubic meter of gas is ten times higher. got high.
Large greenhouse horticulture companies generate their own electricity which they sell to energy companies in the summer. Small businesses cannot.
“There are alternatives to gas, such as geothermal energy and hydrogen. But there is no money for sustainability. If there is a support fund this autumn, it will partly be too late. The cultivation plans for the coming period have already been made. Many gardeners have decided not to grow anything in the winter period. That costs tons, but growing with those high energy prices costs even more.”
It is not only the government that has to solve it. Gardeners will also have to look at alternatives, says the regional chairman. “Can you switch to crops that require less heat? Look in the mirror: how are you going into the future?”