Innovation, Innovation, Innovation

Innovation is introducing something new, whether the enterprise is concrete (a new product) or abstract (developing a new service or business philosophy).

Research has found that companies that pursue sustainability significantly increase their chances of becoming innovative business leaders. Visionary entrepreneurs understand that sustainably grown products and sustainable production methods are a prerequisite because it may be necessary to create alternatives to conventional products or methods that were created before environmental concerns arose and influenced decision-making.

Emanuela Truffo of the Italian law firm Jacobacci explains how greening the Global Value Chain (GVC) in our sector has also become a business imperative, albeit with its own challenges. She highlights two completely conflicting realities. On the one hand, the GVC in ornamental horticulture is an intertwined ecosystem. All its stakeholders, from the breeder to the consumer, including nurseries, marketers, and distribution networks, are linked, and the decision made by one is bound to affect the others. On the other hand: the legal environment in which partners of the GVC build their business model very much depends on local legislation. In fact, despite all the international conventions and treaties regulating the filing and granting process of a Plant Variety Right (PVR), the primary business development tool — the contract — is governed mainly by domestic legislation. Page 32.

Markets, in essence, resist new ideas, and when novelties have not yet fully matured, it can be daunting to find financiers and entrepreneurs who believe in them. As such, awards, prizes, quality marks and recognitions play an essential role in boosting the morale of inventors and innovators.

UK-based Allensmore Nurseries won gold for Sustainability at AIPH International Grower of the Year 2023. Geoff Caesar explains what winning means for him personally and the Allensmoore team, on page 8. Don’t forget to enter the IGOTY 2024 Awards International Grower of the Year 2024 - see page 2.

Buzzing with activity was the sixth edition of GreenTech. The event is proof of how the greenhouse horticulture market bursts with innovations designed to make growing fresh produce, fruits, ornamentals and medicinal cannabis more profitable, sustainable, convenient and labour displacing. Page 38.

Another June flagship industry event is the Dutch Lily Days, a great way of showing the diversity of lilies available on the global market. Page 12.

Finally, the annual FlowerTrials concluded an eventful June, attracting green professionals from 87 countries. Attendance figures - 5,000 industry professionals visiting 60 breeding companies across 20 locations in the Netherlands and Germany equalled last year. More about FlowerTrials in our next issue, out in September.

Contents

JULY/AUGUST 2023 VOLUME 33 NUMBERS 6/7

Cover Story

12 2023 DUTCH LILY DAYS

Staying up to date in an industry that’s constantly shifting

Features

20 GARDEN RETAIL

Episode four of our ‘Exploring Europe’s Garden Centres’ series takes us to Switzerland

24 KNOWLEDGE SHARING

Jungle Talks’ Pro Manager Master Course Floriculture creates opportunities for young professionals

28 CHRYSANTHEMUM BREEDING

Floritec opens a new breeding facility in Westland

29 AIPH

Why becoming an AIPH affiliate member pays off

32 SUSTAINABILITY AND PBR

Greening the Global Value Chain is not just a fad; it’s a requirement

36 FASCINATION OF PLANTS DAY

Make a landmark ‘plant pledge’ to increase biodiversity for the future of humanity

42 GROWING MEDIA

‘Are we preparing for a peat-free future?’ - AIPH panel session at GreenTech

FloraCulture International (FCI) is an independent trade magazine with the largest circulation for a world publication of its kind. FCI is published for the ornamental horticulture industry by the International Association of Horticultural Producers (AIPH). It is published 11 times per year worldwide.

Contributing writers: Tim Briercliffe, Martin Deasy, Ron van der Ploeg, Audrey Timm, Emanuela Truffo, Rachel Wakefield, Shane Wang, and Lorenz Wieland. Contact: info@floracultureinternational.com.

Address: FloraCulture International, Horticulture House, Chilton, Didcot, Oxfordshire, OX11 0RN, United Kingdom. Editor: Ron van der Ploeg, ron@floracultureinternational.com Worldwide Advertising Office: Angie Duffree, angie@floracultureinternational.com. T. +31 6 403 277 35. Magazine designer: Rachel Wakefield. Cover image: Dutch Lily Days by Ron van der Ploeg. AIPH ©2023 FloraCulture International magazine. All rights reserved. Publisher is not liable for the content of the advertisements. Photographs by permission of copyright owners.