About the Alliance of Horticulture Regions

The horticultural sector in the Netherlands is well known for its knowledge, technology and innovations that can be found in greenhouses all over the world. And everyone knows the delicious fruits, vegetables and beautiful flowers that are cultivated in a controlled environment in our country. The Dutch horticultural sector enables local production around the world and unlocks access to affordable and healthy food for tens of millions of people.

Given the current geopolitical situation, it cannot be ruled out that access to safe and healthy food for parts of the world will be at risk. Access to food is increasingly weaponized. The availability of scarce raw materials and the effect of climate change also play a large role. On top of that, the world population is growing rapidly. It is expected that in 2050, the population has grown to roughly 10 billion people. Mainly living in large cities. This urges the need for more healthy and sustainable food production on a local level. Horticulture is one of the keys to worldwide food security. And that is exactly where the strength in future cooperation lies.

For that reason, the Dutch Municipality of Westland, as the largest concentration of glass greenhouses in the world, aims to intensify strategic networking with similar regions and related stakeholders: both nearby and around the globe. The strength of the Dutch greenhouse horticultural cluster lies in its ecosystem of close cooperation between governments, the corporate sector and relevant knowledge institutions. This unique environment fosters innovation and collaboration, making our cluster the Silicon Valley of greenhouse horticulture.

We realise that many bilateral partnerships between similar regions are established around the world, but until now they just appear to be one-on-one or regionally focused. Therefore, the establishment of a Global Alliance of Horticulture Regions can be beneficial with a much more multilateral approach. Because even though we might be on different sides of the world and embrace distinct cultures, our challenges in the field of ensuring food security, increasing biodiversity, adapting to climate issues, applying robotics, increasing business opportunities, and practicing food diplomacy are very similar.

Our work is more important than ever. On a daily basis, many stakeholders are working to improve the horticultural sector and by doing so, contribute to a number of the Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations and to worldwide food security. It is long overdue that we, together with our partners, start working on a solid food strategy. It is our belief that the greenhouse horticulture sector is the key to crafting a successful food strategy. We aspire to join forces and confronting the global challenges related to food safety and security that we face on a daily basis.