Introduction
The 2023 Home Garden Conference will take us to Lelystad, The Netherlands on 6 and 7 September.
Invitation
We are delighted to invite you to our Home Garden Conference 2023, which will take place on 6 and 7 September in the Dutch provinces of Flevoland and North Holland.
The two-day programme is an excellent opportunity to discover the latest home gardening trends and catch up with industry colleagues. This year's theme 'Biodiversity meets Corporate Social Responsibility' has all it takes to provide an inspiring conference!
On Wednesday 6th September, the event will kick off at 10.00 hrs at the Van der Valk hotel in Lelystad. Pierre Byache-Kersemaecker, Owner of Graines Lecouf Mailliet and former Product Manager at EconSeeds, will update us on the most recent developments in breeding and use of Salvia, an all-time garden favourite to stimulate biodiversity and star plant of our Plant of the Year promotion initiative. Annemarie Kruize, Sales manager at De Bolster will share the company's vision on organic varieties and seeds for both professionals and amateur gardeners.
The programme continues with two company presentations. As Philipp Klein Samen has applied for Fleuroselect membership but is unable to join our Annual General Meeting early July, Director Teresa Hessel will give a short overview of the company and its key brands Frankonia and Samen Pfann during this conference. In preparation of the afternoon visit, General Manager Hubert Keller will share some insights on the latest corporate developments at EconSeeds.
After lunch we leave for EconSeeds in Hoogkarspel. This company owns the well-known French brand BERTRAND and produces flower seeds for seed companies and distributors all over the world. We will visit their brand new facilities and receive a guided tour of the packaging facilities with fully conditioned storage space and increased room for order processing, as well as the large trial field that is conveniently located nextdoors. Afterwards, we will visit the trial field of PanAmerican Seed where we will see this year's Fleuroselect trial, Impatiens Beacon and some varieties of the company's home garden assortment.
The second day of the conference will take a deeper dive into Corporate Social Responsibility, an industry topic which is becoming increasingly relevant to all of us. Martin de la Harpe, independent expert in sustainability, will introduce us to the subject and share which lessons can be learned from the past. Elise Wieringa, Manager Sustainability at Royal Lemkes, will provide additional insights and case studies at wholesale/distribution level. The session will be concluded with a roundtable discussion between audience and experts looking into the near future: which changes are coming to our industry and how will we handle them?
After the coffee break, we will hear from our keynote speaker: Rob Baan OR Stijn Baan from Koppert Cress. Either father or son will join our conference to provide insights on Koppert Cress' vision on how microgreens and vertical growing can contribute to healthy food that is produced in a sustainable way. The event will end after lunch at 13.30 hrs.
We hope that you can join us for what promises to be an informative and exciting Home Garden Conference, and look forward welcoming you.
Kind regards,
Hubert Keller, General Manager EconSeeds
Simon Crawford, Chair Home Garden B.U. Fleuroselect
Herbert Wehrle, Vice-Chair Home Garden B.U. Fleuroselect
Ann Jennen, Secretary-General Fleuroselect
Preliminary Programme
Tuesday 5th September
| 13.30 hrs | Departure at hotel for optional visit to Pieterpikzonen |
| 14.30 hrs | Arrival at PieterPikZonen |
| 17.00 hrs | Departure to hotel |
| 18.00 hrs | Arrival at hotel |
Wednesday 6th September
| 10.00 - 10.10 hrs | Welcome |
| 10.10 - 10.30 hrs | Presentation: ‘How to use and benefit from Fleuroselect membership’ |
| 10.30 - 11.00 hrs | Presentation: ‘Salvia: recent developments in breeding and use’ Presenter: Pierre Byache-Kersemaecker |
| 11.00 - 11.30 hrs | Presentation: ‘De Bolster – Organic seeds for professionals and consumers’ Presenter: Annemarie Kruize, Sales manager at De Bolster |
| 11.30 - 11.50 hrs | Coffee break |
| 11.50 - 12.10 hrs | Company presentation: ‘Philipp Klein | Frankonia Samen – Samen Pfann’ Presenter: Teresa Hessel, Director Philipp Klein |
| 12.10 - 12.45 hrs | Company presentation: ‘EconSeeds’ Presenter: Hubert Keller, General Manager EconSeeds |
| 12.45 - 14.00 hrs | Lunch |
| 14.00 - 15.00 hrs | Bus to Econ Seeds |
| 15.00 - 16.30 hrs | Visit Trial Fields & Seed packing facilities EconSeeds |
| 16.30 - 16.45 hrs | Bus to PanAmerican Seed |
| 16.45 - 17.00 hrs | Coffee |
| 17.00 - 17.45 hrs | Visit PanAmerican Trial Field | Fleuroselect trial, Impatiens Beacon, some varieties of the home garden assortment |
| 17.45 - 18.45 hrs | Bus to Hotel |
| 19.00 - 20.00 hrs | Drinks |
| 20.00 - 21.30 hrs | Dinner |
Thursday 7th September
| 09.00 - 09.25 hrs | Presentation: ‘Corporate Social Responsibility: Lessons learnt so far’ Speaker: Martin de la Harpe, Sustainability Expert |
| 09.25 - 09.50 hrs | Presentation: ‘Case Study: FSI 2025 & Sustainability at Royal Lemkes’ Speaker: Elise Wieringa, Manager Sustainability Royal Lemkes |
| 09.50 - 10.15 hrs | Presentation: ‘Amfori | Legislation' Speaker: Norma Wouters-Snell, Amfori Representative The Netherlands |
| 10.15 - 11.00 hrs | Roundtable with audience & experts: “CSR: Which changes lie ahead of us?” |
| 11.00 - 11.30 hrs | Coffee break |
| 11.30 - 12.30 hrs |
Keynote: ‘Let's change the way we look at food’ |
| 12.30 - 13.30 hrs | Lunch |
| 13.30 hrs | End of Conference | Departure |
Hotel
For this event, the brand new Van der Valk hotel in Lelystad has been chosen. It is ideal staring point for the visits to EconSeeds and Pieterpikzonen and has excellent meeting facilities. Located near the A6 at 50 km from Amsterdam, it is easy to reach by car and direct train services run from Schiphol to Lelystad. The hotel disposes of a pool, wellness and fitness area.
Cost
EUR 128,50 per night including breakfast.
How to book a room?
We have passed the deadline of our roomblock, please contact the hotel directly to book a room.
Van der Valk Lelystad
+31 320 799 600
info@lelystad.valk.com