In horticulture, there is a continuous focus on finding ways to improve efficiency and sustainability. One significant advancement has been the introduction of plants that are easier to work with. These plants are selected to reduce the physical demands on growers during cultivation and harvesting. In this interview with pepper breeders Ioannis Dimitrakopoulos and Silvia Corella Borrás, we explore the role of breeding in developing labour-friendly plants. 

Rijk Zwaan is proud to announce the opening of a new facility in De Lier. This expansion increases the fruit and vegetable breeding company’s capacity for seed cleaning, processing, storage and packaging to continue to meet the growing demand for seeds. In a ceremony attended by colleagues, construction partners and Bouke Arends, mayor of the Municipality of Westland, the new ‘Seed Connect Centre’ was officially opened on Tuesday 8 April.

Austrian consumers can now enjoy organically grown snack peppers with a unique tropical flavour all year round. Both grower Veganis and an Austrian retailer were so impressed by the award-winning Tatayoyo that they recently joined forces to add it to the retailer’s premium organic range. Gregor Hoffmann, Client Manager at Rijk Zwaan Welver, explains how it was achieved.

When pl­ants suffer stress due to cold, hea­t, soil salinity or a lack of fresh wa­ter, it results in lower production. That’s why we develop varieties that thrive in hot, dry conditions. In this blog, Ehab Aboukheir, Team Leader Seed Technology Research, shares more about our research into abiotic stress, and how this guides our continuous improvement activities.

Sales of organic products are on the rise again, which resulted in an optimistic mood at the Biofach event in Nuremberg, Germany. From 11-14 February, this international trade fair for the organic sector attracted visitors from 140 countries – and Heleen Bos, Specialist Marketing Organics at Rijk Zwaan, was among them. She provides a roundup of the highlights.

Biosolarisation is very effective and fairly easy to implement. Organic vegetable growers in Spain have been using this natural method to suppress soilborne diseases for many years. Four weeks of sunshine and high temperatures are a prerequisite for successful biosolarisation. Therefore, the approach could also be interesting for organic growers in other Mediterranean climates.

Snack Lettuce enables retailers across Europe to offer consumers something exciting in the lettuce category. It not only forms a crunchy basis for snacks, but is also available all year round on the continent. This is thanks to close collaboration within the expanding network of growers in Spain, Italy, Germany and Ireland. Four of them explain what makes both the partnership and Snack Lettuce so successful.

Rijk Zwaan is looking forward to welcoming Fruit Logistica attendees to its booth (Hall 1.2, Stand D-13) to explore together how commitment to care can help partners thrive in today’s ever-evolving market. Experts from the fruit and vegetable breeding company are also contributing to a number of parallel events in Berlin. To engage in even more knowledge sharing, customers and partners can sign up to visit the Retail Centre – the company’s very own retail experience facility in Berlin.