News » 20.05.2026 - Horticulture shows courage with 100% Green Grown
A Dutch chrysanthemum nursery is among the participants featured in a recent article by Dutch opinion weekly De Groene Amsterdammer, which reported from the greenhouse of Leen Middelburg Chrysanten in Made, in the Netherlands, as part of coverage of the '100% Grown Green' project.
Barry Middelburg describes what prompted the shift: "Three years ago we had a thrips outbreak here. We were spraying more pesticides than we wanted to. That made us think about our approach, and whether we could do things differently, find another way of growing. It also became a real personal question for me: can we grow flowers without chemistry? That is how we got started with the 100% Grown Green project."
Ecotoxicologist Martina Vijver, scientific director of the Institute of Environmental Sciences at Leiden University, also features in the article. She argues that bolder decisions are needed. "We simply have to decide that we no longer want certain substances on the market and make the move to green alternatives."
Neither Brussels nor The Hague may have that resolve, but many growers do, says Helma Verberkt, representing Artemis, who was also present in the chrysanthemum greenhouse. "In the past, the industry said: we need to keep all the products available, production has to keep running. But now I see many companies in the sector starting to look at it differently."
The challenges remain real, as Middelburg's practical experience makes clear. Since starting the project in January 2024, the results have been significant. "We used half the chemical crop protection products we used before. In the first half of last year I was able to go entirely without chemistry. But crop protection cost twice as much. And then aphid pressure became so severe that even the expensive ladybirds could no longer cope, so we had to spray after all." To address the aphid problem, a dedicated Aphid Task Force has been established, focusing on high-tech solutions to manage the pest.
Practice provides proof, and reveals what is still missing
According to Artemis, the De Groene Amsterdammer (link in Dutch) article makes clear that good intentions and individual successful pilots are not sufficient on their own. Low-chemical or chemical-free cultivation cannot be achieved simply by substituting one product for another. It requires systems thinking: prevention, monitoring, crop resilience, biological solutions, technology, and expertise must come together in day-to-day growing practice. Artemis notes (link in Dutch) that this broader systems approach comes through clearly in the article. The 100% Grown Green project demonstrates that sustainability is no longer a theoretical discussion, but an operational reality in which growers, researchers, and businesses are learning, investing, and developing together.
Practical experience is now providing evidence that the transition is possible. But that same evidence also exposes what is still lacking, according to Artemis. Faster registration of biocontrol agents and low-risk solutions, room for field trials, knowledge development, and regulations aligned with biological products and biostimulants are prerequisites, not wish-list items, the sector organisation argues. As long as a new biological product takes years to reach the market, registration policy will lag behind the growers who are already leading the way. The sector is moving. The capacity for innovation is there. Collaboration is growing. What is needed now is policy, registration frameworks, and market development that keep pace.
Source: www.floraldaily.com
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