30 January 2020| Dutch sustainable solutions| fe-fourleaf

Duijvestijn Tomaten: towards sustainable tomatoes

Duijvestijn Tomaten considers sustainability every step of the way: from watering its plants to packaging its tomatoes. Duijvestijn strives to use natural resources in a sustainable way so that they remain available for future generations or can be replaced by suitable alternatives.

Growing tomatoes sustainably

Duijvestijn’s approach to sustainability is based on the connection between water, energy and food. The company aims to use water and energy as efficiently as possible in its production process. Duijvestijn’s tomatoes are grown on a substrate of rockwool so that the amount of water and nutrients can be carefully controlled. As a result, almost no water or nutrients are wasted. The plants are watered with rainwater, which is collected at the greenhouse. Any excess water is pumped into underground storage for use in a drier season. Duijvestijn protects its crops against pests by means of biological crop protection, using natural enemies. It is also one of the first greenhouse horticulture companies in the Netherlands to use geothermal energy for heating. The downside of this is that it doesn’t produce CO2, which the plants need to grow. But Duijvestijn has found a solution for this too: CO2 is pumped to the greenhouse from a refinery in the Port of Rotterdam.

Circularity

Duijvestijn Tomaten has set its sights on circularity. In a unique collaboration with Wageningen University & Research it has developed biobased packaging made from the waste from its own plants. It is now also exploring the possibility of making clothing from tomato fibres.