My Eco-Innovation Five

Farmers in the Netherlands are Growing More Food Using Less Resources

Despite being a small, densely populated country, the Netherlands is one of the biggest vegetable exporters globally and a leader in agricultural innovation.

Land and labor are costly, so both must be used as efficiently as possible in order to be competitive; this stance drives innovation in the Netherlands. Dutch farmers pioneer ways to produce greater yields using less space and fewer resources.

Jacob Van Den Borne, Van Den Borne Potatoes explains “we decided not to go for more hectares but more yield per hectare. That’s when we started looking at precision technology. A lot of people think its science fiction, but it’s not.”

Precision agriculture is an approach that uses information technology to ensure crops get precisely what they need for optimum health and growth while using fewer natural resources. This innovation stems from small, dedicated family-run operations, motivated by profit and sustainability. 

“We are producing around 100 million tomatoes annually. In these greenhouses we use less water and 15% less energy, as our tomatoes plants grow in a hydroponics system with minimal effects on the environment” explains Ad Van Adrichen of Duijvestijn Tomatoes.

Jacob Van Den Borne defines precision farming as doing the right thing, in the right way, at the right moment; “We are more sustainable because we use fewer inputs which is economically good. We use the latest technology like soil scan to measure the soil quality and the availability of nutrients within it. Soil-watching cameras can detect diseases or water stress; implementing precision farming to get a better yield and better quality.”

As climate change and poor farming practices degrade our agricultural land, we will need 50% more food by 2050 for the growing population. And as the population rises, there will be high demand and less farming area available, which is why we must invest in precision farming.