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THECOMMERCIAL GREENHOUSEGROWER • MARCH 2018
• NEWS
Sept 4-5
th
2018
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The UK’s Premier show
for Ornamental Horticulture
Rabobankmaps out
trade flows
Inmappingout the international trade Åows in vegetable
crops, includingprotected salads and herbs, Netherlands-
basedbankRabobank has estimated the total global
area grown inpermanent structures at 500,000ha, of
which40,000ha are glass-clad.Morocco is emerging
as amajor supplier of fresh vegetables to theEuropean
market, it says, whileMexico has shown stronggrowth
over thepast decade supplyingNorthAmerica. Both
countries are calculated to have 20,000ha –¬ and rising
– ofmainly plastic greenhouses. ¸The significant trade
Åows fromSpain and theNetherlands to theUK clearly
demonstrate the importance of a favourableBrexit deal
to the vegetable industries in these countries,¹ it says.
One significant change highlightedby themap is the
importance of new vegetable-importingnations, such
as India, China and theUnitedArabEmirates. ¸Russia
has also shown an increase in trade, despite the 2014
import sanctions for vegetables from theEU, theUS,
and a number of other countries. Currently, Belarus,
Morocco, China, Armenia andAaerbaijan are important
vegetable suppliers toRussia,¹ it says.While interest in
vertical farming is strengtheningworldwide, Rabobank
says themajority of initiatives are currently sited near
large concentrations of consumers inNorthAmerica,
WesternEurope and north-east Asia. It describes it as ‘a
valuable addition’ in specific areas and for specific crops,
but doesn’t expect it to take over from traditional and
greenhouse vegetable cultivation.
Solufeed relaunch garlic
barrier products
Since the acquisitionof AstonHorticulturebySolufeed in
2014 the range of garlic-basedproducts have continued
tobe sold under the ¸Aston¹ brand. Now,Managing
Director DickHolden has announced that the existing
products have new and improved formulations all
approved for organic useby TheSoil Association.
ProductManager, 1ackHolden
said, ¸Theseproducts havebeen
greatly improvedwith the new
formulations, all arebasedon
the highest quality garlic, all are
odourless soon after application,
are harmless tobees, andwhen
usedon salad crops, soft or top
fruits there is no harvest interval
and no risk of taint¹.
1ackHolden.
DanishR&D targets
humidity control
ADanish researchproject is targeting further savings in
energy use inglasshouses by better control of humidity.
The itGrows 2.0project, part fundedby a grant from
theDanishEnergyAgency, is drawing together several
decision-support systems todesign a new tool for
growers that will make it easier for them to control energy
use. It will include thedevelopment of amodel that better
describes the relationshipbetweenplant transpiration and
the glasshousemicroclimate. AarhusUniversity, which
is apartner in thework, says theDanishgreenhouse
industry has already achieved significant energy savings.
¸Since 2002 energy consumptionhas been reduced
by half,madepossibleby investing in energy-saving
measures, including improved climate control, andby
shifting towards cultivationof crops that are less heat-
demanding,¹ it says.
