Members will work together with Royal FloraHolland on a new membership model next year. They discussed the reason for this, and the process, with Members' Council member Walter Straathof (Gebr. Straathof) and Claudia Hölzel (Services for Growers and Cooperative Affairs Manager at Royal FloraHolland).
"The auction should provide the highest possible yield for members at the lowest possible cost. That's the strength of the cooperative", says Walter. "You can see a continued increase in the differences between growers. Large and small growers, more and more direct trade and international trade - the existing model with two contract forms no longer suffices."
Claudia: "With the new strategic direction we are developing new services such as nationwide auctioning and 100% Digital through Floriday. Including these services in the membership and rates is therefore a logical next step." There are currently two membership forms (member-supplier and supplier) and the difference between them lies mainly in their rates. "We want to tighten that up in the coming year. This way we better meet the needs of our members."
The rate structure was adjusted in 2018. Furthermore, one contract form was chosen in addition to the member-supplier contract, namely: supplier. The rights and obligations of membership and the associated services remained unchanged at that time. "That was a first step towards getting the basics clear and straightforward," Claudia continues. "We had a discussion with members then, too. And we'll do so again as part of this process."