On 8 April 2022, the first Centre for Resilient Floriculture (Centrum Weerbare Sierteelt) was officially put into use at the Royal FloraHolland location in Aalsmeer. With this center, the partners aim to facilitate operational cooperation as effectively as possible.
The center offers workplaces for employees of the cooperation partners and facilities for consultation. Within the public-private partnership 'Resilient Floriculture Sector' (Weerbare Sierteeltsector), government agencies and businesses in the floriculture sector work together to develop preventive and repressive measures against subversive crime.
The ornamental plant cultivation sector's strong export position has a downside. The floriculture industry is vulnerable due to its efficient international logistics. Michel van Schie, spokesperson for Royal FloraHolland: "We are pleased with this first center at one of our locations. The expectation is that more intensive contact from the 'boots on the ground' will give an impulse to a decisive approach to countering subversion in the chain. The cooperation partners intend to set up similar centers at Royal FloraHolland's export locations in Naaldwijk and Rijnsburg as well.
Resilient Floriculture Sector Table
The Resilient Floriculture Sector program, funded by the Ministry of Justice and Security's sub-loans, had already been working together from mid-2019 to December 2021. As of January 2022, the program switched to structural cooperation. The following parties are represented in this Resilient Floriculture Sector table: the Westland, Katwijk, Aalsmeer, and Uithoorn municipalities, the Police (The Hague and the Amsterdam unit), the Public Prosecution Service (The Hague and Amsterdam), RIEC The Hague and RIEC Amsterdam-Amstelland, Schiphol Customs, the Tax and Customs Administration and Royal FloraHolland from the private sector.
Source: Royal FloraHolland