Natural Enemies Against Pests
Most of Koppert’s products are living, delicate organisms. Maarten Kok explains: “Suppose you have a pest in your greenhouse that is harmful to the plants you grow. We have the solution, because for almost every pest there is a natural enemy.” It’s a solution that is both simple and effective for addressing issues in growing vegetables, flowers, and other crops – and it’s completely biological.
Bumblebees for Pollination
Insects are also used for pollinating plants and crops. In 1987, it became clear that bumblebees were an excellent alternative to manual pollination of tomatoes. Koppert immediately started breeding bumblebees. Today, bumblebees are used worldwide to pollinate tomatoes, resulting in significant labor cost savings, improved fruit quality, and sometimes even higher yields. In recent years, the use of bumblebees has expanded to fruit crops as well.
Maarten Kok demonstrates in the show room how simple it actually is. He shows a nest box developed by Koppert containing hundreds of bumblebees and their queen. To use these bumblebees for pollination, you place the nest box in the greenhouse, open it, and the bees do the rest.
Solutions Below the Ground
Koppert has been harnessing the power of nature for decades through biological crop protection and natural pollination. In recent years, the company has also focused on what happens below the ground – optimizing soil life and strengthening plants, for example by protecting roots from disease. Koppert provides solutions for this as well.
Global Family Business
Products are cultivated, packaged, and shipped from modern production facilities. Koppert works closely with universities and research institutes around the world. The company was founded by Jan Koppert, a grower in Berkel and Rodenrijs in the 1960s. He grew cucumbers, but chemical pesticides were no longer effective against pests, which led him to experiment with natural alternatives – successfully. Today, Koppert is a global family business with around 1,200 employees worldwide.
At the headquarters in Berkel and Rodenrijs, more than 300 employees work in research, production, sales, consulting, and logistics. Koppert also has facilities around the world. “In Slovakia we produce bumblebees, but there are also large production sites in Spain and the USA. You can find our little creatures all over the world,” says Kok.
Technology and Innovation at Koppert
Maarten Kok has been working at Koppert since 1998. “We have quite a number of machines, and with a team of thirty people, we ensure that all machines and production resources keep running. We originally developed and built these machines ourselves. Today there are about 40 machines, for which we also designed our own controls. The machines were recently updated with new control systems and touchscreens, which didn’t exist when we first built the machines. VMB Automation supported us with this.”
Collaboration with VMB Automation
Before upgrading the machinery, Maarten Kok looked for a company specializing in control systems. Very simply, via the internet. “That’s how I found VMB Automation. The website and texts appealed to me, and then we got in touch. We visited Hendrik-Ido-Ambacht and quickly made a decision. Our control systems are not very large, require relatively little power, and don’t need to be housed in big control cabinets. VMB did a great job, and a strong relationship has developed since then.”
“VMB takes a lot of work off our hands. When we did everything ourselves, we could react to circumstances and make adjustments on the spot. Now everything needs to be planned in advance, but this is going very smoothly so far. VMB is highly knowledgeable and the communication is excellent. That gives a sense of trust,” concludes Maarten Kok.
