The Dutch greenhouse horticulture sector faces significant challenges. In strawberry cultivation, rising costs, stricter laws and regulations, and increasing pressure for sustainable production are driving a growing need for more efficient and future-proof cultivation methods. Digital technologies offer ample opportunities for this – think of optimizing production processes and reducing costs. However, large-scale implementation in practice proves difficult, resulting in the sector’s lagging digitalization of cultivation management.
With the EIP project “Strawberry: Ripe for Digitalization,” Delphy, Hoogendoorn, and Royal Berry are joining forces to accelerate digitalization in the strawberry greenhouse horticulture sector. By applying advanced cultivation models, autonomous climate and irrigation control, and smooth data exchange between systems, they are working towards higher productivity, more efficient use of resources, and cultivation that is more resilient to climate fluctuations. This aligns seamlessly with the sector’s broader ambitions: to continue meeting increasing sustainability requirements and maintain the Netherlands’ leading international position in greenhouse horticulture.
Role Allocation
Delphy develops and supplies the Strawberry Quality Management System (QMS), a system for strategic and tactical crop planning that supports growers in planning and optimizing their crops.
Hoogendoorn implements Intelligent Algorithms (IA), which enable autonomous climate and irrigation control, enabling optimization at the operational level.
Royal Berry serves as a practical facility where these technologies are integrated, tested, and validated.
The Bemmel case study has two objectives:
The QMS and IA technologies are still only used to a limited extent in strawberry cultivation. This project offers the opportunity to structurally implement and integrate these techniques in practice. By demonstrating the success of the case study, other strawberry growers will also be encouraged to embrace digitalization.
Project Details
The project runs from August 1, 2024, to June 30, 2026, and co-financed by the European Union.
