News PlanetProof
PlanetProof: are the first cracks visible?
Last week it was announced that the LTO Department of Agriculture and the Dutch Fruit Growers Organization (NFO) are withdrawing from the sustainability label 'On the way to PlanetProof'. These organizations state that the quality mark does not result in additional costs for growers. After the departure, a rumor arose that not all sectors are now represented in the working group, but the initiator Stichting Milieukeur (SMK) debunks that.
LTO Akkerbouw and NFO informed the Milieukeur Foundation in writing this week about the decision to withdraw from the 'On the way to PlanetProof' label. "We think it is very important to have ambitions, but growers who meet these extra-statutory requirements must also receive an appropriate reward for this. That is not the case at the moment," the parties say. The letter also states that the parties want the content of the scheme and the pace at which intermediate goals are achieved to be left to the growers.
No surcharge
Creating the additional price was one of the most important principles in the development of PlanetProof, but LTO Akkerbouw and NFO state that not all links take responsibility for this. In other words: higher demands are made in production, but the growers do not get anything extra for this. "We've reached a point where you ask yourself, 'Why are we incurring extra costs for the certification if we don't get anything in return?' Moreover, the growers remain in the dark about the requirements and the costs that are yet to come," said Gerard van den Anker, the chairman of the NFO.
This is the reason for both parties to no longer want to put energy into the sustainability label, they write in the letter to SMK. "If growers want to continue with the quality mark, that is of course their own choice," explains Van den Anker. "However, many Dutch fruit growers do not necessarily need the quality mark for sales and export, because it is a purely Dutch certificate."
'All parties remain represented'
After the departure of the 2 parties, a rumor arose that not all sectors would now be represented in the working group. That fact is disproved by SMK. "The input for the arable farming sector is still guaranteed, because the LTO department of Field Vegetables and the cultivation of consumption potatoes (Dutch Potato Organization) are already part of the working group. It is reported that a participant from the canning industry will soon be added," writes SMK on the website.
In short: does the withdrawal of LTO Akkerbouw and NFO mean that the first hairline cracks are visible in the sustainability label 'On the way to PlanetProof'? It is difficult to predict. The LTO department of Dairy Farming, for example, still talks actively with SMK. The situation is slightly different for that party, however, because dairy farmers already receive an additional price if they meet the requirements. It remains to be seen whether LTO Arable Farming and NFO are outsiders or whether this will cause a chain reaction.
Kimberly Baker
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