Offered: NVM Agricultural & Rural
Niche market for greenhouse horticulture on the move
"2023 was a good year for the market in greenhouse horticulture companies and warm soils." With more than thirty years of experience in this market, this is the conclusion drawn by Dick van der Wel Vellekoop Real Estate - Expropriation cases from Bleiswijk. Prices for good companies with sufficient size and sustainable energy options were certainly stable compared to 2022.
Van der Wel works with two colleagues at the office in Bleiswijk, which specializes in the purchase and sale of greenhouse horticulture companies and land. "When I joined in '89, there were 17.000 greenhouse horticulture companies in the Netherlands. Now there are around 3.000 entrepreneurs, often with technically complex companies. We used to mainly mediate real estate. You now see more and more 'going concern' transactions Due to the technical specialization and the size of the organization, it is easier to take over a running company including cultivation, personnel and contracts and the like than to build it from scratch."
Vellekoop regularly supervises these types of transactions. "At the start of the process, in consultation with the grower, we put together a team of specialists he knows in the areas of, for example, taxation, legal affairs and exploitation. This is followed by thorough preparation, including a sales budget and points of interest viewed from these disciplines. Only then will we make contacts in the market." The goal is to find a good match for the short and long term. "A horticultural company needs multifunctional management and 24/7 attention to be successful. These are key points for the success or failure of a transaction. As a real estate agent, we pay a lot of attention to this."
Future prospects of outdated companies
What also characterizes these times is that there is little future perspective for small, stand-alone companies without sustainable energy sources. "Greenhouse horticulture plays an important role in the energy transition. This sector realized early on that it had to do something about its energy use. There are various initiatives to generate electricity and heat and, if there is a surplus, to supply it back to the grid and other users. And This also happens the other way around, where companies purchase electricity from the grid at peak load in order to regulate the heating of the greenhouse. For smaller companies it is almost financially impossible to make the investments to participate in this." Van der Wel also sees a lot of aging in greenhouse horticulture. "There are few starters and there are often no successors for the older, smaller companies. When they come onto the market, another destination or use often has to be found."
Market warm soil is viscous
Vellekoop Real Estate and Expropriation Cases is also active in the 'warm soils'. "This is land whose value can increase due to zoning plan changes," Van der Wel explains. "These are often located in older greenhouse horticulture areas, against residential buildings." However, this market is often sticky. "Construction companies, developers and municipalities avoid risks when acquiring land. In addition, the planning procedures for this are lengthy and uncertain. Particularly with the new Environmental Act, participation is becoming increasingly important and the process must be completed with all stakeholders. And that takes many years." A good relationship between real estate agent and landowner is essential to walk the long journey together.
Trust
Based on the transactions in the market on behalf of both selling and acquiring parties, Van der Wel concludes that the sector has confidence in the future of greenhouse horticulture. "Of course there are companies that close down, but there are also plenty of stayers that operate profitably. There is a positive mood, especially among the larger vegetable companies, despite the fact that risks are always lurking." Because there has been little new construction in recent years, Van der Wel expects that existing, modern and sustainable greenhouse horticulture companies will continue to attract interest. "We already have a number of interesting orders for 2024, both in floriculture and greenhouse vegetables."
