Tulips in the Netherlands, threatened by climate change and Brexit

He climate change, With winters that are too rainy, and the increase in controls due to Brexit, they raise fear among the growers of the famous tulips of Netherlands, the pride of the country.

“The climate has changed. We see it. We have more wet periods. “Last year, it rained, it rained, it rained and we see the results,” Arjan Smit, whose family has been cultivating this flower since 1940, comments among extensive fields of red tulips.

As the winter was very wet, the roots did not take root enough to seek water, and this is dangerous for the crops, explains Smit, on a day with capricious weather at the end of April.

“Sometimes it’s hard. Last winter was very wet. In total, in our sector, we lost between 8 and 9% of the bulbs in the field. “The water killed them,” explains this 55-year-old professional.

Seen from above, the rows of colorful flowers look perfect. But up close, you can see empty, muddy spaces, where the rain prevented the tulips from growing.

Smit also fears hot periods, because its flowers “They don’t have enough roots to drink all the water they need.” This requires constant vigilance.

With springs and summers getting warmer, Smit says he is having to water his fields regularly more than twice as much as he did a decade earlier.

Smit Flowers, his company, produces 11 million tulips of different varieties, grown throughout the year alternating natural and greenhouse methods.

Using solar panels and reused rainwater, Smit claims to do its best to farm sustainably, in a sector criticized for its environmental impact.

“Catastrophic”

Climate change is a long-term challenge. But producers fear a more imminent threat: increased border controls after Brexit.

From April 30, physical checks will be mandatory for many plants and flowers entering the UK.

In the two countries, separated by the North Sea, traders are concerned about possible delays and deterioration of products.

Tim Rozendaal, from the Dutch flower association VGB, explains to AFP that there are still “uncertainty about waiting times” and the lack of capacity to carry out controls.

“Companies say they are considering not sending plants during the first week of border controls,” says. The British press has reported that stocks in nurseries were increasing.

Smit estimates that about a 80% of his harvest ends up abroad, since he sells directly to an exporter. Any delay in border controls will be “catastrophic” for flowers, he warns.

Despite all these difficulties, the farmer is optimistic about the prospects of his son, Tim, 22, who will become the fourth generation to run the family business.

“It’s difficult, but if you control this correctly, you can make good profits in the bulb industry, the flower industry,” says.

After donating to several war-torn cities in Ukraine, he fully believes in the positive impact of flowers.

“People would come up to me with teary eyes and broken voices and say ‘thank you for the flowers.’ They help us with our mental health’”remember. “People can say what they want, we need flowers,” he cries.

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