Breeding network Limburg dares to share

It had been on their wish list for some time, with an oblique eye on the national initiative Seed Valley. Presenting seed breeding together to potential employees and to other agri-food professionals. Bejo, Novisem, Limgroup, BASF Vegetable Seeds (Nunhems) and CITAVERDE College started talking about it in September 2017, in November 2019 it finally happened: Vedelingsnetwerk Limburg sees the light. A story about working together and showing your worth.

A poor image of the agribusiness sector, fed by negative press coverage. An education that is disparagingly called hoeing academy. And breeding companies that are doing pioneering work within that sector, but a world that knows little or nothing about it. It is a thorn in the side of the companies and Citaverde. Why not work together and change that image step by step? Carlo Mutsers of Citaverde: "As an educational institution, we have found plant breeding very interesting for some time. The companies offer a wide variety of jobs at different levels and are innovative, strong companies that can offer a lot of security to their employees. These are all things you want to give students for their future. We were therefore enthusiastic about this initiative from the start and wanted to contribute to it."

The proud participants of Veredelingsnetwerk Limburg

Daring to collaborate, daring to share

Wil Strous of Bejo: "We need to make seed breeding in all its aspects much more visible if we want to attract the right people. The participating companies are very different in size, focus and culture, but this is what binds us: we want to put the breeding profession in the spotlight. And if you want that, you're going to have to step out of your comfort zone and start working together."
That sounds like a logical and fairly simple step, but it was not easy. Ludo in 't Zandt of Limgroup: "When we started, we thought we'd have something up and running in six months. But collaboration takes time: you have to get to know each other and form a shared picture of the situation, the goals and the course of action. That means a lot of talking and daring to be open with each other. It was previously unthinkable that we would share so much information with each other. Now we share practically everything, except information about genetics."

"We need to make seed breeding in all its aspects much more visible if we want to attract the right people."

In the meantime, the companies and Citaverde meet monthly for consultation. A website, flyers and a video have been developed to show how diverse working in breeding is. Ad Braat of BASF vegatable seeds: "We are still relatively unknown within the agrofood sector, while many exciting things are happening in breeding in the areas of research, innovation and development. If you have a curious mind, it is incredibly interesting. Moreover, it is very important work if you look at the challenges that lie ahead. Soil and the environment are in the spotlight, the climate is changing and the world population is growing. We are focusing on disease resistance, and we need to develop crops that can better withstand longer periods of drought. Breeding plays an important role in finding the solution to all these issues."

Open Days and Company Visits

The Fertilization Network presented itself jointly for the first time at the Open Day of Citaverde in November. Trinette Dings-Velman of Novisem: "The first reactions are very positive, good conversations arise. We met clients and relations who were pleasantly surprised to see us there together. A Rabobank employee said: this shows strength! Then we are really proud that we are doing this." In addition to Open Days, all companies are visited at least once a year by students to see live what working in breeding entails. There are also interns from Citaverde active at each company. In the future, the educational institution hopes to offer a separate optional course in breeding and thus prepare specialized students for the profession.
A variety of internships and research projects are also available for students of the HAS University of Applied Sciences.
The network also wants to focus on younger age groups with introductory internships and visits to primary and secondary schools. Plans are now being made to effectively use social media such as Linked In and Facebook. Everything to make the breeding profession more visible and accessible and to give it its own place within the agrofood sector.

Career path

Examples of an attractive career path in breeding are already plentiful. Someone who came as a temporary worker to help out and after that meeting decided to follow a BBL training in cultivation. Now that person has become an assistant breeder. A vacation worker with an education in floral art who decided after the summer to follow a college education so that she could make it her profession. And of course, leaps are also made from growing companies: someone who first works for a tomato grower and then continues his development in plant breeding with a BBL course. Wil Strous: "It starts with interest and motivation, anything is possible from there. We are used to doing a lot of in-house training, because this is a very specialist sector. At Bejo we keep bees because they are necessary for pollination in our production fields. Without bees no pollination! The work of our beekeepers is therefore different from regular beekeepers, who are focused on honey production. For this reason we train our beekeepers internally. We conduct research into the behavior of bees in order to make optimal use of natural pollination and to improve the health of our bees. We are also involved in a breeding study to develop Varroa mite tolerance. This is a major problem for bee health. Worldwide, Bejo and its partners care for many thousands of bee colonies. In this way, we are taking responsibility for our need for pollinators ourselves."

"It starts with interest and motivation, from there anything is possible."

Win-win within the sector

The breeding industry may still have little face for many young people, but in the sector itself there is also plenty to gain. Martijn van Haastert of Limgroup: "If we get to know each other better, we can make better connections. For example, if a company selling threshing machines finds four or five interested parties through us instead of just one, that's a win-win for everyone. But then that company has to know what we do, who we work with, what we need. The group Veredelingsnetwerk Limburg at Kiempunt is going to help us with that. This year we are going to tell more about what we do and ask questions to other agrofood professionals. We are very curious what will come out of that!"
While talking to these professionals, I am infected by the enthusiasm. Trinette Dings-Velman: "Breeding is only in its infancy. There will come a time when we can keep our soil and food healthy through disease resistance, thanks to breeding. What's more, the time will come when we can make food demonstrably healthier than it was originally. These are such exciting developments! When more people know what we are doing, they will want to be part of that development, I am convinced."

4 tips for anyone who wants to start collaborating

1: Avoid a watered down profile and clearly define in advance who does and does not fit within the collaboration

2: Count on setbacks and don't give up: collaboration works

3: Open up, be willing to share information, even if you find it exciting

4: Respect each other's pace, give collaboration time

Connect

Would you like to stay up to date with the latest developments in breeding or follow what the Limburg Breeding Network is doing to present itself to the outside world? Then join their group on Kiempunt. You can also ask questions there.