Second location of Kipster opened

Kipster launched the world's first climate-neutral egg in 2017, produced on its sustainable farm in Oirlo, Limburg. The company has since won several (international) awards, introduced an animal-friendly smoked sausage and found new markets for its eggs. The success led to the construction of two brand new barns at a new location in Beuningen, Gelderland. Last week owner Ruud Zanders opened the doors to visitors.

Same formula

At the second location of Kipster the finishing touches are being put on when invited guests come to take a look. The first chickens have already moved into the new accommodation, where the formula is the same as on the farm in Oirlo. The two new stables are elongated glass buildings, so that the chickens are bathed in daylight. There is a covered courtyard garden and outside they can scratch around in the run.

Also here the chickens eat a specially developed feed from safe residues from, for example, large bakeries. This way they contribute to a better environment and they go against waste. It's part of Ruud Zanders' vision that things have to change in the global food system. "In a world with 9 billion people, we need all the fertile land we can get to grow food for people." For the animals, what remains is left.

Fossil fuel is not used within the Kipster operation. Just like in Oirlo, the roofs of the stables in Beuningen are covered with solar panels. This produces more energy than Kipster needs: per farm there is energy left over for about two hundred households. Moreover, the fine dust that is released is captured in air washers.

Faillite

Sustainability and animal welfare were not always at the top of Ruud Zanders' list of priorities. When he took over his father's chicken farm in Limburg, he and his brother built it into a poultry multinational with millions of chickens. But in 2007 the business went bankrupt due to a confluence of circumstances: a wrong investment, an outbreak of bird flu, expanding too quickly. "We grew faster than we could handle," says Zanders. "One we could have handled. Three was too much."

He was 34 when he had to sell his house and move with his family into a rental property. Through a producer of chicken houses he came into contact with Rondeel, a method of socially responsible poultry farming and production. This was the turning point for Ruud Zanders, who started Kipster five years later with new ideas and three partners.

Goodest egg

The animal-friendly and sustainable choices mean that the production costs for Kipster eggs are higher than for free-range eggs. Yet Zanders does not want to speak of expensive eggs. "We are climate neutral, feed our chickens on residual streams. We take all social costs into account in our operations. If you factor that in, we might have the cheapest egg."

Despite this, the market must be willing to pay that price. Zanders took the decision to build the two large barns only after he had arranged for the sale of the eggs. Kipster signed a five-year contract with major parties such as Lidl, foodservice organization Albron, De Efteling, snack formula Kwalitaria and the lunchrooms of Délifrance.

Teun Verheij, director of foodservice organization Albron has no problem with the cost of the Kipster eggs. "That additional cost is comparatively limited. For us, the decisive factor was that Kipster can deliver massively, directly and over the long term. And all that is also tasty, healthy, sustainable and affordable. This makes sense from all sides."

Source: Kipster, Volksrant, Trouw