Turkey farmer puts effort into cooperation

Twan Jenniskens is a Limburg turkey farmer from Ysselsteyn. Recently he joined the LOF program Healthy Short Chains, in which Limburg producers and organizations work together to create direct sales lines for healthy food. In getting to know Twan better, it turned out that this was certainly not the first time he had opted for cooperation.

Crimp

In 2000, the Netherlands had 121 turkey farms with 1,544,000 turkeys. In 2018, this was still only 28 farms and 635,835 turkeys. So of the total number of farms in 2000, only a quarter were left and of the number of turkeys about a third. One of the farms that held out was that of the Jenniskens family in Limburg. Not only were the turkeys preserved, but it even became the company's specialty. Who is this farmer who dares to stick his neck out?

From young chick to big cock

With 60,000 turkeys at three locations Twan Jenniskens is the largest turkey farmer in the Benelux. He continued the business that his parents founded, initially with broilers and pigs. After some time his father made the switch from broilers to turkey.

"When my wife and I took over the business in 2001, it still consisted of turkeys and meat pigs. In 2014 we decided to give up the meat pigs and fully specialize on turkey farming, because this is where our heart is! We think they are very beautiful animals and it is nice to see them grow up from a small chick to a big turkey. Every age has its charm, but especially the young chick and the big cock are wonderful to take care of!"

Beter Leven keurmerk

The love for the turkey is visible in the way Twan Jenniskens keeps his animals. Forty to fifty percent of Jenniskens' turkeys are certified for the 1 star Better Life mark, a unique fact in the industry. The Caringa Cartier turkeys are a slow-growing breed that have more space in a barn full of litter than a regular turkey. They are fed natural foods with the best ingredients, enjoy more daylight and can use a covered run and special toys.

The Slim Burgundian

The turkey industry is now a small sector in the Netherlands. Therefore, relatively little turkey meat is eaten; the annual consumption of turkey meat is only 0.5 to 1 kilogram per person. By comparison, in Germany the annual consumption per person is about 6 kilos.

In order to stimulate the consumption of turkey meat, Twan Jenniskens initiated 'De Slanke Bourgondiër' together with a number of other turkey farmers. Through this platform, Dutch turkey farmers can present themselves and introduce consumers to turkey meat. On the website they share recipes with turkey meat, videos about the farms and information about the points of sale of Dutch turkey meat.

Peel turkey

Not only with fellow turkey farmers, but also outside the sector Twan Jenniskens has sought cooperation. By winning the Audience Award at the Venray Entrepreneur Awards 2019, he came into contact with Ronald Cornelissen. Ronald is active in the postal sector (Business Post Limburg) and has a company around promotional gifts.

"Ronald was looking for a way to fill his Christmas hampers. Together we set up the Peel turkey concept," says Jenniskens. "Ronald did a lot in the preliminary stages, such as developing the website, the logo and the choice of packaging. The turkeys are shipped frozen. By means of shock freezing, the turkeys are frozen after slaughtering and then vacuum packed."

Initially Peel turkey focused on the business market by offering the turkey as a business gift, but now the consumer is also addressed. They can buy a real Peel turkey on the website, but soon also at Beej Benders, the fresh market and catering concept in Venlo that revolves around local, fresh products. For Jenniskens it is important that consumers can enjoy their turkeys at a fair price and short chains make that possible.

150 turkeys

"The project is a lot of fun to be involved in. The start of Peel turkey is already a success in itself, but Ronald and I hope to sell at least 150 turkeys in the first year. That is also the biggest bottleneck: estimating how many turkeys need to be slaughtered. It's always a challenge to make an accurate prediction of the sales numbers and to slaughter the turkeys accordingly," he says.

With Peel turkey only just out of the starting blocks, Twan Jenniskens is still not done looking out for new opportunities and collaborations. Recently he joined the LOF program Healthy Short Chains. Here too it is all about new commitments, both within and outside the agricultural sector. For Jenniskens an excellent place to complement and strengthen each other.

More information: Peel turkey and Healthy Short Chains