- English
Recently, Zeestraten Hortensia has started sorting even more precisely in their production facility. Where manually grading their cut hydrangeas used to take a lot of time, they can now rely on the consistency of machine sorting with the IRISS Hydrangea sorting machine.
Jos Zeestraten: “About five years ago, after a small-scale trial period, we began growing cut hydrangeas across our entire nursery. After 40 years of growing freesias, we were ready for a crop that required less energy; both fossil (less heating and lighting) and physical (less labor-intensive).”
Michel Zeestraten adds: “We were looking for an above-ground crop where advanced biological methods could be applied effectively. We ended up choosing cut hydrangeas.”
The cultivation itself has been going well, but with 2 hectares, it’s hard work to send neat, uniform batches to the auction at the end of each day. “Our employees need to be experienced and capable of grading very precisely. If not, the flower head sizes may not be consistent enough at the end of the day. To ensure this level of precision in the future, we chose the IRISS Hydrangea sorting machine.”
In early May, 4More Technology from Moerkapelle installed their 20th IRISS Hydrangea sorting machine at the company. And it quickly proved to be a good investment. “The machine was installed quickly, and after a short introduction on how to use it, we were able to get started. Of course, things don’t go perfectly from day one, you always run into something. But when I have a question, I call the support line and get help right away. I was really surprised by that. Usually Tim (one of the owners) picks up the phone. He’s always happy to give an explanation, or he logs in to check things out remotely. And if he’s too busy or thinks a colleague would be of better help, the question is immediately passed on. In short: perfect service! That way, we can quickly get back to sorting.”
Michel continues: “Thanks to mechanical sorting, we now make uniform bunches, and there’s no more debate about sizing. Things have become calmer. It also gives us more time to focus on other processes in the company. Plus, we can now offer our customers size guarantees. If a bunch is sold as having a 21 cm flower head, then the heads will never be more than a centimeter larger or smaller in diameter.”
Uniformity and sharper sorting, combined with their already top-tier quality, ensure beautiful batches of cut hydrangeas that go to auction five days a week.
Michel: “After a week, I called Tim and said: ‘Tim, I’ll call when things go wrong, but also when they go well. I’m so happy with this machine. I couldn’t do without it anymore!’”
More information: www.kwekerijzeestraten.nl
