Report of Study Tour in December 2007 YAMAKI NOEN
Written by Mr. Yukio Moriyama
(Sub leader of Horinouchi Cut Flower Forcer’s Association)
Translated by Yasushi Kataoka
(NICHIEN,
-Tour
schedule
9, Dec - 13, Dec 2007
-Members
Takashi Moriyama (Yamaki Noen)
Tamotsu Moriyama (Yamaki Noen)
Kazuyuki Eguchi (Tsunan)
Masamitsu Hujiki (Tsunan)
Katsuteru Ohguchi (Tsunan)
Hajime Kuwabara (Tsunan)
Takashi Hujiki (Tsunan)
Kiyokazu Ishikawa (Nishiwaga, Iwate pref.)
Hiroaki Takayama (Takayama Noen)
Yukio Moriyama (Horinouchi)
Takashi Moriyama (Horinouchi)
Hidemi Takizawa (Horinouchi)
-Places
to visit
10, Dec
Auction: Flora Holland (guided by P.F. Onings)
Bulb Exporter: P.F. Onings
Cut flower grower: Mr. Moerman (guided by P.F. Onings)
Cut flower grower: Mr. Marel (guided by P.F. Onings)
Cut flower grower: Mr. Duin (guided by Onings and Vletter & Den Haan)
11, Dec
Bulb exporter: De Jong Lelies
Bulb grower: Burger & De Blank (guided by De Jong)
Bulb grower: Ruiter Bloembollen (guided by De Jong)
Bulb grower: Oriental Andijk (guided by De Jong)
Bulb grower: Echteld (guided by Jan De Wit)
Bulb grower: World Flower (guided by Zabo Plant)
Bulb exporter: Zabo Plant
12, Dec
Bulb exporter: Van Zanten Flower bulbs
Impression
& Consideration
Keywords are ‘Transition, Objective and Manpower’
We visited
- 9 years ago, the keys were
Cost performance and system
- This time, the keys are
Transition, objective and manpower
Some say;
‘Things that have survived amongst their evolutions could make it to adjust to changing environment when the others, that were only ‘strong’, couldn’t.’
*Probably, circumstance in
Also, we found out that ‘improvement of sales department in ‘Horinouchi’’ is quite required.
1.
Transition of the situation from 9 years
- Change of economic situation; from
- Euro rising up continuously
- Increasing of south hemispheric lily bulbs
2. Impressions
after 9 years interval
- Weakness of Yen (appreciation of the Euro); when exchanging Yen to Euro, 10000 Yen was much less worth than before.
- Increasing of price; hamburger steak for 8 Euro, Pepsi for 2 Euro (although, it was at hotel).
- Where has Dutch virtue, simple and thrifty, gone? Number of bikes is decreasing, etc.
- Soaring land price, especially around Den Haag
- It seems that many things have changed from 9 years ago
3.”9
years ago, it almost seemed that the only thing Dutch cut flower growers
focused on was cost performance”
- Visit to Flower auction
9 years ago;
It worked as the flower auction which was on the side of growers, for almost only assemblage and delivery of flowers all over the world
This time;
Even though it was quite high-speed auction, each product got certain price properly
Auction prices at that day;
Chrysanthemum; the highest bid price was more than 100Yen (0.6€)
Products for wholesaler; big range of prices
= Again, the things have changed from 9 years ago
<Photos>
Flora Holland;
A huge basement which collects flowers and delivers them to all over the world. It seems that its efficiency of the function is still developing.
4.
What has changed?
- Establishment of EU; new market for high-quality,
additional valued lily cut flower has emerged by expansion of the business into
- Excessive income has made up the consumption of additional valued product.
- Polarisation of the product price, lower ones and higher ones, is obviously going on, even with 100% clock-auction.
- The price of cut flower, which is as high
as Japanese one, or even higher. (e.g. 400 Yen (≒2.5€)
- Mero Star (not new variety though) is in big range of price between 20 - 200 Yen (0.13 - 1.3€)
- Cymbidium is for ,for example, 4.25€.
*Apparently, at the moment in
<Photos>
- LA priced higher than Oriental
- Wide range of price for tulip
- Big difference between lower price and higher price
for Ranunculus, which is at the moment popular in
- Cymbidium, perhaps priced higher than in
- A banner for promotion; the way starting to advertise the brand of particular source
5.
Two ways of cut flower production
① Investment in new facilities for high-quality products
② Additional cost for more valuable products (growing with high EC, efficient lighting, less congested planting, mulching, one-time compost, brand sticker and wrapping)
③ Strategy for sale of product as a particular brand
④ Investment in construction of a system for high-cost performance products
⑤ Production in foreign counties for high-cost performance products
6.
Casa Blanca’s value in Japan
Is it kept by Japanese unique system of production, sale and distribution? Does Japanese sense of logistics make it valuable?
In Holland, Casa Blanca used be valued for about 500 - 600 JPY (≒3.1 - 3.8€), however, it has become to be regarded as one of unnecessary varieties, which is with disadvantages such as down-facing flower, tender stem, and not suited for congested planting.
“
-The sale strategies of three growers (Mr. Moerman, Mr. Marel and Mr. Duin)
1. Mr. Moerman
Tall enough greenhouses, which are with
fully open and close roof, and heating which can be vertically mobile, have
been set up for his lily forcing. He successfully grows some varieties which
often get scorches by his particular way of pre-rooting. In addition to that,
he has got his own original varieties (e.g.
<Photos>
Relatively small sizes of bulbs are planted in old greenhouse, which was built up by his father, for supermarket sales.
<Photo>
Special sticker and flower package are used for particular products which are aimed at branded value.
<Photos>
Planting process: to empty used crate and planting bulbs are going ahead at the same time.
<Photo>
2. Mr. Marel
First of all, colour on the leaves is very deep. He grows lilies with quite high EC such as 2.2 (incidentally, Mr. Moerman starts forcing with EC 0.4). What he uses to do that a treat is iron fertiliser.
<Photo>
He also uses his own package for some products which are for his brand value. And only products above 3F can deserve it. His choice of varieties is based on how suited the variety is for high-EC-forcing (characteristics like stout stem or vigorous roots are required).
<Photo>
New greenhouse has been set up; including with land price, it is 300 million investments. (When he explained us about the investments, he was smiling and said “Grower is always poor” wearing torn jeans).
And he grows planting materials which are his own bulbs and other grower’s bulbs as consignment products.
<Photo>
3. Mr. Duin
As we visited him, it was already dark, he
was digging second year bulbs wearing rain jacket. He often grows new varieties
from Vletter & De Gaan.
(Apparently, that was why Mr. Rian Vletter guided us around). And rigid, voluminous flowers
are made by movable greenhouses which makes almost same condition as open
field. (In
<Photo>
They are not planted in crate but ground directly in moderate density and have got very bright lights. They get high price for Russian market (400Yen≒2.5€).
<Photos>
<Photos>
Four brothers are dealing with 400 thousand
tulips and 800 thousand lilies. It seems to be quite small-scale in
7.
Importance of specific objective for production and sale
‘Summary of the impressions after visits to the auction and the growers’
A. A grower we visited 9 years ago pretty much focused on high cost performance. And the other grower we visited at the same time apparently had not got as specific strategy as the growers who we visited this time.
B. One of particularly interesting things for us in this trip is differences of strategies between each grower about sales for consumption of high quality products.
C. Main sales of cut flowers in Japanese market is obviously for high quality products, therefore we do need more concrete goal when we think about our sale strategies.
8.
Importance of collecting and analysis of information in order to adjust the
changing situation
“Why did the price of 07 Crop plummet?”
A. One of the main reasons; the excessive production (25% too much?) by increasing acreages for Oriental hybrids in spite of the downward tendency of it all over the world, when south hemispherical production has been increasing.
B. Misreading how Chinese market would go.
C. Production scheme is 3 years-long process; it depends on grower’s own judgment whether planting material should be kept or not (some growers, apparently, got a lack of analysis).
D. Insufficiency of communication or exchanging information with exporters.
E. Absence of the system to control the quantity of the production
9.
After all, the key is ‘reliable person’
It is difficult to gain high-quality bulb without understanding the circumstance of Dutch bulb production.
- Process of the bulb production and export (This must be understandable without saying)
(1) Bulb growers show their production schedules to BKD (perhaps January or February).
(2) Bulb exporters make contracts based on the production schedules of the growers, through mainly CNB. The contracts are made up at anytime after (1).
(3) The growers start digging in autumn, according to variety and their contracts.
(4) The growers wash and disinfect the bulbs from their fields (truly, there is no obligation of washing to the growers).
(5) The bulbs are examined and graded according to their sizes, number of the sprout and damages.
(6) The growers deliver the bulbs (after (3) – (5) procedure) to the exporters (how the excessive bulbs are treated is decided after a negotiation between them).
(7) The exporters pick up samples from the bulbs, and inspect them.
(8) If the bulbs fail to pass the inspection, they have to go back to the grower for re-grading.
(9)
After the inspection, the bulbs
get disinfected, packed in each container with peat moss and label (bulbs for
(10) The exporters have the bulbs undergo the examination by quarantine.
＊ Generally, it takes a week from digging bulbs to delivery them to exporters, and then, takes another week for the exporters to finish off packing the bulbs. If this process takes more time, quality of the bulbs might get worse.
① Searching for reliable ‘person’ = bulb grower
Importance to check out good lot
(1) Accuracy of grading counts on bulb growers
(2) The growers have got responsibility to keep out any risks by virus.
(3) How far the bulbs keep their quality good during the processing depends on each grower’s ability and skill.
(4) Processing bulbs need a number of hands (95% Polish employees, part-time salary for the each employee is 13€/hr), and in order to maintain or even improve accuracy of the work, it is necessary for the growers to keep same human resources as employees; Reducing personnel cost is difficult.
(5) Each grower has got own system for handling bulbs, therefore, there might be difference of efficiency between the growers; it can be a risk to get quality of the bulbs worse.
＊The inspection of samples from the bulbs is, inevitably, not perfect. Hence, after all, the exporters can’t help trusting the growers when they buy the bulbs; reliance between them plays an important role.
② Importance to choose reliable exporter
After bulbs pass the inspection by exporters, they rewash, disinfect and pack bulbs, and get the bulbs ready for sale as their merchandise. If the bulbs don’t satisfy the standard set by the exporters with their qualities (correct quantity and size, not mixing up with double-nose bulb and so on), they are sent back to the grower to reexamine. Bulbs in serious problem with badly decay or anything completely return to the grower.
= the bulbs to be reexamined tend to deteriorate
= the returned bulbs might flow to dumping market
(1) After delivery of bulbs from growers, how far the quality of bulbs is retained depends on exporters.
(2) Personnel cost for packing is 45 cents/case. Which way would be efficient and accurate, mechanisation or human hand, less high-performance machine or lots of normal machines?
(3) Ability for packing of each exporter’s machine;
Onings 24secs/case x 6 machines
Van Zanten 35secs/case x 4 machines (old type)
De Jong 8secs/case x 1 machine (sometimes might cause trouble)
Zabo 8secs/case x 1 machine (sometimes might cause trouble)
※Recent years, Van Zanten has NOT got complaints about treatment for bulbs after harvest.
Mr. Hans Damen says “Man’s eyes do work better than machine does”.
③ Importance to make a decision; the right timing to import bulbs
Excessive bulbs are usually kept without proper packing which makes it lose the quality (on grower’s side, they don’t do packing)
Bulbs of one lot with “RETURN” label
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Oriental Andijk B.V.
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Blower blows away water on bulbs after washing and disinfection
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Man’s eyes are working amongst automatic grading system
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Disinfection; Grower originally does not have to infect bulbs; however, recently they often do that in order to reduce the risk by themselves.
<Photo>
Empty crates are brought to the field for harvesting bulbs.
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Scales peeled off in
<Photo>
Scale propagation with perlite as media
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Bulbs of Sorbonne, after washing, are starting to get graded
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Packing process in Onings
<Photos>
In Van Zanten; second year bulbs of Sheila from direct scaling in field
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10.
Situation around Casa Blanca
According to World Flower’s remarks, Casa Blanca is a variety which is not expected to bring stable harvest. Therefore, large quantity is needed when they want enough amounts of bulbs at each size, which means various sizes of the variety must be sold to gain profit.
In present situation, it is tough for growers to continue producing Casa Blanca.
① In Holland, due to decreasing of price of Casa Blanca, and its disadvantages, there is no domestic demand.
② Demands for Casa Blanca in Japan are only for planting material (10/12～14/16cm) and large size for cut flower growing (20/+cm)
③ Bulbs at size 16/18 and 18/20 which are not required in Japanese market used to be sold to Taiwan and Mexico, but their demand is changing to yellow OT hybrids from Casa Blanca.
※ Casa Blanca is obviously our leading Oriental variety. We may have to keep its value.
11. Dutch
strategy for lily cut flower growing
① Reducing risks by producing other type of plant
② Reducing risks by consignment production from others
③ Improvement of efficiency by new way of bulb cultivation (e.g. Planting bulbs in less density etc.)
④ Cutting down costs by certain way of growing (ways like scaling directly into field or 2 year long cultivation)
⑤ Reducing costs by renewal of new varieties and using second year bulbs for cut flower
⑥ Additional value on high quality cut flower and investments for it such as new facilities
⑦ Right choice of variety according to particular way of growing (hardness of stem, bloom count or strength of roots etc.)
⑧ Extra value for certain varieties which can get brand value
⑨ Promotion of brand value according to characteristic of each market
12. Importance of
management decision
Case study; in case of 07’crop sales by Dutch bulb growers
① Completely excessive amount of products had been already expected and price of 07’crop were anticipated becoming very harsh
② In a futures trading which started in spring, the bulb growers got offers which was just above the minimum price
③ Some bulb growers who had already noticed tough condition with excessive production and sold their bulbs as much as they could at that time (time at ②), they became barely profitable
④ Other growers who had not made a decision at that time finally ended up facing no purchaser in spite of good quality bulbs
※Growers who had got consignment production managed to reduce their risks
13. Summary
- How has the situation in
There has not existed specific sale goal in each source. But from now on we do need it.
What we have to consider is…
- How do we want to be?
- What is our objective?
- Do we need an idea to make a ‘team’?