Transnational visit 10-11 June 2026
The GreenTech participation was embedded in a broader two-day programme that included a transnational study visit to leading Dutch greenhouse and geothermal energy sites, offering participants first-hand experience of the innovations that the RE-Greenhouse project seeks to scale across Europe.
Delft
Following the afternoon exhibition tour of GreenTech Amsterdam and guided visits to stands including Voltiris and SaveEnergy, participants travelled to Delft for an evening check-in and dinner — creating space for informal exchange among partners and guests from across the project's European network.
Tomato World & Forever Plants
On 11 June, participants had the choice of visiting two contrasting but equally impressive sites near the Westland greenhouse cluster:
- TOMATO WORLD: a high-tech experience and innovation centre dedicated to modern greenhouse horticulture, showcasing how the Netherlands leads globally in cultivation technology, energy efficiency, and innovation.
- FOREVER PLANTS: a family-run greenhouse company specialising in tropical and exotic pot plants, demonstrating how large-scale sustainable cultivation can be combined with geothermal energy, collaborative area development, and direct-to-consumer sales through their subsidiary Plantsome. The former CEO Erik Persoon have a guided tour in the greenhouse which gave the visitors a better view of the challenges a flower greenhouse has to deal with. The fully automated selection of the plants to put them on transport was a real eye-catcher.
Afterwards he explained the difficulties he and his neighbors encountered when they wanted to start with the first geothermal heating grid in the region. His drive to make the greenhouse sector more sustainable made a big impression.
After lunch at Tomato World, participants were taken on a drive-past of Trias Westland — one of the most advanced geothermal projects in Dutch greenhouse horticulture. Two geothermal wells at 2.3 km depth supply hot water of approximately 90°C, providing renewable heat to 56 greenhouse businesses and 345 nearby homes — a powerful illustration of the renewable energy ambitions at the core of the RE-Greenhouse project.
Looking ahead
Key follow-up actions include:
- Sharing the GreenTech topic overview and event materials with all project partners.
- Preparing panel slides and a one-slide introduction for each panellist for future dissemination.
- Rolling out a QR code or sign-up mechanism to register interested stakeholders for upcoming training sessions and webinars.
- Exploring the use of Slido or similar tools for interactive audience engagement at future events.
- Scheduling additional live demonstrations of the RE-Greenhouse Beta Tool, tailored to different audience groups including consultants, technology suppliers, and educational institutions.
With the Beta Tool now publicly launched and a growing network of engaged partners and stakeholders, the RE-Greenhouse project enters the second half of 2026 with strong foundations for scaling its impact across the European greenhouse sector.