Last week, Xpol joined the Floriculture Sustainability Initiative (FSI). We have made considerable strides within our own sustainability programme based on practical objectives since it started in 2018. We are also keen to share our knowledge, learn from each other and contribute to diversity within FSI, to achieve further sustainable improvement in the floriculture sector as a whole.
Three years ago, as part of our sustainability efforts, we became involved in commercial trials to transport flowers from Kenya by boat. Since then, we have been engaged in weekly partial container shipments from Nairobi to Rijsenhout. However, I am still straddling the fence about air freight versus sea freight. While I am aware that the sea freighting of flowers to the Netherlands from Kenya is better for our carbon footprint, ocean transport also requires more planning and introduces more uncertainty about the expected day/week of arrival. In addition, we have been forced, overall, to accept some quality loss. Will this be acceptable to consumers as well? When asked about this, the visitors to our Lab are convinced it will and are willing to pay for this as consumers, so we carry on, looking for improvements every week.
On the other hand, there are also developments that are making air transport more sustainable: better and more fuel-efficient aircraft are on their way, achieving – from what I’ve read – a 20-40% reduction of the Carbon Footprint. The major aircraft manufacturers are vying for the best performance: think of the Airbus A350F and Boeing 777-8F. In addition, some airlines are using Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF). So far, this represents only a small fraction of the total amount of fuel needed (1% according to KLM). Still, it’s a start, so let’s now look at stepping up the production of this alternative fuel type.