Twenty years ago, Florensis decided to start a production location in Naivasha, Kenya. With social and environmental responsibility in their DNA, Florensis Kenya can be defined as a real change maker. The organization cultivates propagation materials of young plants in order to add happiness to anyone’s garden or home. In addition, the organization is an inspirer, a mentor and a supporter for the Kenyan employees and the community of Naivasha. Florensis Kenya is driven by the mindset that the production should be fully in harmony with people and nature.
Every aspect in Florensis’ cultivation strategy contributes to a responsible production and consumption. By combining the information of the iSii process computer with plant-generated data of the sensors, the organization is able to optimize their growth climate and minimize the use of required natural resources. Moreover, Florensis takes urgent action to combat climate change by integrating renewable solar energy in their greenhouse.
Another important aspect to realize healthy crop is knowledge. Since Florensis is cultivating a broad diversity of plants, their employees are trained in many cultivation aspects. One of the important training elements is the recognition of pests and diseases in an early stage. By analyzing the historical and current data of pests and diseases, the employees are enabled to anticipate the prospective threat. Other important coaching sessions are provided in the area of cultural differences. This training is provided in order to cope with challenges arising from the different cultural perceptions about growing strategies. It is all about growing together towards a better future.
To become more sustainable, Florensis’ practical approach is focused on contributing to six selected Sustainable Development Goals: good health & well-being, quality education, gender equality, clean water & sanitation, responsible production & consumption and climate action. For example, the company provides access to clear drinking water for all employees and their family members via their reverse osmosis system. Moreover, wastewater is used to fill up tanks for fish farming. The catfishes are distributed among the employees. In this way, Florensis Kenya contributes to a happy living environment for all employees and their family and supports the community.
Florensis believes that technology should synchronize with nature. Subsequently a natural equilibrium is realized by stimulating the biodiversity around the greenhouse. By planting banana and acacia trees, cultivating sugar cane and placing bee hives in poor soiled and deprived areas, the natural balance is restored. An added benefit is the production of banana’s, sugar cane and honey for their employees. On top of that, animals such as giraffes, zebras and hippopotamus came back and formed a source of inspiration for the management team. The management team is consistently committed to deploying projects to achieve the indicated Sustainable Development Goals, ensuring healthy life and promoting wellbeing for all people in the communities around Florensis Kenya.
Looking for some ornamental inspiration?
We asked Annemarie de Theije, Production Manager at Florensis Kenya about the upcoming floral trends for 2020. She expects to see more Mandevilla climbing plants as a colourful addition to a balcony or backyard. “This flowering vine can add happiness to anyone’s garden or home, by being a continuous blooming plant that can endure a lot of light. The Mandevilla is not a true winter hardy variety, by placing the plants indoors they can overwinter frost-free in a cool place. The exotic plant, cultivated in Kenya, will flower in Europe until the first frost.”
