Join us in project “Improving Soil Quality Poland”
On Monday August 29, several Dutch companies, RVO, WTC Twente and the Agricultural Counsellor gathered in the Netherlands & online to discuss the project ‘improving soil quality Poland’. The aim is to gather a group of Dutch companies and institutes who are active in different segments of improving soil quality, to start a public private partnership with support of RVO and the Embassy to approach the Polish market together. More companies are welcome to join!
Initial starting point "Improving Soil Quality Poland"
In 2019, the office of the Agricultural Counsellor at the Embassy in Warsaw, initiated together with the Dutch Centre for Manure Valorization (NCM) a first small-scale project on the topic of soil quality. The aim of the project was to increase the level of knowledge about soil management and the organic matter in the soil. This is very relevant in Poland, where soils are mostly sandy with a low organic matter and where there are increasing periods of droughts besides severe rain. Healthy soils are the basis for a sustainable agriculture and with the increase in organic matter also the water holding capacity of the soils will increase.
You can read more about the initial project in the following links:
During the initial project an online knowledge module was created with the support of three Polish institutes and AgriHolland. The online module was tested at different Polish schools. You can find the elearning module here e-Learning Gleba (elearninggleba.pl)
Follow-up: PIB Improving Soil Quality Poland
Another aim of this initial project was to identify the interest on both Dutch and Polish side to start a longer term project, a so called Partner International Business (PIB). Spoiler, there is an interest and need...
A PIB is a 1-3 year public private partnership of a group of Dutch companies who are, with the support of the Dutch government (RVO and the Embassy) jointly positioning themselves on the market. Within a PIB there are different modules with activities that can be developed in a yearly action plan, such as:
- Promotion and matchmaking through NL Branding, mission & fairs, seminars and workshops.
- Within the Knowledge Exchange, activities are developed in Government-to-Government (G2G), Knowledge-to-Knowledge (K2K) and Netherlands Management Training Program (NMTP). This could for example be an extension of the already created online knowledge module.
- The Economic Diplomacy module covers activities aimed at market organisations, market access and solving specific issues for the business cluster.
More information about PIB’s can be found here: Partners for International Business - PIB | RVO.nl
After closure of the initial project we see the interest on the Dutch side and the need on the Polish side to start a PIB on the topic of Improving Soil Quality. On Monday August 29 a kick off meeting was held in the Netherlands with participation of several Dutch companies, RVO, WTC Twente (as intended coordinator of the PIB) and the Agricultural Counsellor in Warsaw. During the meeting more concrete ideas were developed on how to shape the PIB in the first interception year. This includes cooperation with knowledge institutes and farms to showcase the technologies of the Netherlands, with a focus on high value crops such as potatoes and vegetables.
To broaden the range of technologies and products for improving soil quality on offer within the PIB, and thereby broaden our position on the market, we want to encourage Dutch companies (either present in the Netherlands or represented in Poland by its own office) to join the project. We ask of companies that they invest time and effort to share their knowledge and innovation with the Polish stakeholders. The intention is to start this year with the PIB by signing the covenant.
If you are interested to join or would like more information, you can contact Freerk Faber (director WTC Twente and intended coordinator of the PIB) for further information f.faber@wtctwente.eu
Polish soil characteristics and quality
Soil quality in Poland is among the lowest in Europe. The production potential of an average hectare of arable land in Poland is equivalent to 0.6 hectare in European Union countries. More details about the characteristics and quality of the soil and the agricultural sector in general can be found in the booklet "Agriculture in Poland. Soil characteristics and quality". It was developed during the initial project to give insight to the Dutch stakeholders on the current situation in Poland. You can download the booklet here.
Meet us at Agroshow Bednary
During Agroshow Bednary (23-25 September) we will be present with a Netherlands Pavilion. The Pavilion is organized by WTC Twente and supported by the Embassy. You can find both Freerk Faber (WTC Twente) and Carolien Spaans (Agricultural Counsellor) during these days at the Pavilion and meet them there to learn more about the project Improving Soil Quality Poland.
Contactdetails:
Freerk Faber: f.faber@wtctwente.eu
Carolien Spaans: WAR-LNV@minbuza.nl