The olfactory modality of bay laurel meets you when you step inside Gova in Nispen . The family business that started as a modest greenhouse more than 95 days ago has since grown into a many-sided enterprise , commingle the traditional cultivation of bay laurel with modern applications in cosmetics , medicinal ware , sustainable substrates , and , last but not least , licorice .
Jack and An Goossens at the Trade Fair
From strawberries to bay laurelJack Goossens , proprietor of Gova together with his brother Charl : " Our family business actually bulge very differently from where we are now . My gramps started growing strawberries under glass before World War II . He was one of the first to render strawberries ahead of time in the time of year , and he had a clever marketing strategy : selling strawberries by the piece . That was a huge achiever . In the 1970s , during the energy crisis , we had to see for crops that were less dependent on gas . That ’s how we finally flip to bay laurel . "
He continues : " What many people do n’t get laid is that the ' Prunus Laurocerasus ' , which you often see in the Netherlands , is not a genuine laurel , but a genus Prunus . We turn the ' Laurus nobilis ' . This is the same plant whose leaves you receive in bagful at the supermarket . The exceptional thing about bay laurel is that it is a dull grower . It can take up to eight eld before a plant is truly fledged and quick for sale . That ’s a big difference from many other crops , where you often see results within weeks . "
Licorice"Seven age ago , we started looking at what we could do with the residuary flows from our plants . In the shops , you pay a few euro for a few leaves , while we have mountains of leaves leave over here . That ’s how we started extracting bay laurel oil from the parting . That vegetable oil is now used in cosmetics , but also in licorice , " Jack says . " A licorice manufacturing business wanted to make an unquestionable Laurus nobilis foliage licorice , not establish on flavourer , but with real Laurus nobilis leaf vegetable oil . It ’s more expensive , but the predilection is well . He went to try it in a market and our laurel licorice turned out to be by far the most popular . Meanwhile , our Glycyrrhiza glabra is sold in country shops and holidaymaker shops . "
LaboratoryBesides laurel licorice , they also have herbal teas , with which they won the Horticultural Entrepreneur Award just last twelvemonth , in the Theelers partnership . They also work out with universities and college to see how flora extracts can be used in health care , and research into plant ingredients and applications in the cosmetic and pharmaceutical industries is being done in a lab in Bergen op Zoom . " We are researching how to take out these substances , but also how to keep them for longer , for example through ferment . Our destination is to eventually exchange fossil in the buff materials with industrial plant - based alternative , and bay laurel plays a primal role in this . "
Peat - freeGova is also develop peat - gratuitous substrates from the fibers left over after oil origin . " Peat - destitute is an of import step towards more sustainable culture , " shares Jack . " We have been peat - free for three years , which is already in in high spirits requirement , especially in the UK market with a view to next legislation . Switching to peat - detached substrates was one of the big change we went through . You have to adapt everything : from the way you irrigate to the cultivation methods . Laurel develop easy , so it takes time to see results , and enquiry does n’t always go justly the first time . But the market is change , client are opt more consciously and demand sustainable products . We work accord to FSI standards and participate in a pilot undertaking for FloriPefCR ( the footprint computing method acting ) , mapping the full environmental impact of our intersection . This stimulate it easier to communicate transparently to consumers and gives us perceptiveness into where we can still improve . "
Balance"It ’s a good Libra between traditional cultivation and innovative ontogeny . " Jack is also a instrument panel phallus of the International Association of Horticultural Producers ( AIPH ) and has recently lectured in India on the furtherance of ornamental gardening product . In addition , Gova is a member of Decorum , where he examine room for fellow tree diagram raiser . " Together with my brother , I race our stage business , and we have a nice squad around us . We also exercise with mass with distance to the proletariat market , using their talents and thus giving them a place in our company . We are active on many fronts at the same time , that makes it fun . "
For more information : Jack GoossensGova BVEssenseweg 474709 RB Nispen , the NetherlandsTel : +31 610 646166[email protected]www.gova.nl
© FloralDaily.com/Mirthe Walpot
