Royal FloraHolland, KLM Cargo and Schiphol Airport form strategic alliance to leverage presence as global flower hub

Jul 26, 2017: Dutch flower auction Royal FloraHolland, KLM Cargo and Amsterdam Airport Schiphol have aligned together to boost flower imports.

One of the key strategic initiatives of the blooming bond, dubbed 'Holland Flower Alliance', is to solidify its presence as the world's leading flower hub, and its execution of that strategy is now more important than ever as competition between nearby airports is becoming increasingly fierce. Meanwhile, it is also foreseen that the modal shift of flowers from air to sea will increase.

The strategic alliance comes at a time that Dutch cargo carrier Martinair is scaling back its freighter fleet with the last McDonnel Douglas MD-11F being currently phased out.

The collaboration will accelerate research efforts in the areas of a cut flower-specific cold chain (to address the problem of cut flowers being shipped at temperatures that are often too high). Standardized packaging is also part of Holland Flower Alliance's strategic vision which aims at reducing the supply chain's myriad 200 to 300 different packaging materials.  Moreover, Holland Flower Alliance will look for ways to set up a customized cargo flight data system to plan shipments, manage supply chain activities and monitor trends.

The new collaboration positions Amsterdam Airport Schiphol to continue as the global airport of choice that offers a high volume and streamlined handling of flowers through customs and an expanded route network with direct cargo access to all world regions.

One of the first benefits for the flower import community is having a single entity provide advocacy, promotion and collaboration on key issues that matter their industry most.