Queen Máxima will visit Koppert Cress

On Tuesday March 7 Her Majesty Queen Máxima of the Netherlands will pay a working visit to Koppert Cress in Westland. Koppert Cress is the winner of the King William I Plaque for Sustainable Entrepreneurship 2016. The award recognizes sustainable innovations of small and large organizations. Queen Máxima is honorary president of the Koning Willem I Foundation.

Koppert Cress is a horticultural company specializing in a variety of edible plants and flowers that are used by national and international chefs, restaurants and hotels. According to the jury, the company brings together good nutrition, health care, education and energy neutral business. Koppert Cress works from the belief that nutrition is the basis of health. Therefore, the company is involved in medical research that makes the health value of vegetables for human body detectable. Koppert Cress distributes the knowledge it gains inside and outside the sector. The company also is committed to sustainable energy. The greenhouse is equipped with solar collectors and underground heat storage and uses LED lighting for production.

During her visit, Queen Máxima will attend one of the taste classes Koppert Cress gives weekly to pupils of primary schools. Then they get a tour of the premises where they will visit the testing ground for various edible flowers and plants. In the company restaurant she will meet Tamara de Weijer, chairman of Association Physician and Food, on the importance of healthy eating in the workplace.

In 1958, The King William I Foundation was created by a number of industry related organizations on the initiative of the Dutch central bank. The aim of the foundation is to revitalize the national economy and thus improve the appearance of the Dutch business community. The foundation is supported by the Ministry of Economic Affairs and the Ministry of Infrastructure and Environment.