Discover TNO’s new standardized protocol and KPI to measure how insect netting impacts greenhouse ventilation and climate. Holland Gaas and Svensson show real‑world adoption, enabling growers to compare products and choose reliably.

Moderator: Egon Janssen, Marcel  Schulte, Jorge Gonzalez

Insect Netting in Greenhouses: Ventilation, Climate Impact & Product Innovation

General Manager Mexico

Born and raised near the city of Mechelen, in Belgium’s main greenhouse vegetable‑growing area. As the son of a tomato and lettuce grower he literally grew up between the plants in a greenhouse. That’s where his passion for plants and greenhouse growing originates.
 
Specialized in hydroponic growing of leafy vegetables and herbs in open field, greenhouses or closed environments, and plant propagation. Currently consulting and supporting projects all over the world in different climate zones (like Japan, Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany and North America).

Managing Partner

Within Delphy I am responsible fot the managment of th soft fruit research location in: Delphy ISFC. This includes setting up trials, spreading and transferring knowledge at meetings, events, etc. Working at Delphy and the Delphy ISFC offers me the opportunities to contribute to innovating and improving strawberry and soft fruit cultivation. By doing this, we not only contribute knowledge for growers, but also to the entire food chain. With the Delphy ISFC team we contribute to sustainable cultivation of strawberries and soft fruit for the future, with regard to people, planet & profit.

Manager ISFC

Paolo de Heer is working as data science consultant at the Digital Built Environment department of TNO. His research interests are artificial intelligence and optimisation, and he is currently the lead of the ‘computational models & tooling’ technology line of the department. In the High-Tech Greenhouses team of TNO, he advises on algorithms and modelling. Further more, he is also leading the AI team of the unit Mobility & Built Environment. He has a strong operational & long-term view, connecting people and knowledge through his extensive network and knack for effective and inspiring communication.

Data Science Consultant

Ben Nikaj is a highly accomplished Senior Crop Advisor at Grodan, leading provider of root zone management solutions for professional horticulture. With an impressive career spanning over 22 years, Ben supports vegetable and medicinal crop growers worldwide in optimizing their irrigation strategies and cultivation methods. Ben’s focus is on sustainable and efficient solutions to enhance plant performance and product quality. Ben’s unparalleled expertise plays a pivotal role in advancing innovative substrates and cultivation techniques.

Senior Crop Advisor Medicinal Plants

Christopher Leavitt is a cannabis breeder and tissue culture scientist who founded Voyager Genetics, a clone-only B2B genetics business specializing in servicing commercial medical cultivations. He is based out of Portugal, but works internationally with clients in Thailand, Portugal, South Africa, and the UK. He is the former CSO/COO of Compound Genetics and co-founder at Node Labs in San Francisco, California. His approach to cannabis clone development is unique- combining the use of plant tissue culture techniques and traditional clone selection techniques within the compliant medical framework, while balancing the art and science of breeding exceptional flavors into plants that perform agronomically.

Country Director Morocco

Hassan Halawy is the Group Chief Executive Officer of Elite Agro Holding, a leading integrated agrifood platform headquartered in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates with a growing footprint across the GCC, Africa, and Europe. With over two decades of experience spanning agriculture, infrastructure, and digital systems, Hassan has built a career at the intersection of large-scale farming, engineering, and food systems development. He began his career in Africa, gaining hands-on experience in complex agricultural operations, before bringing this expertise to the UAE, where he has played a pivotal role in advancing modern, climate-resilient agriculture and contributing to national food security objectives. Prior to his current role, Hassan led and delivered large-scale agricultural projects across multiple geographies, combining open-field and controlled-environment agriculture to optimize productivity, resource efficiency, and year-round production. His work integrates engineering discipline, agronomic expertise, and digital innovation to address the structural challenges of farming in arid and water-stressed environments. At Elite Agro, Hassan leads the company’s strategic transformation into a fully integrated, technology-enabled food production platform. Under his leadership, the group operates across the full agricultural value chain, from engineering, procurement, and construction of farming assets to farm management, production, and distribution; delivering resilient and commercially viable food systems. In addition, Hassan has been actively involved in government-to-government (G2G) initiatives, leading and supporting strategic agricultural projects in collaboration with governments, international organizations, and development partners. These engagements focus on advancing food security, enabling knowledge transfer, and developing sustainable agricultural ecosystems in emerging markets. Beyond operations, Hassan contributes to global dialogue on food security and climate-smart agriculture. He has participated in high-level forums including COP16 Riyadh, Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week, and other international platforms, where he engages on topics such as supply chain resilience, Agri-tech innovation, and sustainable food production. Hassan is recognized for his execution-driven leadership style and his ability to bridge public and private sector collaboration, positioning agriculture as a scalable and investment-ready sector. He holds a degree in Agricultural Engineering from the American University of Beirut.

Chief Executive Officer

Laura van de Kreeke is a founding farmer at Growy, a vertical farming company based in Amsterdam. Driven by a strong belief that food systems must change, she is committed to making tasty, healthy, and affordable food accessible to everyone.
With over seven years of experience in controlled environment agriculture, Laura combines hands-on farming knowledge with a focus on the commercial side of the business. Her work spans sales, marketing, and communications, translating complex growing technology into clear value for chefs, retailers, and consumers.
At Growy, she is involved in connecting plant science, technology, and market demand, contributing to scalable, data-driven farming systems that improve consistency and efficiency. Alongside her work, she regularly gives talks and guest lectures on the future of food production and the role of vertical farming in building more resilient, local food systems.

Farmer

I am a senior lecturer and researcher at the HAS green academy University of Applied Sciences ('s Hertogenbosch, NL), department of Agri and Business, Team Horticulture and Arable Farming. Within the research I do, I am associated with the Professorships "Green Health (Groene Gezondheid)" and "Horticulture Technologies". This entails doing research, using modern and innovative technological advances within horticulture, to ensure quality (internal, phytonutrients, product health) of produce, allowing consumers to have an informed choice about the quality of their produce and the health benefits this may provide them upon prolonged consumption. Within the UAS system, the main focus of our research is to closely together with companies, Universities and governement to ensure the research we do is relevant and applicable in the sector. 
My previous experiences include:
PhD (University of East Anglia; John Innes Centre, Norwich, UK) 2002 (cereal starch metabolism);
PostDoc on Pollen-pistil interactions (Radboud University Nijmegen, NL)
Agricultural consultancy ( Sustainable Crop Management; ADAS, Cambridge, UK)
Seed Production Researcher (Nunhems / BASF Vegetable Seeds, NL)
Cereal breeding (Sorghum; DSV, NL)

Senior Lecturer and Researcher

Tom Coen is a Belgian entrepreneur specializing in agricultural robotics. He holds a PhD in engineering sciences from KU Leuven. Coen co-founded Octinion in 2009, where he led R&D projects in mechatronics for the agriculture and food sector. In 2021, he became CEO of Octiva, a merger of Octinion’s agricultural robotics division and Priva’s robotic solutions. With his innovative, solution-driven approach, he can bridge technical expertise with practical applications in the agri-tech industry.

Ronald Hoek is CEO and co-founder of Blue Radix, a pioneering company revolutionizing horticulture through AI-driven solutions. With a profound commitment to sustainable greenhouse production, Ronald spearheads innovations that optimize crop yields while minimizing resource usage. With the Blue Radix team he unlocks the value of Autonomous Growing for greenhouse companies worldwide.

Founder & Director

Friso Klok is Chain Manager South & East Asia at Rijk Zwaan, where he focuses on strengthening strategic partnerships and value chain development across the rapidly evolving horticultural markets of South and East Asia. In his role, he works closely with growers, retailers, processors and supply chain partners to align market demand with innovative vegetable concepts and genetics.
With a strong focus on collaboration throughout the fresh produce chain, Friso supports the introduction and expansion of high-value vegetable categories, helping connect consumer trends, retail strategies and production opportunities across diverse international markets. His work contributes to the development of sustainable, market-driven horticultural solutions that create long-term value for both growers and commercial partners.

Global Chain Manager South & East Asia

Prof Harrison is the Managing Director of the Plant Sciences Group, which comprises approximately 1400 staff across 20 chair groups in Wageningen University and the insitute Wageningen Plant Research. In the Netherlands he is a member of the Top Team “Tuinbouw en Uitgangsmaterialen/ Horticulture and Starting Materials”, representing all Dutch Knowledge Insitutes . He provides strategic oversight of several programme boards for large regional and national initiatives on behalf of Wageningen U&R.  He is an honorary  professor at the University of Birmingham,UK. 
Previously he was an executive Director at NIAB (UK) with overall responsibility for NIAB’s portfolio of arable genetics, pathology, biotechnology, data science and crop characterisation. Alongside that he led NIAB’s contribution to the Crop Science Centre, the alliance between the University of Cambridge and NIAB, designed to bridge the gap between discovery science and societal impact. This alliance has received significant philanthropic support and rapidly established its position in the national innovation landscape. Prior to his role in Cambridge, he worked at East Malling as head of genetics, where he specialised in horticultural genetics and genomics of fruit crops.  
Prof Harrison has a PhD in evolutionary systems biology. His research group has worked to understand the evolution and genetic basis of complex traits, such as interactions between plants and microbes, particularly in horticultural crops. Outputs have included scientific knowledge, tools, techniques and products to underpin the sustainable development of the agricultural, horticultural and food industries, using both breeding and biotechnology solutions. His group was among the first to implement gene editing techniques in key horticultural crops and in fungi used for alternative protein production. Through collaborative work with industrial partners, he and his team have delivered disease resistance traits into multiple commercial breeding programmes, as well as having initiated new public-private breeding programmes funded by global partners.

Managing Director Plant Science Group

Jouke Campen became an engineer in Applied Physics at the Technical University of Delft, specialized in heat and mass transfer. He started working at Wageningen UR in 1997. His main field of research is energy and climate control in protected horticulture. He finished his PhD on dehumidification of greenhouses October 2009. Currently he is the coordinator of the energy program of the ministry of Agriculture in The Netherlands involving annually 7 million EURO of projects on reducing energy use in the Dutch protected horticultural sector. Aside of this task he is international project manager for the last 20 years working on numerous projects all around the world.

International Project Manager

Project Manager, Business Development

Dr. Zhen Liu is a Program Manager of Artificial Intelligent at the Wageningen Academy and Business Development Manager at Wageningen Food & Biobased Research of  WUR, the Netherlands.
She holds a PhD in Innovation Management from WUR and has extensive experience in agrifood innovation, executive education, and international collaboration. Dr. Liu specializes in connecting science, industry, and entrepreneurship, with a particular focus on sustainable agriculture, food systems, digital agriculture, and agrifood business development. She has designed and led numerous international executive programs, summer schools, and industry-academia partnerships involving participants from Europe, China, and other regions.
In addition to her work at WUR, she is co-founder of DeCi AgriTech, an AI-driven startup developing autonomous greenhouse growing solutions for sustainable food production.

Program Manager AI of Wageningen Academy

Business Lead

Greenhouse Consultant

Leonard continuously improves van der Hoeven's Modulair greenhouse system and helps growers get the most out of it.

Lead R&D engineer

Lise is Project Manager at Grodan for Strawberry and Lettuce, where she leads fundamental research trials to strengthen cultivation insights and support innovation. She holds a Master’s degree in Resilient Farming and Food Systems from Wageningen University, and leverages her academic and practical expertise to contribute to more sustainable and high-performing horticultural production.

Business Development Manager

I am Niels van der Geest, graduated in Biosystems Engineering from the University of Wageningen and currently working as a cultivation engineer at Delphy, the Netherlands, with the focus on Greenhouse Vegetables. As cultivation engineer, I develop data-driven cultivation management tools that support growers in making data driven decisions!

Specialist data-driven growing

Cannabis Advisor with over a decade of experience establishing and optimizing regulated operations across North America. I live in the crossroads between technical horticultural science and complex regulatory compliance.
Throughout my 12 years in commercial operations, I have guided clients through the requirements of production and commercial best practices across seven U.S. states and Portugal. I specialize in cultivation and post-harvest operations, licensing applications, GMP/GACP standardization, facility design, and the creation of compliance frameworks that reduce risk and ensure ease.

Cannabis Advisor

Dr. Hanneke M.J. Later-Nijland specialises in EU and Dutch regulatory life sciences law and has significant experience in both contentious and non-contentious work. Due to her dual background as a lawyer and a pharmacist, Hanneke is eminently qualified to handle the full range of issues relating to marketing authorisations, clinical trials (and agreements), compliance, issues with ATMPs, compounding, demarcation issues, advertising, administrative fines, reimbursement, financial arrangements, preference policy procedures and inspections - both human and veterinary medicinal products. Next to the aforementioned, she also worked on several large (medicina) cannabis cases.
Due to her background as an Inspector for Healthcare, she is often asked to interact with the various competent authorities in the Netherlands (e.g. CBG, IGJ, Ministry of Health, KNMP, NVWA), and/or the EMA, on behalf of her clients.
Furthermore, due to her scientific background, she works (with patent attorneys) on issues at the interface between genomics, regulatory and IP.
Hanneke’s mission is to advance transactions in the life sciences space by way of securing life sciences regulatory law as a building block in such transactions. Therefore, Hanneke has launched a network of corporate and regulatory lawyers focusing on life sciences transactions (www.thegenotypenetwork.com).
 
Hanneke obtained a MSc and PharmD in pharmacy (Utrecht, 2003 and 2004) as well as a Master of Law (LLM, Utrecht, 2006) and holds a PhD (Nijmegen, 2010) in pharmacy, which makes her the only pharmacist-lawyer holding a PhD in the Netherlands. She is admitted to the Bar of Amsterdam and allowed to practise throughout the Netherlands. Hanneke lectures pharmaceutical law at Leiden University and speaks regularly at (inter-)national conferences.
Hanneke founded Genome Lawyers in 2019, a boutique law firm in Amsterdam serving pharma and biotech clients across the globe, e.g. the US, Canada, Hong Kong, UK, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy and Japan.
Who’s Who Legal1 recommends Hanneke for Life Sciences: “Hanneke is singled out by market sources as a “very knowledgeable and pragmatic” practitioner who “really knows what she is talking about” thanks to her strong technical background in the life sciences arena.” Lastly, she is ranked in the upcoming edition of Chambers Europe 2024.

Attorney-at-law

Niko Simos is an Operations Associate at Agritecture Consulting, specializing in vertical farming, project management, and sustainable food systems development. With a background in agricultural sciences from Aristotle University of Thessaloniki and an ongoing MSc in Land, Water, Energy Resources, and Rural Environment Management, Niko brings a strong foundation in CEA research and practice. His research includes studying yield optimization for leafy greens under innovative vertical farming systems with artificial lighting.
At Agritecture, Niko manages daily operations across marketing, consulting, and business development, supporting strategic partnerships and delivering CEA workshops globally. His industry publications focus on advancing vertical farming practices, and he is passionate about leveraging technology and collaboration to create resilient food systems for the future.

Operations Associate

I'm a dedicated future-proofing strategist with a passion for driving sustainable growth and innovation across various industries. One of my early career achievements includes pioneering transformative projects in China's green building sector, showcasing my ability to lead large-scale sustainable initiatives. 
With a deep understanding of emerging trends, disruptive technologies, and global perspectives, I have researched and authored strategic industry studies on topics such as green cities, logistics and transport, the brewing industry, horticulture, and the digital transformation of the food industry.
I founded Springtide Strategy in 2016, a consultancy firm dedicated to future-proofing strategies and green transition across various industries. I work with cross-disciplinary experts to deliver tailored solutions.

Future Proofing Strategist

Gonçalo is a Robotics Engineer who started his journey as a researcher at the Institute of Systems and Robotics at the University of Coimbra, Portugal. Afterwards he became the CTO, and later CEO of CoolFarm, a cloud-based, AI software company that developed control systems for indoor farming. He is currently the CEO of Periplo Innovation and Head of Software and Robotics at PlanetFarms.

Head of Software and Robotics

Gerrit Polder is senior researcher Computer Vision & Plant Phenotyping at the department Greenhouse Technology and the Agricultural Biosystems Engineering chair group of Wageningen University & Research. His research interests include photonic based sensing, including imaging spectroscopy and spectral imaging for disease detection and high throughput automated plant phenotyping both in protected cultivation and arable farming.

Computer Vision & Plant Phenotyping

For me - it's all about agriculture.  As business developer for www.festo.com I scout for AgTech topics, startups and business to bring more smart technology into a sector we all heavily depend on. At our family farm, we produce and market organic, regional and seasonal vegetables: www.heidehoefe.de und www.kartoffel-post.de

Business Development Agriculture

Director Construction

Policy Specialist Water & Environment

Simkje Kruiderink is Team coordinator of NL bilateral relations at the Dutch Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Food Security and Nature. Her international career of 20 years includes also being seconded to the University of Wageningen for a year to work on agriculture and water related issues and aa well as, four years, to the European Commission.

Team Coördinator International Relations

Sector Head Agrifood

Dr. Silke Hemming is head of the Greenhouse Technology research team at Wageningen University & Research, The Netherlands. She is an expert on the field of novel greenhouse design concepts and modern greenhouse coverings for different climate zones world-wide with focus on resource efficiency. Her research is related to greenhouse covering and screen materials increasing light transmission, changing light spectrum, the effect of diffuse light, and energy saving by coverings, coatings and screens. Silke Hemming initiated research on the field of artificial intelligence and greenhouses control. She was leader of three International challenges on Autonomous Greenhouses and will present intermediate results of the 4th edition during Greentech. Her research group has expertise on the field of energy saving, greenhouse climate, modelling, data science, sensors and AI for greenhouse and indoor farming applications

Head scientific research team Greenhouse Technology

Tom Zoellner is a proven expert for innovative agri-tech initiatives and has 25 years’ experience in agricultural consulting as well as in being in the forefront with innovation and resilience solutions in the agriculture community. Tom helped initiate and develop numerous major international projects for acclaimed agriculture innovation showcases in the US, CH, DE and the Benelux and has a MSc. in environmental policy from the Bard Graduate Center for Sustainablity, New York.
He is the co-founder and the secretary-general of the FarmTech Society based in Brussels with many years being part of the agriculture expert networks and policy development working groups in the US and the EU.

Secretary-General

Thank you for your interest! 
My name is Serge de Reuver, 42 years young, father of 3 children. I have a passion for sports and for raising the bar; On a personal ánd business level.
After completing my university studies, I worked for a large Dutch bank for 15 years. In my last role, as Director of Business Banking within the Midcorporate segment, I was responsible for, among others, the high-tech horticulture sector. After 15 years of analysing business models, helping shareholders to sell and buy (their) companies, arranging complex financing et cetera, I decided three years ago to contribute my part to a leading global sector, and specifically to one of the leading companies active in this sector worldwide: KUBO Group.
Very happy to take you into the world of Ultra Clima. We have recently launched a number of frame-breaking innovations that will make your business model both more profitable, less risky and more future-proof.
I look forward to seeing you there at the Greentech!

Head of Sales

Trainer & Consultant international

Bernard van Loon holds both a BSc and MSc in Plant Sciences, with a strong focus on statistical and mathematical crop modelling. He previously worked as a data scientist, where he developed forecasting models for insect population dynamics in greenhouses. Currently, he is focused on expanding Delphy Digital in the North American market, combining technical expertise in crop growth, greenhouse systems, modelling, and data-driven cultivation with commercial market development.

Accountmanager Digitalization

Co-founder and Chief Scientific Officer of LettUs Grow.
LettUs Grow is a specialist supplier delivering Aeroponics in a rolling bench format that boosts crop health and yield across hectare-scale glasshouse horticulture.
Our Aeroponic Rolling Benches are designed for simple integration into automation systems, enabling growers with hydroponic bench systems to easily upgrade (in full or part) to a higher performance irrigation system - always in partnership with the best manufacturers and installers in the business.
We continue to innovate via our talented R&D team - validating Aeroponics' very competitive performance across novel glasshouse crops such as Spinach.

Chief Scientific Officer & Co Founder

Managing Director

Researcher

Security Specialist

Experienced cannabis industry professional with a strong background in operations, business development, and regulated cultivation environments.
Proven expertise in mother plant management, propagation scaling, GMP-oriented processes, and cross-border project coordination.
Adept at working with government bodies, universities, civil associations, and multidisciplinary teams across Europe and Latin America.

Founder / CEO

Industrial PhD candidate since 2023, specializing in greenhouse cultivation of Cannabis using supplemental LED lighting. Focused on developing new strategies to improve crop efficiency, product quality, and energy sustainability through precise resource control.

PhD student

Green architect, inspirator and strategist.

Minister for Food Security, Fisheries and Horticulture

Process & Project Manager

Jesse Verbeke plays a key role at Phormium Climate Screens, where he supports customers in selecting and using climate screens in the most optimal way. He has extensive knowledge about screen properties and is actively involved in the development of new screen types, helping to innovate and refine solutions that meet the evolving needs of the horticultural industry.

Product manager

Comparability is becoming increasingly important for environmental information - but it can only be achieved if data, methodology and processes fit together.
As project manager of the DIN EPD program, I deal with the question of how environmental information for products can be made comparable, comprehensible and internationally compatible.
In the DIN group, I support the development of the DIN EPD program as well as topics relating to environmental product declarations (EPDs), product carbon footprints (PCF) and product category rules (PCR).   My focus:  ✔ Creating comparability  ✔ Developing structured processes  ✔ Enabling credible environmental information

Project Lead DIN EPD Programme

Consultant in global controlled environment agriculture space with 8+ years of experience across vertical farming, greenhouse systems, and fresh produce supply chains. Co-founder and editor at VerticalFarmDaily, part of a global family media group with 16+ industry publications, where I built a strong network and in depth market insight. I now support companies and startups with market research, go to market strategy, and business development.

Owner

Professor of Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA) specializing in vertical farming, indoor agriculture, and climate-smart food systems. His work advances food security by integrating plant physiology, environmental sustainability, and agri-tech innovation. With over 15 years of experience across academia and industry, Prof Gauthier advises corporations, investors, universities, and growers on vertical farming strategies, indoor production systems, and AgTech development, translating plant science into scalable, real-world solutions. He serves on boards of Asia-Pacific agribusiness and AgTech organizations and have held leadership roles across academia, startups, and large research initiatives, collaborating with industry and public partners to design high-efficiency, resilient agricultural systems. A Professor, keynote speaker, consultant, and published researcher, Prof Gauthier holds a Ph.D. in Plant Physiology and Horticulture, with additional training in Business Management and Marketing, and have served as faculty at Princeton University, UC Davis, and Penn State. His mission is to accelerate innovation in climate-smart agriculture and global food security by connecting science, education, and industry.

Associate Professor

Adrian is the Co founder and President of Roelands Plant Farms a vegetable plant propagation greenhouse located in Lambton Shores, Ontario, Canada.

President

Researcher in high tech cultivation systems and vertical farming at the Business Unit Greenhouse Horticulture and Flower Bulbs (WUR).

Director of Engineering

Anneke van de Kamp comes from the Netherlands and holds a Master’s degree in Horticulture & Phytopathology from Wageningen University. She started her professional career in 1990 as a staff member at the Central Office of the Horticultural Auctions.
Over the years, Anneke has built extensive expertise in traceability, sustainability, and food safety through roles at DLV Advisory Group, the Product Board for Arable Crops, and the Product Board for Horticulture.
Since 2012, she has been Group Manager Communication, Public Affairs at the Dutch vegetable breeding company Rijk Zwaan. 
In her role at Rijk Zwaan, Anneke focuses strongly on strategic communication, public affairs and foresight, with a particular emphasis on stakeholder engagement and anticipating developments that impact the future of horticulture, including sustainability, food security, and innovation.
Anneke is actively involved in international sector organizations. She is Chair of the Public Affairs & Foresight Committee (HC) of Plantum. She also participates in the CPOL of Euroseeds and the ISF Value Chain and ESR coordination Groups.
From 2020 -2025, she was member of the Top Team Horticulture & Starting Materials. Since January 1, she serves as Chair of TKI Horticulture & Starting Materials, where she contributes to strengthening innovation and public-private collaboration in the sector.
I

Chairman Board

Medeoprichter

As Project Leader at WUR Greenhouse Horticulture, I facilitate collaboration between the Netherlands and North America to accelerate innovation in greenhouse horticulture and controlled environment agriculture. By connecting researchers, technology providers, growers, and policymakers, we promote the exchange of knowledge, technologies, and best practices that improve productivity, sustainability, and resilience of food production systems.

Regional Lead North America

Director Horti Division

Kyle Freedman is the global Market Segment Manager CEA and Jiffy Gel Product Manager for Jiffy Group responsible for providing technical guidance and support to Jiffy's global CEA customers and helping to drive market expansion. Kyle holds a BA in Philosophy from the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill. He earned his MSc. in International Agriculture Development from the University of California at Davis with a concentration in Horticulture and Agronomy where his research focused on climate-smart, small-scale postharvest processing systems of coffee in Honduras. He obtained a PhD in Horticultural Sciences from North Carolina State University where his research focused on the development of a new hydroponic grapevine production system called Precise Indoor Vine Conditioning (PIVC) in which young grapevines are conditioned with supplemental light to produce fruit in their first season of field transplanting. With 15+ years of experience, Kyle was previously a Sr. Project Management Specialist at RTI International prior to graduate school where he was a part of their global food security and agriculture team managing over $150 million in USAID and USDA development projects in East Africa and Southeast Asia.

Market Segment Manager CEA

Dominick Dimucci is Director of Cultivation at Haven Greens, specializing in fully automated mobile gulley systems for baby leaf lettuce. With experience across Colorado, Texas, and Ontario, he holds undergraduate and master’s degrees in horticulture and is focused on driving operational excellence and crop first outcomes in controlled environment agriculture.

Director of Cultivation

As a crop advisor, I act as a sparring partner for the grower. I assess the crop, describe its condition, and advise the grower on how to respond using climate control, irrigation, and nutrition strategies.
I have always had a strong interest in new developments. Topics such as new (green) crop protection products, Plant Empowerment, autonomous growing, and LED lighting are examples of this.
Through Delphy, I now regularly work abroad. It is both enjoyable and interesting to combine business with pleasure.

Advisor Glasshouse Vegetables: Tomato, Pepper, new crops, Water Coach

Founder & CEO

Mexx Holweg is a researcher specializing in controlled-environment agriculture and plant physiology. Currently he is achieving his PhD in Horticulture and Product Physiology at Wageningen University & Research. His doctoral work focused on the photobiology of medicinal cannabis, with particular emphasis on the effects of light intensity, spectral composition, and air temperature on plant morphology, photosynthesis, and the accumulation of pharmaceutical compounds.
Holweg’s research integrates morphological, physiological, and metabolic analyses to better understand how environmental parameters can optimize crop performance and secondary metabolite production. He has collaborated with both academic and industry partners to advance knowledge in cannabis cultivation under controlled conditions.

Head of Crop Science & Agronomy

The core is focused on an affinity with technology and desiring to find optimal and new solutions. These can translate to incorporating new designs on existing systems as well as presenting new innovations to optimize processes. Designing new projects where complex and multi-layered iterative processes form obstacles have proven to hold my interest and are considered a welcome challenge.
As a research and development engineer I’ve been focused on climate and energy and improving the supporting systems in horticulture. With the vision that a stronger market benefits all, the market for horticultural projects is far from saturated. In this, optimizing our ecological footprint, the sustainability of projects on both the resource and finance sides and ensuring fresh and healthy products leave the site, are an on-going and long-term challenge for us all.

Director/Owner

www.cresultant.nl  www,plantscout.eu

Founder Gracious AI - AI ethics researcher, designer and advisor

Alexander van Tuyll has been working on greenhouse horticulture at Wageningen University & Research for nearly five years, with a background in biosystems engineering. His research explores circularity. This is also the topic of his ongoing PhD. Fertilisers, CO₂ and renewable growing media are the focus of his current projects.

Researcher in Circular Greenhouse Horticulture

Software Development Leader

Dr. Nils Borchard is Head of Research and Innovation at DLG (the German Agricultural Society) and Visiting Associate Professor at Lisbon School of Economics and Management. He studied geography at Humboldt University Berlin and holds a doctorate from the University of Bonn. His career spans leading research institutions across Europe and Asia, including Forschungszentrum Jülich, the Center for International Forestry Research, and the Natural Resources Institute Finland, where he served as the scientific heads of agriculture and horticulture. At DLG, he builds up and drives R&D&I activities across the entire agri-food value chain, with a particular focus on food systems innovation and knowledge management.

Head of Research and Innovation

Independent professional at Greenport West-Holland, raised among the greenhouses of South Holland. With a background in Business Administration and ICT, I combine practical experience in energy, digitalization, and greenhouse horticulture. Currently among other topics involved the RE-GREENHOUSE project, driving innovation at the intersection of sustainability and technology.

Independent professional at Greenport West-Holland

Not an armchair expert, but with both feet still in the trenches. As Managing Director of LetsGrow.com, Gabriël van der Kruijk is deeply involved in technological innovation that delivers real impact. He looks beyond the hype and shares down‑to‑earth, practical insights. With his enthusiasm and energy, he consistently connects effortlessly with his audience.
With more than twenty years of experience in the tech sector, Gabriël has a strong track record in developing digital and AI solutions. His in‑depth knowledge of the horticulture sector has been shaped by hands‑on experience; he was a key driver behind the digital transformations of global players such as Rijk Zwaan and Koppert. This experience enables him to truly understand how to successfully apply technology in horticulture.
The common thread throughout his career is translating technological capabilities into tangible business results, always through a customer‑focused and co‑creative approach. In his keynote sessions, Gabriël shares concrete insights and thought‑provoking real‑world examples. In workshops, he dives deep, guiding participants in translating their own challenges into effective digital solutions.

Director LetsGrow.com

Nieves is full time researcher in cultivation of horticultural crops at the Business Unit Greenhouse Horticulture of Wageningen University & Research. In this position, she has been leading numerous (applied) research projects and collaborating in many others, both national and international. Research topics cover the entire production chain, from propagation to post-harvest performance through the management of the crop in all its facets: biological soil disinfection, plant rooting, substrate selection, irrigation, fertilization, integrated pest control, the implementation of new materials and technologies and the efficient use of resources, especially energy. With her research she hopes to inspire growers and the horticultural supply industry, in The Netherlands and beyond, to implement cultural practices that contribute to increase the sustainability of the sector. Nieves studied Biology at the “Universidad Autónoma de Barcelona”, and has lived and worked in the Netherlands during nearly her whole profesional career.

Senior Researcher Cultivation

Katia has been involved in the soilless cultivation space for the past 10 years, spanning from glasshouse operations to TCEA (aka vertical farming), with a focus on both technical and business aspects. Her primary area of expertise is in strawberry cultivation, gained through a combination of roles at start-ups and research organisations. Katia holds an MSc in Agricultural Engineering and an MBA in Agribusiness, and she is currently pursuing a part-time PhD at Harper Adams University, specialising in LED lighting and TCEA strawberry cultivation.
Katia is the founder of InnoPhyte Consulting, a specialist consultancy offering “Science-as-a-Service” to AgriTech companies. InnoPhyte supports businesses with experimental design, data interpretation, grant writing, and technical strategy, translating research into real-world outcomes. Katia’s professional path includes a part-time role as TCEA Soft Fruit Specialist at Niab, one of the UK’s leading crop science organisations. Additionally, she volunteers as the Communications Director for UKUAT (UK Urban Agricultural Technologies), a membership organisation that brings together key players in modern urban agricultural technologies.

Plant Scientist

Rien Kamman is CEO and Co-Founder of Source.ag, leading the company’s global mission to empower fruit and vegetable growers with AI. Since 2020, he has driven Source.ag’s expansion and vision to make high-tech, efficient greenhouse farming accessible and scalable worldwide.

CEO & Co-founder

Innovation Manager

Tom de Vos is a Consulting Sales Engineer at Sprinkler Energy, a company specialized in sustainable energy solutions for the horticultural industry. Sprinkler Energy helps growers and businesses reduce their dependency on natural gas through innovative heat pump systems, thermal energy storage, and integrated energy solutions. The company focuses on lowering energy costs, reducing CO₂ emissions, and supporting the transition toward future-proof and more sustainable greenhouse operations. During GreenTech Amsterdam 2026, Tom shares his expertise on innovative energy technologies, grid congestion challenges, and the transition toward fossil-free horticulture.

Consulting Sales Engineer

Founder & Head of Content and Policy

Connecting people and organisations, address sustainability challenges, facilitate cross-disciplinary collaborations and find innovative solutions is my passion.  Connect business partners with the well-known knowledge institute Wageningen Plant Research in order to enforece collaboration and making it possible that knowledge and innovative ideas finds its way to the market and vice versa

Program Manager

Manager Smart Growing

Peter van Hooft, Head of Project Development EMEA at Skytree, leads the development of direct air capture (DAC) projects across Europe, the Middle East, Africa. He focuses on advancing local CO₂ generation solutions for industries including indoor farming, CDR and Power-to-X projects, greenhouses, and mineralization, supporting the transition away from fossil fuel-based CO₂ supply. Drawing on his experience in innovation strategy and public-private collaborations, Peter helps create scalable pathways for cleaner industrial processes.

VP of Project Development

Executive Director

Tenair

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