Organic Apple Juice at De Nijensteen
When De Nijensteen was bought, including one of the first and the oldest half-standard pear orchards in the Netherlands, the board of d.o.b foundation had dreams of a fully organic farm. Unfortunately, it appeared that the pears could not be cultivated organically. The age of the trees and the manner of common manuring and crop protection during all those years had made it impossible. Then what? Sacrificing 50 years of cultural heritage, so characteristic of the local IJsselstreek, was not an option. The best solution seemed to be a combination of the common pear orchard with a new organic apple orchard.
Theo and Henny Hoogeveen manage De Nijensteen with great enthusiasm and an eye for innovation. Besides the common pear orchard, they will also start an innovative organic apple orchard, six hectares entirely intended for the production of organic juice, entering the Dutch market at the end of 2009 as GoedSap®.
When new developments are no longer applied on a farm, it will turn into a romantic piece of scenery. We shall continue searching for improvements in organic fruit farming. This way the investment in a new system of weed control, with synthetic plates down the rows, could mean a breakthrough in the world of fruit.