Oosterhout / Nijmegen, the Netherlands
June 7, 2004
On the occasion of its 100th anniversary,
celebrated at Palace Het Loo, the international grass seed
company Barenbrug was awarded the designation ‘Royal’ in the
name of Her Majesty Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands. During the
past one hundred years this family business has acquired a
unique and leading position in its sector as one of the largest
grass seed companies in the world. For this achievement the
company received Royal Honour. From today Barenbrug will be
known throughout the world as the Royal Barenbrug Group.
Royal
Award for H.J.M. (Bert) Barenbrug
During the celebration of the 100th anniversary at Palace Het
Loo another Royal Honour was awarded. Mr H.J.M. (Bert) Barenbrug
(photo) was named Officer in the Order of Oranje Nassau for his
special contribution to the seed sector and the promotion of
family businesses in the Netherlands. The Mayor of Ede, mr R.C.
Robbertsen, decorated him during the celebration in the presence
of 225 guests.
100 Years Great in Grass
The company has been among the world’s best in its field for a
hundred years, during which time it has shown what is needed to
stay ahead: invest in R&D, knowledge and quality and in
partnerships around the globe. This has made the company of huge
value to the economic development of the region and has
contributed to the leading position of the Dutch seed industry
all over the world.
Family
business
It is quite extraordinary for a family-owned company to develop
into a world leader in its sector, which once again proves the
strength of this family business. Family-owned companies in the
Netherlands generate 150 to 200 billion euro in added value for
the Dutch economy and account for 2.5 million jobs, almost 50%
of all employment.
The exciting start of a new century
The celebrations of the 100th anniversary and the designation
‘Royal’ herald the start of a second century of ‘Great in
Grass’. One of the latest challenges is the study into the
influence of grass species on the quality of food and public
health. After all, improvement of grass has an impact at the
beginning of the food chain of dairy products. Furthermore, the
requirements to be met by lawn and sports pitch grasses are
becoming increasingly stringent. Developing grass seed mixtures
that can meet these requirements is a daunting challenge.
Royal Barenbrug Group
The some 550 employees at the 20 branches in 12 countries on 5
continents are proud of the Royal designation. The Royal
Barenbrug Group is a family business whose core business is
plant breeding, seed production and the global marketing of
grass seeds and seeds for feed crops. The Group has an annual
turnover of about 155 million euro. |