You wouldn't expect to come across many growers who can claim to be a qualified tiler, but then you haven't met Paul van de Sande yet... 'My father was a grower, but he always told me: Paul, learn a trade. So I trained as a tiler, but never actually worked as one. I then went to horticultural college, graduated and started my own business.’ Paul expanded the company as time went on and ultimately ended up specialising.
Radicchio rosso is Italian in origin and a member of the chicory family. Paul: 'It is a small-scale crop. Growing produce in bulk is not my style. In fact, it's one of the most labour-intensive crops there is. There are hardly any weed suppression products permitted for use. Weeding has to be done mechanically or manually. But I wouldn’t have it any other way. That intensive labour suits me perfectly.'
Paul doesn't employ any permanent staff, but he uses seasonal labour in peak periods. In addition to the hectares of radicchio rosso he also farms strawberries. ‘They are planted from February. Some of the plants are in tunnels, others not. That more or less accounts for the whole year.'
