Royal FloraHolland members give green light to Members' Council

During the Royal FloraHolland General Members' Meeting on 31 May, the introduction of a Members' Council as from 1 January 2019 was approved with a majority of 79%. The new structure – in which the General Members' Meeting (GMM) will cease to exist – will improve the quality of the decision-making process within the cooperative. The amendment to the articles of association received the support of more than the required two-thirds of the votes.

Jack Goossens, Chairman of the Supervisory Board: “The establishment of a Members' Council is a historic moment for the cooperative and its members. This represents an enormous step towards more structural influence for the members.’ In the past one and a half years, this topic and various other strategic themes were discussed with the members of the cooperative in consultation sessions. This dialogue will be continued by the Members' Council. It will offer members the opportunity to exert influence on the policies of Royal FloraHolland via the Members' Council and to provide the Members’ Council with ideas.
 
Composition of the Members’ Council
In the coming months, members can put themselves forward as a candidate for the Members' Council. A nomination committee – consisting of members – will make an initial selection with the aim being to ensure a proper reflection of the membership. During the final GMM in December this year, the members will vote on the nominated candidates, after which the Members' Council, consisting of approximately 40 members, will be installed.
 
Strategy
Steven van Schilfgaarde, CEO of Royal FloraHolland, presented the cooperative’s fine-tuned strategy during the GMM. Steven van Schilfgaarde: “We will focus on our core activities: strengthening the physical and digital marketplace. This includes the further development of logistics and financial services, and services aimed at growers.” In the notes to the annual accounts, Van Schilfgaarde emphasized that Royal FloraHolland is financially healthy, but that choices would have to be made with a view to the implementation of the strategy.
 
Farewell
During the GMM, we said farewell to Caroline Princen as a member of the Supervisory Board. She is approaching the end of her first term and is not available for a following one. Chairman Jack Goossens thanked her for the contributions she made in her time as a Supervisory Board member.