EXPOS
FLOWER POWER
A beautifully landscaped park is the setting for Floriade 2012, but the expo also shows how horticulture can help sustainability and education. Managing director Paul Beck tells Kathleen Whyman more
What is Floriade 2012?
Floriade 2012 is an offi cial world expo about horticulture. Running from April to mid-October 2012, visitors will be able to enjoy the world’s most exquisite and exceptional fl owers, plants, trees and fruit and vegetables in a beautiful park. The aim of the expo is to change how people think about horticulture. The overall theme is ‘Be part of the theatre in nature; get closer to the quality of life’. This is divided into fi ve core themes represented in fi ve different zones in the park. These themes are education and innovation, envi- ronment, relax and heal (wellbeing), green engine (sustainability) and world show stage (each day features a cultural pro- gramme of music, dance, literature, theatre and visual art from all over the world). We’re expecting about 90 Dutch
exhibitors and 25 participating countries including Germany, France, Belgium, Spain, Italy, Nigeria, Ethiopia, Thailand, China, Germany, India and Pakistan.
Where is it being held?
Floriade 2012 is taking place in the Venlo region in the Netherlands, which is on the border of Germany. This region is currently
undergoing a number of major devel- opments. Staging Floriade will act as a catalyst to these developments. The expo will be held at the centre of
Greenport Venlo [Greenport is the term for an area dedicated to economic networks of companies, organisations and institutes involved in horticulture]. The expo is held every decade in a differ- ent Dutch region. It launched in 1960 and this is the sixth Floriade we’ve hosted.
What will the content be?
One important element of the expo is to show what energy is doing for horticulture as well as for people at home. For exam- ple, until now glass houses have used a lot of energy, but now they’re bringing energy to homes. We’ll demonstrate how a glass house can give energy to up to 300 homes. The expo will also look at how we handle sustainability around the world. It’s abso- lutely unnecessary to be in competition with other countries, we should all work together to ensure horticulture is sustainable. Education is another big theme for the
expo. Some people think fruit and vegeta- bles come from the supermarket. We’ll demonstrate where they actually come
from and how they can get fresh food from places other than the supermarket. Visitors can also learn how to cook fresh food in our cooking theatre. All the pavilions will offer different expe-
riences including dark rides, movies and shows. The Dutch pavilion will showcase innovation, such as growing tomatoes in any shape you want! We have a pallet of colours with different themes and attrac- tions in different areas. Vincent Van Gogh worked with all kinds of colours and we’re using his art as an inspiration.
What is Floriade’s history?
Holland is world famous for fl owers – it’s our most important export. In 1960 there was a big fair in Holland, which was so suc- cessful it was made into an expo. The fair in 1960 celebrated the 400-year anniver- sary of tulips being brought from Turkey to Holland by horse, by recreating that journey. We’re considering replicating that two-month journey once again in 2012.
How’s the expo changed since 1960?
Sustainability is now a huge concern. Using sustainable building materials is a necessity. Then, when the park’s operating,
The expo is taking place in the Venlo region of the Netherlands and will feature 90 Dutch exhibitors and 25 exhibitors from around the world
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