Cannabis News
Plant Empowerment offers the fastest route to sustainable and profitable horticulture worldwide
Peter Geelen and Jan O. Voogt, together with Peter van Weel, were there at the beginning of the work on Het Nieuwe Telen (New Work). This year, a special edition of a magazine* celebrates fifteen years of the concept. Both Peters and Jan laid the foundations for Land Appropriation, the framework that underpins Het Nieuwe Telen. Plant Empowerment is the English term that has gained worldwide recognition for this philosophy.
In 2022 the founders created the Plant Empowerment Academy. Their aim is to support the sustainable development of greenhouse horticulture by promoting an open exchange of knowledge through an objective and independent breeding concept.
On the Plant Empowerment Academy website, the founders discuss how the concept came about. Their story goes back to 2004, and they describe it as the beginning of the “sustainability transition in Dutch horticulture”. That year, the first fully enclosed greenhouse in the Netherlands was built.
“Surprisingly, the plants in this closed greenhouse behaved very differently from what theory and experience in conventional open greenhouses would have us expect,” they recalled. “For example, the rate of crop transpiration, which depends on solar radiation and humidity, did not fit standard evaporation models. Higher greenhouse temperatures sometimes produced better results than lower temperatures, which contradicted prevailing assumptions.”
New insights through the combination of physics and plant physiology
These unexpected observations inspired a new research project on plant behavior in relation to greenhouse climate. Peter van Weel, then working at Wageningen University and Research, and Jane, at Hoogendoorn Growth Management, conducted the research.
“We discovered that some long-standing theories about plant behavior and climate control were partly incorrect, and even contradicted the basic principles of physics and plant physiology. Step by step, together with researcher Peter Geelen, we developed a new growing concept based on physiological and physical laws. 2008.”
© Plant Empowerment AcademyPeter van Weel, Peter Geelen and Jan O. Voogt, founders and authors of the Plant Empowerment cultivation concept, together with illustrator Jan Seelen for visualizations of the first book Plant Empowerment the basic principles, November 2017.
Plant Empowerment Academy
Other key milestones in the development of the concept were 2009, when Het Nieuwe Telen’s innovation program began, 2015, when Peter Geelen, Jan O. Voogt and Peter van Weel published the book ‘De basisprincipes van Het Nieuwe Telen’, and 2016. It starts from the natural behavior of plants and their inherent growth potential.
In 2018, a book in English followed, ‘Plant Empowerment, the basic principles’. The book was later translated into Dutch and Spanish. Today, the Plant Accreditation Academy manages the publication of all the books.
The founders of Plant Empowerment advocate close and open collaboration between all parties involved, including research and training institutes, extensionists and breeders, investors, suppliers, crop advisors, technical specialists, governments and other organizations. They emphasize that this intensive cooperation is essential for success. Plant Appropriation, they say, offers the fastest route to a sustainable and profitable global greenhouse industry. For more details, readers are directed to the Mission page of the Plant Empowerment Academy website.
In order to maintain the independence of the Plant Ownership Academy, the founders have stated that they cannot enter into commercial relations. Plant Empowerment Academy and Plant Empowerment Foundation are different organizations.
The Plant Empowerment Academy is, however, open to welcoming ambassadors who wish to contribute to their shared mission. Companies, institutes, distributors and organizations interested in joining the Academy as Ambassadors are invited to contact the founders through the Ambassadors page.
Plant Empowerment Digital Growth
In recent years there has been a growing interest in data-driven breeding, supported by modern computational tools such as artificial intelligence. According to the creators, the concept of Plant Empowerment is very suitable for this, as it is based on the physiology and physical principles of plants. At the same time, the sector increasingly feels the need for a unified monitoring protocol that can be used in both research and practice.
With the initiative and support of Kas als Energiebron, the authors published an additional guide at the end of 2023 called Plant Empowerment Digitaal Telen. This guide describes a structured method of crop monitoring, including the use of appropriate sensors and plant observations. It also explains the digital tools needed for practical implementation, such as dashboards. This uniform and standardized approach improves collaboration between different parties and facilitates the exchange and comparison of research and practice results. It also allows for a significant acceleration of the learning curve and overall sustainability transition.
*https://www.kasalsenergiebron.nl/content/kasalsenergiebron/docs/HNT/Magazine_15_jaar_HNT.pdf (link to Dutch magazine)
For more information:
Plant Empowerment Academy
(email protected)
www.plantempowerment.academy
Custom Cones USA has announced the launch of Cones Canada, a wholly Canadian operation designed to meet the growing needs of Canadian pre-roll producers, processors and brands.
With a stocked warehouse in Ontario and a dedicated Canadian e-commerce platform, Cones Canada eliminates the complication that Canadian businesses have historically faced in sourcing pre-rolled cones: no import fees, no customs delays and no currency conversion headaches. Orders are billed in Canadian dollars (CAD) and shipped from Ontario to anywhere in Canada.
Why Cones Canada, why now?
The legal cannabis market in Canada continues to grow, and pre-rolls are a $1.4 billion market. In 2024, pre-rolls passed as the top category in the country, and retained their title in 2025 with 77.2 million units sold, again the highest of any category, according to cannabis analytics firm Headset.
Canadian growers and processors have long relied on Custom Cones USA’s reputation for quality. Its cones have been tested to Health Canada standards for flowers and are trusted by leading pre-roll manufacturers worldwide. However, cross-border orders came with additional cost, time and logistical complexity.
“We’ve been supplying Canadian cannabis brands for years, and the demand from our Canadian customers made this next step an easy decision,” said Harrison Bard, co-founder and CEO of Custom Cones USA. “With Cones Canada, we’re bringing the same products, the same quality standards, and the same expert support that our customers have always trusted. Only now we’re doing it without limits.”
Cones Canada’s Ontario facility carries four of the most popular pre-rolled cone sizes from the Custom Cones USA catalog, each in two types of European-sourced paper: Refined White and Natural Brown.
In addition to ready-to-ship bulk cones, Cones Canada offers access to Custom Cones USA’s machine, packaging and custom branding options, including full-color filter tip printing, cigar bands and outer wraps. and custom packaging, Canadian brands can build a distinctive, shelf-ready product line backed by Pre-Roll Experts.
For more information:
Cones Canada
conescanada.ca/
Cannabis News
Medical cannabis cultivation event set for June 8 in the Netherlands, ahead of GreenTech
On June 8, researchers, growers and technology providers from around the world will gather in the Netherlands for a day of presentations, facility tours and networking focused on the cultivation of medicinal cannabis, organized by the Dutch cannabis consortium Cultivation for Compounds and MCPIR.
© Andrea Di Pastena | MMJDaily.com
The event takes place across two locations. The morning program takes place at the MCPIR in Bleiswijk, where Jaime Ahumada and René Corsten, cannabis researchers and consultants at Delphy, will present their latest findings on mother plant management, clear strategy and upcoming research plans at the Delphy Improvement Center, including opportunities for growers to actively participate in ongoing research and knowledge development. Attendees can also take a tour of the cannabis cells.
In the afternoon he will visit the World Horti Center in Naaldwijk with presentations from Mexx Holweg, Dutch Light Innovations and Cultivation for Compounds, followed by a visit to Vertify.
For more information:
MCPIR
www.mcpir.nl
worldhorticenter.nl/eu/themes/cultivation-for-compounds/
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