Day 3 has finished, and it was quite a busy day! We had an early start to the day, meeting at 6am and leaving the hotel at 6:15am. We first headed over to Royal FloraHolland, one of the largest flower auctions in the world, in one of the largest buildings in the world in terms of floor space. I must admit, I was unsure about this visit as I had no idea what a flower auction consisted of. However, I was extremely impressed with the process and with the facility during the tour and left having more respect for the industry.
The auction process for buying flowers here works very differently than typical bidding. Instead of starting at a lower price and rising until there is a buyer, the flowers start at a ridiculously high price, and it is lowered until someone decides to buy. This allows the bidding process to occur faster and allows for as many flowers to be sold as possible. Today, they told us they had 22 million flowers to sell! I found the entire process intriguing as all of the flowers will enter the facility and leave the facility within 24 hours. The facility is run 24 hours a day and from 6am to 11am, the bidding occurs. During the rest of the 24 hours, the flowers are shipped out to buyers, and new flowers are brought in for the next round of bidding. It is extremely efficient and fast, making the most of time and energy, and contributing to sustainability.
In addition to this efficient bidding process, the automation through which the flowers were transported throughout the facility was mesmerizing. The flowers were stored on 3-tiered metal carts, and these carts were transported using little electric carts driven by humans. These carts are electric and rechargeable, contributing further to the sustainability of the process. My favorite of the automation technologies in this facility were these big red mechanical arms which held and transported the entire 3-tiered flower cart. These arms were on tracks attached to the ceiling, each with its own motor to power them. Using automation in this way eliminates human error, and can help prevent waste from dropped flowers or traffic jams. Interestingly, this auction produces very little waste as nearly all of the flowers are bought and then transported to their buyer. I appreciate all of the efforts made to keep the auction as sustainable as possible and eliminate unnecessary waste and energy. These efforts are not necessary for the success of the business, but they are done because it is the right thing to do.
After visiting Royal FloraHolland, we visited Schoonschip, a neighborhood consisting of homes floating on the water. This community is almost entirely self-sufficient. They use solar panels to produce their own electricity and will sell electricity to each other if someone needs it. Many of the roofs are green roofs, and there are designated gardens and areas to allow for the natural flora and fauna to grow. It is also common for boats to be shared among the community, eliminating the need for everyone to buy their own and use up more money and energy. With all these sustainability practices, the community is carbon neutral, a very impressive feat. This community is proof that becoming carbon neutral is possible, but that people must work together to achieve it.
After touring these floating homes, it was time for lunch! We ate and then headed into Amsterdam to see the Rijksmuseum. There I saw some extremely impressive and beautiful art consisting of paintings, sculptures, pottery, and many other things. It was then time for dinner, and finally for heading back to the hotel for some much needed rest after the busy day.
