Dutch plant-propagation specialist Iribov is building a new facility of approximately 16,000 sq m (1.6 hectares) in Heerhugowaard, the Netherlands, to expand its greenhouse and multilayer acclimatization capacity. In a 15 October interview with GroentenNieuws, chief executive Eloy Boon described the construction programme and said completion was expected in spring 2027.
The development combines greenhouse space, a logistics centre with loading facilities, storage and processing areas, technical rooms and multilayer growing infrastructure. Iribov has named GreenV, Verkade Beton, Loonbedrijf Mol and DLVge among the collaborating companies. Construction is under way; the facility is not yet commissioned or producing at its proposed new capacity.
Three new climate cells planned
Iribov plans to install three controlled-environment climate cells in the new complex to harden young plants produced through tissue culture. Boon said each cell is designed for around one million young plants simultaneously. On that basis, the initial three cells would provide nominal space for approximately three million plants at one time.
That is a planned simultaneous holding capacity, not measured annual production. The company also sees room to expand the site to as many as 11 cells in the future, but those additional cells have not been announced as part of the initial committed installation.
Connecting tissue culture with greenhouse production
Young plants multiplied in laboratories must adjust from in-vitro conditions to a cultivation environment. Iribov already operates multilevel controlled-environment acclimatization systems and provides propagation services for ornamentals, soft fruit and vegetable crops. The planned expansion is intended to bring more of that hardening process under the company’s own control.
The new construction is separate from Iribov’s earlier Location 2 greenhouse project, which the company reported as ready for use in March 2025. The new site and that earlier project should not be combined into a single building programme or a current operating-capacity figure.
The expansion aims to bring more of Iribov’s young-plant hardening process into controlled-environment systems at its own site. The three new climate cells remain under construction, and any further build-out to eleven cells is only a future option.
Key takeaways
- Iribov has started construction on a separate 1.6-hectare greenhouse and propagation complex in Heerhugowaard.
- Three multilayer climate cells are planned initially; three million plants is a nominal concurrent capacity estimate, not achieved throughput.
- Completion is targeted for spring 2027, while any extension to 11 cells remains optional.
Featured aerial photograph: new Iribov construction in Heerhugowaard, 2026. Photo: West Country Media, published by GroentenNieuws.
