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Hoek Flowers: The First Reusable, Traceable Export Box
Together with its long-standing partner Van Vliet & Newwen, Hoek Flowers achieved a first in the flower export industry: a reusable export box with RFID track-and-trace technology that replaces single-use cardboard and makes the supply chain circular.
Sustainable exporting without compromising on quality
The floriculture industry faces a major challenge: by 2050, the sector must operate in a fully circular and carbon-neutral manner. At the same time, flower exports still largely rely on single-use cardboard boxes—which generate a lot of waste—and return systems are often expensive and cumbersome in practice.
Hoek Flowers wanted export packaging that is both sustainable and practical: less cardboard and less waste, but without compromising the condition in which the flowers arrive at the customer.
A reusable shipping box with track-and-trace
What We Developed Together
A recyclable, reusable export box, designed for the floral industry and built to last for many cycles—as a replacement for the disposable cardboard box
Smart & Traceable
Track & trace via RFID, barcode, and QR code—full traceability throughout the entire supply chain.
With every scan: location, order information, quantities, temperature, and humidity—directly linkable to the ERP system.
Reusable 20–25+ times; moisture-resistant, easy to clean, foldable, and stackable.
No more need for separate tracking stickers.
“We develop only reusable return concepts; we’ve never believed in single-use products. Digital technology provides us with data on location, orders, and quantities—which we use to optimize both internal and external processes.”
Bob IJpelaar, Managing Director Van Vliet & Newwen
Less cardboard, more control over the supply chain
20–25+
reusable per box
~8 mln
Reusable items used daily in the European pool
0%
Waste as a Goal — Fully Circular
The flowers arrive undamaged and in top condition, while the use of single-use cardboard—and thus waste and CO₂—is significantly reduced. The real-time data from each box optimizes logistics processes, and the box is currently being tested for air, sea, and road transport.
Already PPWR-compliant today
Reuse, cardboard replacement, and verifiable track-and-trace: exactly what the new European Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR) aims to achieve starting in 2030—recyclability, reuse targets, and less packaging. Hoek Flowers shows that it’s already possible now, well ahead of the deadline.
