Together, we keep the colourful floriculture industry strong and safe.
Due to its intricate international logistics, the floriculture sector is vulnerable to criminal interference. The “Weerbare Sierteeltsector” initiative is designed for business owners in this sector. We help them keep their work environment safe and prevent damage to their reputation. We do this by sharing knowledge, offering training, and conducting analyses. Our focus is on prevention, because prevention is better than cure. If you know what to look out for, recognize warning signs, and report them, we can work together to build a safe and strong floriculture sector.
Report a suspicious situation immediately!
A crisis strikes without warning.
Are you ready?
Avoid improvising during a crisis. Prepare your organization with a practical crisis plan, training, and expert support. Specifically designed for the floriculture sector, so you can act quickly and thoughtfully when it counts.
Fine-grained logistics abused by criminals
The Netherlands is internationally renowned for its well-developed logistics network and structured floriculture sector. Organized crime exploits the floriculture sector for illegal activities. For example, narcotics, weapons, and cartons of cigarettes are transported among shipments of flowers and plants. This is what we refer to as subversion.
Criminals are out to achieve as much money and status in as short a time as possible. To achieve this, they often work together, each with their own expertise. This may happen at the local level, but more often it involves international networks. We speak here of organized crime. To launder money or transport prohibited substances, they use the bona fide (honest) structures the country has to offer. To do this, criminals use employees, company data and business processes. This is often accompanied by bribery, intimidation and violence. The legal system and the safety of entrepreneurs and employees is undermined in this way and we speak of “undermining or subversive crime.
- It is possible that the container was opened during transport to insert or remove prohibited substances.
- Capture the situation by taking pictures.
- Record where the container is coming from and going to; who is the sender and receiver (waybill).
- Check the container, together with a colleague (four-eye principle) and call the police if prohibited substances are found In case of suspicion or a suspicious situation, do not wait but call 911 immediately. Better once too much than too little.
- Your freight arrives and drugs are found in the cargo.
- Call 911 and explain the situation. Would you like to report anonymously? Then call 0800-7000 Report Crime Anonymously. You report anonymously and also receive no feedback on whether your report is acted upon. If reporting via 112, be sure to include the location and nature of the incident.
- Do not let anyone near the container and create a safe environment until the police arrive.
- Properly record the cargo information and turn it over to the police.
- When police arrive at the scene, the investigation begins. This will include questioning the employees directly involved. This will not be done anonymously. Anonymous reporting can only be done through MMA.
- Upon arrival of transport, one stowaway/multiple stowaways appears to have traveled with them.
- Catch these people in a separate room.
- Call 911 and have the police come to the scene. They will contact IND and COA, depending on the situation, regarding the reception of the people and the further handling of the situation.
- Properly record the truck's traveled route for evaluation and further investigation.
- An employee comes to you and tells you that he is being extorted by someone in his area to perform illegal acts.
- Have a conversation with the employee and explain the different options:
- The best option is to report it to police. Explain how this works, if it is not clear and, if necessary, guide the employee in the steps to be taken Police can provide various forms of protection.
- Involve the police in the situation. They can best advise what to do and what next steps to take.
- The employee may also report to a confidential advisor through VNO NCW or to the internal confidential advisor. This is not the same as reporting. A confidant cannot do anything about the situation, but can give tips to the employee.
- Establish contact with police to work together on how employee has / can have the safest possible working and living environment.
- You hold a high position in a company and you receive threatening emails/apps/calls asking you to share sensitive company information.
- This contact often starts out friendly, but can quickly turn if the need is not met
- Contact the police at 112 and explain the situation. The threatening situation must stop immediately for your own safety and that of your family and friends.
- Try to figure out why they might have chosen you? Are you recognizable through your corporate clothing or do you share a lot about your work through socials? Take steps to reduce that vulnerability; click here to find out what steps you can take as a business; approachresistantgrowth.com/offer.
- If this is the situation, there may be an exploitative situation. This must stop immediately.
- Check if the employee is hired through a temp agency.
- Report the situation to the NLA, the Dutch labor inspectorate; https://www.nlarbeidsinspectie.nl/melden.
- The NLA can take up the cause and involve the appropriate parties. Reporting to the NLA is not done anonymously; they will contact you for more information.
- If the employee is hired directly, try to find out to whom he/she issued his/her passport.
Check out our website on your PC or laptop for the interactive map with tips.
Our latest news
can be found here.
Learn more about our activities and controls or listen to the podcast. You can find them on our news page.
How do I recognize
suspicious situations?
Various forms of undermining occur in the floriculture sector. These include, drug crime involving transportation of narcotics between flowers, fraud, money laundering, labor exploitation and bribery. To recognize these forms of criminal behaviour, there are several things you can look out for as a business owner. We are happy to help you learn to recognize these signs. After all, prevention is better than cure!
How do I prevent
criminal interference?
Preventing criminal interference starts with recognizing the signs. Below are some tips on how to recognize them. Don’t hesitate to report signs, no matter how vague they may seem. They are important in tackling undermining practices.
In case of emergency, always call 911. Make sure you cordon off the find, preserve traces and, where necessary, close your business so no one can just enter. You can also call the neighborhood police at your auction location, they are readily available, but not 24 hours a day.
This varies by company, but most logical is for management and/or owner to be involved in activities that will take place with employees. So start with awareness of management and executives. This can be done with a meeting and e.g. the e-learning. Having a reporting route is often the next step. But if you want to start with a dog check or visit the barista bar, let us know.
No, this is not the same thing. You file a report if something has actually been stolen, broken into or a suspicious package has been found. A suspicious situation is, for example, a car driving around at odd hours, a bag being transferred from car to truck, strange figures on the premises, someone asking all kinds of questions to staff that he/she has nothing to do with. These signs can help the police in further investigation.
This could be anything from door codes known to many drivers and staff. Replace these regularly, or choose other more secure means of access. Or reading security cameras with regularity. Not only if something is wrong with a load or cart, but also to see what is happening on your property and shed. Make sure you have good lighting on your property and business; criminals like to work out of sight.
Our range of trainings, scans, audits and knowledge sessions
Our offering focuses on strengthening resilience within the floriculture industry. We offer concrete solutions and knowledge that help companies grow sustainably and future-proof.
