American ambassador Pete Hoekstra made a working visit to Barendrecht, the Netherlands, last Tuesday. He visited Dutch fruit and vegetable traders Olympic Fruit and HillFresh. He was then offered a lunch at the city hall.
Alderman Arnoud Proos, right, of Barendrecht tweeted this photo with Hans van den Heuvel, HillFresh, and ambassador Pete Hoekstra.
The visit was an initiative of the American embassy itself. The ambassador wanted to visit the fruit and vegetable sector in the Netherlands, and therefore ended up in Barendrecht. When the bench of the Mayor and Aldermen found out about the visit, Hoekstra was also invited to the city hall.
Managers Thijs van den Heuvel of Olympic Fruit and Hans van den Heuvel of HillFresh showed the ambassador around their companies. In the afternoon, Mayor Van Belzen told the ambassador that 25 per cent of all trade in fruit and vegetables takes place in Barendrecht. He also indicated there’s still plenty of room to grow.