Last Friday it was finally here: Jaarbeurs was the official start location of the first stage of the team time trial during La Vuelta Holanda 2022. We are proud to host such a fantastic event. All the more so because La Vuelta Holanda, like us, attaches great importance to sustainability. And that delivers great sustainable steps!
Thus, La Vuelta Holanda is organising a Green Caravan as the world's first-ever cycling event. The traditional advertising caravan, which precedes major cycling tours, consists only of sustainable vehicles with a sustainable message. In this way, we sprint together towards a sustainable future. This ties in with our goal of becoming Europe's most sustainable event and conference venue. We are happy to contribute to the green character that the Tour of Spain has. We aimed to get as close as possible to carbon-neutral in all operations, logistics and organisation. Thus, we made sustainable choices in terms of:
- The VIP Hospitality
- Corporate branding
- Catering at Jaarbeursplein and Hall 1
- Waste disposal
The VIP Hospitality
Not only was Jaarbeurs the official start and finish location of the first stage of the team time trial, but we also facilitated the international press centre, the Village Départ and the VIP hospitality programme. 1,500 guests from various companies enjoyed a fun and interesting programme all afternoon in Speys restaurant and were the first on the sidelines of the start to witness the cycling race from close by.
In terms of disposables for the catering industry, we also chose sustainable options. For instance, we used sustainable palm leaf plates for the food stations and trucks, and where possible we chose beautiful stainless steel cutlery, glassware, or biodegradable cups.
"Sustainable palm leaf plates, stainless steel cutlery and drinks in biodegradable cups"
Corporate branding
To give La Vuelta some more colour and, of course, to show that we are a proud partner, we adapted the stickers and banners in various places on our building. We chose a slogan with a sustainable message, which we can continue to use both during and after La Vuelta. This choice allows the banners to remain in place even after the event.
Catering at Jaarbeursplein and Hall 1
For outdoor catering, we used only compostable cardboard and napkins. All drinks were dispensed in PET bottles with a deposit. We donated these proceeds to the Princess Máxima Centre.
Both at the Moments and at the bar, there was a large plastic bottle into which people could throw their PET bottles to collect plastic. These bottles went to the warehouse, where we collected all the plastic in bulk. We had this collected and the proceeds donated to our partner, the Princess Máxima Centre.
The recyclable cups are produced from rPET. This material is considered one of the most eco-friendly packaging materials on the market.
"For the cups, we use rPET material - one of the most environmentally friendly packaging materials on the market."
Waste disposal
At the edge of the Jaarbeurs site, P1, P3, boulevard and at the catering points on the Croeselaan/Jaarbeursplein there were a total of 22 duo bins for residual waste. We also placed three 1,100-litre containers at each of the Jaarbeurs catering outlets for waste separation.
Fun fact! Did you know that with La Vuelta Holanda, Utrecht is the only city in the world to have hosted all major cycling tours? Previously, a stage of the Giro d'Italia finished in Utrecht and the Tour de France also started in the city once. The trilogy was completed with the arrival of La Vuelta Holanda.
Our sustainable ambition
These are great steps we can take to make events more sustainable. Read more about how we aim to fulfil our ambition of being 'Europe's most sustainable conference and event venue'.
