Tijs Roeland, Manager Technology & Projects at CONO Cheese Makers, is a man of action. He combines technical expertise with a passion for sustainability and cooperation. For him it's all about creating movement, by putting people and quality first.

Driven by his personal values - connection, innovation and responsibility for future generations - Tijs Roeland works daily on complex projects that make an impact. Whether it's the transition to climate-neutral production, technological innovations or motivating a proud and engaged team, Tijs brings vision and decisiveness together. In this interview, he shares his insights on the challenges and successes at CONO, his vision for the future of technology in the food industry and the inspiring lessons he wants to impart to young engineers. "It's all about curiosity, perseverance and building a sustainable future together."

How do you stand in life? What do you think is important?

"I am a family man pur sang. Together with Nicolette I have four children and I am very proud of them. I love being together, so our door is always open. It's great fun to have people over. Furthermore, I am someone who cannot sit still. I like arranging things, building things, making things. As president of our local soccer club, S.V. Vrone, I am working with the board and the members to build a whole new - and super sustainable - sports complex. There just always has to be exercise, even every evening after work! For example, we have a vegetable garden at the local garden club. I think it's so cool to figure out how that nature works. We have divided up the tasks: Nicolette figures out how we do the vegetable gardening, I'm more of the planting, hoeing weeds, snail hunting. Yes, it produces crates full of vegetables at peak times. We have a big family, so we can always get rid of it. I like connection and contact a lot, am driven and like to accomplish things. That's why I think it's so important to prepare the next generation. My core values? Sustainability and transparency."

Connecting to those values, what motivated you to work at CONO Cheesemakers?

"Initially, I came in by chance through an interim position. It immediately felt like family. That's because of our cooperative structure, doing things together. We have traditional membership meetings, which brings a good sense of togetherness. After all, everyone is striving for the same goal. Reciprocity is everything here. By the way, that requires supreme transparency. After all, the farmers are the owners of the cooperative and thus the business. They are extremely critical. That keeps us on our toes. In the end, we all face the same challenges; rising energy prices is perhaps the biggest. So it was great that after three quarters of a year I could join the company immediately. The great thing is that at CONO everything comes together: technology, sustainability and cooperation."

What does a typical workday look like for you?

"We start in the morning with a daily meeting, where we discuss how the past 24 hours went and what to expect in the next 24 hours. Production runs 24/7. That process is so delicate that downtime can quickly become an expensive joke. We're not talking about hours of downtime: we're talking about minutes. When that happens, we look at what we still have to do about it, but above all, how can we prevent it in the future? It's a continuous feedback loop. In other words, continuous improvement.

My portfolio includes the pillars of maintenance, safety and sustainability. These are the subjects I spend the rest of the day working on. In practical terms, this means that I'm on the road a lot to consult with people. I am originally a project manager and that's how we work a lot at CONO. We turn everything we think is important into a project. There are always about ten of them running at the same time. Fortunately I don't have to do that on my own; I am supported by several project leaders. That is the strength of the cooperative and the team. We do it together."

What personal traits or skills are crucial for success in a technical role within the food industry?

"Putting people in their place, giving them responsibility. There are so many technicians walking around here who know their stuff; I really don't need to interfere with the content. Nor do I walk around here as some sort of 'Sjors the inspirator', because I don't have to motivate our people. Everyone is proud of the Beemster brand, the tastiest cheese, that golden yellow wheel, made from 100% meadow milk from North Holland, where quality is paramount. It's about getting the right people at the table and allowing people to learn from each other. That's the nice thing, we learn from each other every day; including me. Just say the classic idea of teacher-learner. Making mistakes is allowed, as long as we frame the risks well."

Let's zoom in on an ambitious goal of CONO: "positive for future generations. The elephant in the room is that the production of milk will continue to be very taxing. Even if you take further steps through innovation. How do you view that?

"That's really the hardest question. Look, here at our own location I have influence. Outside of that, I don't. In my opinion, there will always be milk. And cheese. Because that's what we love. So I don't see any rapid change there. Making plant-based cheese is already possible. We make the best quality and tastiest cheese, together with our dairy farmers, from the milk of our cows. Who knows in the future, we might take a crack at that. Before that happens, a lot has to happen. That is something of the whole society."

What role does technology play in achieving your goals of minimizing emissions toward 2030?

"Well, the main role. We built the current cheese factory in 2010-2014, with steam as the main driver. Completely based on gas, in other words. To meet the mandatory emissions reduction, we are now transforming from steam to hot water. This is a system that allows us to control the processes many times more efficiently. For this we need three things: electricity, a heat pump and an electric boiler. The idea is simple. When we produce cold - which, of course, we need for cooling and storage - we release heat. We capture that heat and value it through the heat pump. That's the main trick. The backup is an electric boiler, say a giant of a kettle."

You then get the power needed from solar panels that are on the roof of the cheese factory?

"No, that would not produce nearly enough. Our solar panels are mainly for office and charging stations. If we wanted to generate our own electricity for production, we would have needed a site six times the size of ours. Apart from the fact that we are located in the middle of UNESCO World Heritage Sites. So solar panels or wind turbines in the meadow is a no-go-area. For that power supply - to get rid of gas - we need a gigantic thick power cable. That will be there - in close cooperation with Liander - in early 2027."

Why does that have to be such a hugely thick cable?

"That is essential for stability and continuity. I mentioned earlier that one minute of downtime costs us a god's fortune. Failures are therefore incredibly expensive. With that new cable we are directly connected to the power plant. You take out 'the loop', so you are no longer dependent on peaks and troughs caused by other large consumers. Moreover, in the future we will then no longer be dependent on regulations surrounding gas."

Were the members of the cooperative, that is, the farmers, easy to convince to make this giga-investment?

"Well ... easy. I wouldn't call it that no. Before, the supply of milk was the only condition for production. Soon, say soon, to that will be added the availability of affordable energy. Because ultimately it's a big investment for a small cooperative. Because we have a CO2 reduction plan, we cannot keep doing what we were doing. In order to become more sustainable, we have to invest in that cable, even though it remains the property of Liander! If you explain what the costs of failures are, and how important stability and continuity are, also for the future, and that you can guarantee that with that new cable, then you have the members with you. positive for future generations."

Will the role of technology in the food industry change in the next decade?

"Yes. Technology is becoming even more important. The food industry must continue to become more sustainable, and that is only possible with smart technologies. Think of automation and smart solutions for energy use."

If you could give one message to young engineers or technicians who want to work in the food industry, what would it be?
"The most important thing, and this is an eye-opener: do what you love! Otherwise, it's not going to work anyway. Other than that, I would say, 'don't give up.' When I look back at our route with Liander around the power line, it seemed impossible. If you persevere, it usually works out anyway! In conclusion, be curious, try to understand things and dare to say it when you don't get it. If you have that guts, you can learn anything. Like CONO's ambition: 'Positive together, for future generations'."

This interview by Roderick Mirande, appeared in Food Industry Trade magazine.