From 2027 onwards, the Province of Antwerp will invest €50,000 annually in Steunpunt Groene Zorg. Currently, 250 agricultural and horticultural businesses in the province offer vulnerable people meaningful daytime activities in a green environment, a number that continues to grow each year.
This investment, running until 2031, aims to further support the growth of care farms. Steunpunt Groene Zorg connects care seekers with care farmers, guides starting care farms, and organizes training for existing ones. The province emphasizes the broad societal role of agricultural and horticultural businesses, which, besides food production and agricultural education, also offer opportunities for social interaction, rest, recovery, and personal growth.
At Korenblokhoeve care farm in Tielen, the strengthened collaboration between the province and the support center was presented. The annual provincial support of €50,000 enables the center to guide more farmers who wish to open their businesses to people with care needs. Simultaneously, it helps care seekers find suitable places and supports existing care farms with advice, training, and guidance.
Jan Guns and Hilde Van Den Broeck, operators of a dairy farm with 270 cows in Tielen, shared their experiences as a care farm. Their son Maarten requires care, which inspired them to create space for a care guest. Their other son, Nick, is also a co-operator. Hilde emphasizes the potential of the guests: 'They all enjoy working with the calves! Each guest has their talents, and when you carry out certain tasks together, you gain a lot of satisfaction and become attuned to each other.'
Steunpunt Groene Zorg provides both administrative and substantive guidance to new care farms, adhering to the motto 'the right care seeker for the right care farm'. They screen and match care needs with suitable farms. In 2025, the support center received 371 care requests in the Province of Antwerp. They also support care farms with training and networking events, as Hilde from Korenblokhoeve has already experienced.
