Tijs Roeland (CONO): ‘Movement is essential’

Tijs Roeland, Manager of Technology & Projects at CONO Kaasmakers, is a man of action. He combines technical expertise with a passion for sustainability and collaboration. 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 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 insights on the challenges and successes at CONO, his view on the future of technology in the food industry, and the lessons he hopes to pass on to young engineers. “It’s about curiosity, persistence, and building a sustainable future together.”

What’s your outlook on life? What do you value most?

"I'm a family man through and through. Together with Nicolette, I have four children, and I’m incredibly proud of them. I love being surrounded by people, so our door is always open. It’s great to have guests over. I’m also someone who can’t sit still. I enjoy organizing, building, creating. As chairman of our local football club, S.V. Vrone, I’m working with the board and members on developing a brand-new and highly sustainable sports complex. There has to be movement—always, even after work hours! For example, we have a vegetable garden at the local gardening association. I find it fascinating to understand how nature works. We divided up the tasks: Nicolette handles the planning side of gardening, while I focus on planting, weeding, and hunting down snails. At peak moments, we harvest crates full of vegetables. Luckily, with a large family, they never go to waste. I’m all about connection and contact, I’m driven, and I want to achieve things. That’s why I think preparing the next generation is so important. My core values? Sustainability and transparency.”

Tapping into those values, what motivated you to work at CONO Kaasmakers?

“I initially joined through an interim position, purely by chance. It immediately felt like family. That’s due to our cooperative structure—it’s all about doing things together. We have traditional member meetings, which foster a strong sense of collective purpose. After all, everyone works toward the same goal. Reciprocity is everything here. This also demands complete transparency because the farmers own the cooperative and therefore the company. They’re highly critical, which keeps us on our toes. In the end, we all face the same challenges—rising energy prices being one of the biggest. That’s why it was fantastic when, after just nine months, I was offered a permanent job. What’s great about CONO is that everything comes together here: technology, sustainability, and collaboration.”

What does a typical workday look like for you?

“We start the morning with a daily meeting to review the past 24 hours and prepare for the next 24. Our production runs 24/7, and the process is so precise that downtime quickly becomes an expense. We are not talking about hours of downtime; we are talking about minutes. When it happens, we analyze what needs fixing and, more importantly, how to prevent it in the future. It’s a continuous feedback loop. Or, put differently: continuous improvement.

My responsibilities revolve around maintenance, safety, and sustainability. These are the topics I spend the rest of the day working on. Practically, this means I’m on the move a lot, discussing things with various people. I’m originally a project manager, and we work in a very project-based way at CONO. Anything we consider important becomes a project. There are always around ten projects running at once. Thankfully, I’m not doing this alone—I’m supported by several project managers. That’s the strength of the cooperative and the team. We do it together.”

Which personal qualities or skills are essential for success in a technical role within the food industry?

“Empowering people and giving them responsibility. We have plenty of technical experts here who know what they’re doing, and I don’t need to get involved in their technical work. I’m not walking around as some ‘George the Inspirator’—our people don’t need motivating. Everyone is proud of the Beemster brand, the finest cheese made from 100% North Holland meadow milk, with quality as the top priority. It’s about getting the right people together and creating opportunities for them to learn from each other. That’s what’s fun—we learn from each other every day, myself included. It’s the classic master-apprentice concept. Making mistakes is fine, as long as we properly manage the risks.”

Let’s zoom in on CONO’s ambitious goal: ‘positive for future generations.’ The elephant in the room is that milk production will remain highly impactful, even with innovative improvements. What’s your take on this?

“That’s the toughest question. Look, within our own site, I have influence. Beyond that, I don’t. In my view, milk and cheese will always be part of our lives because we that’s what we love. I don’t see that changing anytime soon. We can already make plant-based cheese, yes. We produce the highest-quality, best-tasting cheese together with our dairy farmers, using milk from our cows. Maybe things will shift in the future, but a lot needs to happen first. It’s a broader societal challenge.”

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

“Well, a leading role. Our current cheese factory was built between 2010 and 2014, and it runs on steam, completely powered by gas. To meet mandatory emission reductions, we’re transitioning from steam to hot water. This system allows us to manage processes much more efficiently. We need three key elements for this: electricity, a heat pump, and an electric boiler. The concept is simple. When we generate cold (for cooling and storage), heat is released. We capture that heat and upgrade it using the heat pump. That’s the main trick. The backup is an electric boiler, essentially a massive kettle.”

Will the electricity come from solar panels on the cheese factory’s roof?

“No, that wouldn’t be nearly enough. Our solar panels mainly power the office and charging stations. If we wanted to generate electricity for production, we’d need a site six times larger than what we have. Plus, we’re located in a UNESCO World Heritage area, so installing solar panels or wind turbines in the fields is a no-go. For that power supply, so to get rid of gas, we need a very large power cable. This will be installed—through close collaboration with Liander—by early 2027.”

Why does the cable need to be so large?

“It’s essential for stability and continuity. As I mentioned earlier, even a minute of downtime can cost us a fortune. Power outages are extremely expensive. With this new cable, we’ll be directly connected to the main grid. This way you bypass the fluctuations caused by other large users. Moreover, we’ll no longer be affected by future gas regulations.”

Were the cooperative’s members, the farmers, easy to convince to make this significant investment?

“Well… easy isn’t the right word. In the past, milk supply was the only requirement for production. Soon, or rather very soon, affordable energy availability will be just as crucial. Ultimately, it’s a major investment for a small cooperative. But with a CO2 reduction plan in place, we can’t continue business as usual. To further improve sustainability, we need to invest in that cable, even though Liander will own it. When you explain the costs of power outages, the importance of stability and continuity for the future, and how this cable guarantees that, the members understand the necessity. It aligns with our commitment to being positive for future generations.”

Will the role of technology in the food industry change over the next ten years?

“Yes. Technology will become even more important. The food industry must continue to improve sustainability, and that can only happen through smart technologies. Think automation and intelligent energy solutions.”

If you could give one message to young engineers or technicians that want to work in the food industry, what would it be?

“The most important thing—and this is a huge cliché—is to do what you love! Otherwise, it won’t work out. Also, don’t give up. When I look back at our journey with Liander regarding the power cable, it seemed impossible. But perseverance usually pays off. Lastly, stay curious, try to understand things, and don’t be afraid to say when you don’t understand something. If you have that courage, you can learn anything. Just like CONO’s ambition: ‘Positive together, for future generations.’”