Berg was born on 7 February 1934 in
Bandung,
Indonesia, then part of the
Dutch East Indies, and later moved to Sumatra, near
Medan. During World War II, his father was conscripted, and died during the
Japanese conquest. Berg was interned with his mother and brothers, and moved to a men's camp at the age of 10. Berg, his mother and siblings, all survived their internment, but his mother died of starvation shortly after. After the war, the orphaned siblings were raised with foster families in the
Netherlands. He got his education in the Netherlands, where he went to the school of horticulture at
Breda. ==Career==