TRADE AND MARKE T ING countries such as India and China, where pesticides are often not available or too expensive for the farmers. Because Sarpo Mira has a Peter van Eerdt (l): “The three markets, namely organic, chips and export, offer a strong foundation for that.” guaranteed yield, Van Eerdt expects great opportunities from this variety. ‘The three markets, namely organic, chips and export, offer a strong foundation for this’. Another strategy to fight Phytophthora is to grow an early variety, for which Danespo has the Solist in its product range. This variety is reasonably resistant against Phytophthora infestans and, as a result of its early maturity, it is already fully grown before the major infections are able to lash out. The Solist has already built up a position in the export world and can also be bagged if lifted while green. Furthermore, Van Eerdt sees in the market that 90 percent of the buyers of organic products are well-to-do. They buy organic from an idealistic viewpoint, whereby they are seeking a certain satisfaction. Increasingly important factors with these buyers are that the products taste good. With the Ballerina, Danespo expects to have developed a variety that can provide this critical consumer group with a pleasantly-tasting and easily-grown organic potato. The Belgian companies Potato Master and Warnez are already packaging this variety. Jelly scores in the refrigerated display In the large-sized hall at Ten Brinke’s in Creil, there is a refrigerated display right at the entrance with CêlaVíta products on show. Proudly, director Ben Bredek of Europlant Nederland tells us that all those bags contain the new Jelly variety. Bredek tells us that CêlaVíta has been using this variety for two years already for the production of new mini potaBen Bredek: “The Jelly is intended to replace the Agria in the CêlaVíta product range.” toes. ‘In the producer’s range of peeled potatoes, the Jelly is intended to replace the Agria’, Bredek explains. The Jelly is a variety that yields approximately 70 tons per hectare and can easily be stored until March. As the Jelly’s strong points, Bredek mentions its consistent shape and the absence of hollow hearts. ‘The variety will have to prove itself in the long term, of course, but so far the experiences at CêlaVíta are positive.’ Serbian monastery symbol for the distribution of potatoes in Europe It is a complete building site at the location of Agrico Research in Bant. The offices in Bant are currently being thoroughly renovated to be ready for the developments that await the breeding sector. The potato store of the breeding station has temporarily been transformed into a proper conference room for this year’s variety show. As in recent years, the variety presentation’s theme was that of the sales markets. This year, Agrico focused the limelight on the Balkans, and Serbia in particular. When organising the show, the choice fell on copying an orthodox monastery as there are so many in Serbia. ‘For it was the monasteries that were responsible for the distribution of the potato throughout Europe’, says commercial director Jan van Hoogen. ‘Now, in the international “Year of the Potato”, it is not a bad idea to dwell upon that for a while.’ In this area, it is the Rivièra variety that is attracting a growing interest. This early variety produces big tubers at an early stage. According to Agrico’s agent Zoran P. Puača, proper user seed can be grown from this variety high in the Serbian mountains, as Zoran explains with a satisfied smile. Zoran P. Puaca (l) en Jan van Hoogen: “High in the Serbian mountains, user seed of the Rivièra variety is doing very well.” IPM focuses on the market In the northern village of Deinum, the Irish company IPM receives its visitors on an original Friesian farm. We find the varieties of which manager Erik Appeldooren expects a great deal, exhibited in the old farmyard. He says that the development of his own varieties is going well, and expects the acre14 Potato World 2009 • number 1 Pagina 13
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