t Sustainability in 2016 is all about balance TRADE AND MARKETING Jos Bus, TPC: ‘We already saw it coming in 2005 that we’d have to tackle potato cyst nematode without chemicals’ Resistance to eelworm has been an important focal point for seed potato trading company TPC in Emmeloord ever since its establishment, now 10 years ago. We already saw it coming in 2005 that we’d have to tackle potato cyst nematode without chemicals. What’s still left to try are more sustainable methods such as resistance’, says Jos Bus about TPC’s forward-looking approach. The young trading company has focused its own breeding work on this aspect right from ‘Sustainable variety than one market’ Mediterranean. It easily adapts to growing conditions. As the Electra is sold to different markets, we sell its seed from November to March. So we’re not dependent on a specific market. This is good for the entire chain, because it offers the biggest opportunities to sell high percentages of seed. And we can also pay our growers a good price, especially when you bear in mind that the Electra produces a good yield, up to 38 tons of seed per hectare. In a test with consumption potatoes in Great Britain, the variety even yielded more than 100 tons per hectare.’ the beginning and is now reaping the first fruits. ‘One of our first successful resistant potato varieties is the Toronto. It’s a French-fry variety with a very broad nematode resistance. These are resistances to Globodera Rostochiensis Ro 1, 2 and 3 and Globodera Pallita Pa 2 and 3. These resistances are, in fact, very strong and the variety was awarded three nines for them and one eight (out of ten) in the Varieties List. Furthermore, the Toronto is a variety with a low nitrogen demand. ‘It needs half the amount of nitrogen compared to other French-fry varieties. This appeals to many growers, also because it allows for more flexibility in the mineral balance. On average, the Toronto can yield 70 tons per hectare with a nitrogen application of 100 kilograms N per hectare. What really benefits the variety are the Proradix bacteria preparations, which significantly increase its vitality and uniformity. We’ve trialled the variety for three consecutive years with this bacteria preparation by treating the tubers and only see positive results. What’s particularly noticeable is that the root system is stronger than that of the untreated plants. The sustainability lies in the fact that a plant gets stronger as a result of a natural product instead of fertilisation or chemicals. Guus Heselmans, Meijer Potato: ‘Lady Anna produces the most chips per hectare’ ‘Use what you produce. This has been the Meijer company slogan for many years so your question is an easy one’, Guus Heselmans of the breeding and seed potato trading company in Rilland laughs out loud. ‘I’m sorry, but it brings me right back to our up-and-coming French-fry variety described earlier, and that’s the Lady Anna. So I’ll repeat the sustainable characteristics of the variety. The entire cycle naturally starts with the cultivation of seed. The Lady Anna produces a relatively high number of tubers for a Frenchfry variety. On average fifteen tubers per plant. That’s what a seed potato grower likes to see, lots of tubers and also an even grading with a maximum of tubers in the desired sizes. If we look at the consumption crop, this quality – lots of tubers per plant – makes it possible to plant the Lady Anna at a greater distance. The variety takes up more space to divide the tubers evenly in the ridge. This means that the consumption potato grower needs fewer seed than for an average French-fry variety. Another sustainable quality of the Lady Anna is that all the tubers develop into the desired chip length. This quality didn’t change in the last growing season, first with a period of drought followed by lots of rain. Not a single tuber was discarded in the Frenchfry factory. All the tubers flowed straight toward the cutting lines. Lady Anna is a variety that may not perhaps yield the most tons per hectare, but it definitely produces the most chips. And not only because the tubers all have the desired chip length, but also because the longoval shape minimises skin losses. Less waste is also one of the sustainability themes, especially with the manufacturers’, Heselmans emphasised. ● Leo Hanse and Jaap Delleman Potato World 2016 • number 1 21 Pagina 20
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