TRADE AND MARKET I NG Fruit Logistica: the meeting place for the fresh world already 25 years Europlant celebrates its 25th anniversary In the stands of the seed potato companies, the atmosphere is mainly positive. Most trading companies have sold their most important varieties early and expect to sell virtually all their stocks. ‘The only problem is that we have to say “no” more often’, says Jan Willem Sepers, who is responsible for sales to Asia, the Middle East and Africa. ‘That’s not so good, certainly in the new markets that we’re starting to develop.’ Europlant expects to increase its acreage quite a lot in the coming years. Potato World will return to these plans in detail later this year. We will then focus attention on Europlant’s 25th anniversary celebrations. Prince Edward Island invests in the potato sector The growers on Prince Edward Island (PEI), in the east of Canada, have had a good season. ‘It was dry but, on average, the yields were good and the market is also friendly’, says Greg Donald, General Manager at the PEI Potato Board. ‘More inland, and also in the northeast of the US, the harvest was generally a bit lower.’ The potato sector on the island is changing. With the cooperation of potato processor Cavendish and the provincial authorities, investments are Wifo’s debut at Fruit Logistica This year, Wifo was also present in the technology halls. ‘We wanted to see whether this is also an interesting show for us’, says Wytze Anema, who has found a place next to Bijlsma Hercules. To interest a target group that’s as broad as possible, Anema chose to take his box tipper system along. ‘Everyone in the fresh world has to work with internal logistics. But we’ve already received specific questions about our onion planter. Next time, I should perhaps take a plant element along. Will there be a next time? ‘I think it’s an interesting trade show. Just like in Kortrijk, you get a special public. It’s quite likely that we’ll be here again next year.’ being made in cultivation research in three focal areas: soil, planting stock and science & technology. It’s a threeyear program whereby research will be mostly carried out at the farms themselves. On the marketing side, the islanders will continue to build the PEI Potatoes brand. ‘It’s difficult for us to compete purely on price. It’s our reputation we must depend on, which is why we’re looking for cooperation with the tourism and fisheries sectors. We want to promote ourselves even more as a food island. We’re doing this together with the cooking school, among others. We’ve also launched an App, which helps the consumer find where you can buy our potatoes. To the question of whether Trump can, in any way, influence the cultivation of potatoes in Canada, he answers: ‘No, I don’t think so. We haven’t received any signals that we may be losing markets. Canada and the US are trading a lot with each other and I don’t expect that to change very soon. Only protected market sectors such as dairy and poultry may have reason to worry.’ 20 Potato World 2017 • number 3 Pagina 19

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