English grower goes Dutch CULTIVATION AND TECHNOLOGY are able to blow more air through the product, we also installed insulated shutters with a toothed bar instead of the slats that are mostly used here. These slats have the disadvantage that they easily freeze together in frosty periods, with the obvious negative consequences. Thanks to the Dutch shutter technology, Tweddle can instantly use mixed air, which enables him to create optimum air conditions. But what the Brits find the most unusual is the use of the heaters. Hardly anyone has them yet. Especially in a year like this, where the outside air and the tuber temperatures were very similar for a long time, you can’t really start a drying process without heaters’, Kok explains. Maximum benefit with heaters The venture in England is also successful because, according to Kok, Omnivent is a good business contact of Pepsico in Europe and the Middle East. Together with Bob Stanley, Pepsico’s recently retired cropping advisor, Kok has visited many growers and buyers. That led, last year, to Tweddle, who grows for Pepsico, investing over 320,000 British pounds in the new storehouse. ‘We deliberately chose to divide the store into two units. This has the advantage that we spread the risk if one of the units should develop rot. In addition, we can now spread our sales to our buyer, Walker crisps.’ In his last storehouse, Tweddle ran into the problem each year that he couldn’t dry his potatoes properly. ‘This was also a problem this year, many growers in this area had to sell their potatoes early because of Paul Kok (l) and Stuart Tweddle see rotten potatoes dry out nicely. OMNIVENT As a specialist in storage technology, Omnivent has been involved in the storage of potatoes for sixty years, Paul Kok tells us. ‘We have our own R&D department. This way, we can quickly respond to current problems in the market.’ There are currently thirty people working at Omnivent in the Netherlands and another hundred at the location in Poland and three in Beijing, China. ‘Furthermore, we are busy expanding our market to India and Argentina’, Kok reveals. The annual turnover of the company amounts to approximately 20 million euros. 70% of the turnover is exported to all European countries, but also to: Russia, China, India, Pakistan, Latin America, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, South Africa, Egypt, Lebanon, Yemen and Turkey. rot. Thanks to my heating system, I was able to keep my potatoes dry’, the friendly Brit told us. ‘Hopefully, this will mean I can get maximum profit from the quality premium, so that I’ll receive a good price of 140 pounds (165 euros) per ton of potatoes when I deliver in May.’ ● Leo Hanse and Jaap Delleman Potato World 2012 • number 2 37 Pagina 36
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