d CULTIVATION AND TECHNOLOGY d together as a new full liner The big news at PotatoEurope 2014 in the German village of Bockenrode – some even spoke about it as earth-shaking – was without any doubt the takeover of the Dutch company Miedema in Winsum by the Belgian family business Dewulf in Roeselare. This combination has resulted in a big full-liner company in the mechanisation of potatoes, onions and carrots. Number two now in the world ranking list thanks to a joint turnover of 70 million euros. With a total turnover of over 280 million euros in 2011, only Grimme is bigger but that amount also includes the technology around the cultivation of sugar beet. As Dewulf, with 45 million euros, brings in the highest turnover and didn’t have any limited shareholders, it’s logical according to Sales and Marketing Director Karel Decramer that with 72 percent, the Belgians are now the biggest shareholder of Miedema. ‘In order to act decisively, we’ve purposely not gone for a fifty-fifty partnership’, says Decramer. The remaining 28 percent of the Miedema shares will stay with the present Miedema management: Guido Mangnus and René Boeijenga. In Germany, Decramer and Mangnus were explaining the future plans of the new company. Why have you merged? MIEDEMA Turnover: 25 million euros Number of staff: 111 Locations: Winsum and Kolnag (Russia) Production: 1,500 machines Active in 45 countries Mangnus: ‘After stopping our collaboration with AVR, now two years ago, we as Miedema were clearly missing the role of lifting machines in our portfolio. This gab hasn’t hindered our development though. We’ve especially given a great deal of attention to the improvement of processes in the factory, and with success. We’ve grown fast in the last five years. However, to be able to play a significant role in the future, too, you need to be a full liner, which is why we started looking for a partner and we’ve found one in Dewulf. It’s a financially-sound company, just like we are. We think that we’ve chosen this strategic takeover out of a position of strength.’ Decramer: ‘We’d been discussing the idea of becoming a full liner in potato mechanisation for quite some time, but a takeover should’t be at the expense of our specialisation in harvesting machinery’. That’s why we’ve chosen a company like Miedema, which has the missing links. This means that we as Dewulf can continue to concentrate on harvesting machinery. Like Miedema, we’re also experienced in non-binding collaboration with other parties in order to serve certain markets, without there being any financial obligations. This means, Potato World 2014 • number 4 5 Pagina 4
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