With the incorporation of growers' association Limbra by Agristo, a far-reaching collaboration is created. For Agristo, the integration is not the first.
Limbra has about 50 growers from Limburg and Southeast Brabant with a combined area of approximately 800 hectares and an agronomist. 'It was created at the time when an elderly commission agent stopped his trading activities,' explains chairman Theo Verhoeven. 'He had a group of potato growers under him who then decided to continue as a growers' association under the guise of more market forces together. We immediately joined when the Agristo location in Tilburg opened in 2001.'
However, due to the administrative burden, it has been decided that Limbra growers will supply directly to the factory under their own names with effect from January 1, 2017.
'Growers were unanimous in favor of the simplification. Little changes for them. Where Limbra used to act as an administrative link, the deliveries are now completed directly with the grower," Verhoeven explains.
Group purchasing manager Steven de Cuyper of Agristo sees 2017 as a transition year. 'From July 1, the integration will be fully operational, but for us it is not that big of a change. There will be no changes in the way of working and contracting. As far as we are concerned, it is a clear step towards the growers in which we communicate openly and transparently. That fits with our strategy.'