A breakthrough has been made in the trade between the Netherlands and Argentina when it comes to planting material for potatoes. From harvest 2017 it is again possible to...
The Dutch Potato Organization (NAO) and the Dutch embassy in Buenos Aires have been working for years to reopen the border so that the export of seed potatoes becomes possible again. “It once closed when an alleged ring rot was found at a grower who grew seed potatoes imported from the Netherlands. However, we are 99,9% certain that this was an incorrect assessment on the Argentinian side,” explains Karst Weening of the NAO.
Chip factories hampered
This had unpleasant consequences not only for the companies involved. The two chip factories, McCain and Farm Frites, in Argentina are also affected by this. “Production continues, but testing of new varieties stops. Now that the border is partly open again, new varieties and genetics can be brought into the country using mini tubers and in vitro material. Especially if something goes wrong with local production, it can be repaired with imported plant material.” Another company that suffered from the closed border was HZPC. The trading house has a branch in Buenos Aires, but could do little in Argentina.
Additional export opportunities
Some patience is still required for the export of seed potatoes themselves. “We aim to achieve this quickly, but once this first step has really taken off and confidence is restored, there will certainly be an opening. The new Argentine government is more open to the outside world. Potato processing in Argentina and Brazil is growing, so there are certainly export opportunities.”
ARGENTINA: after 2,5 years we finally got green light to export 🇳🇱seed potatoes again to 🇦🇷@NLinArgentina @AgroindustriaAR @TopsectorTU
— Bart Vrolijk (@bartvrolijk) July 4, 2017