The PotatoNL listing has completed its honeymoon. Despite the lack of transactions in the free potato market, the listing committee manages to come up with new prices every week. Chairman Mark Brantjes considers it unlikely that the listing will change much in the short term.
PotatoNL was listed for the first time on Tuesday, November 14 published, after years of lobbying and 1 year of negotiations. Since then, recordings have been made twice a week: on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
Dialing in from south to north and vice versa did not go smoothly in the first few weeks belong. The listing committee has now put those problems behind them. "Everyone is working with a new protocol. That also takes some getting used to," says Brantjes. "You have to familiarize yourself with the rules and look for the space that is offered. With 8 notators and various interested parties, this is not always easy. However, everything runs smoothly."
Free trade
The potato market is characterized by a very low level of free trade. Free transactions can only be observed for category 2 chip potatoes. "The rules state that only sold lots are recorded that have taken place through negotiation," Brantjes explains. "From the harvest onwards, there has been a lot of forced supply; partly due to poor quality after a wet harvesting season. Potatoes are germinative and the frequent ventilation causes pressure points. To include them in the quotation, the lot may have a maximum of 50 CKA-II points. (inspection regulations) and the percentage of rot must also be limited to 3%."
Brantjes believes that the PotatoNL listing clearly offers added value for potato growers. "Adding variety groups has certainly shown its usefulness. This has made sales more transparent. A grower immediately knows which price suits his lot and destination. In the past this was less the case. Setting up 1 national listing takes a lot of time. required of all parties, but it was the only right way."
Evaluation
An initial evaluation round with the steering group and listing committee has now taken place. No surprising things emerged from this. "Our approach is not to change the design too much in the first year," says Brantjes. "We see the 2017/2018 season as a trial year. You have to give it time. A second evaluation will take place later this year."