Agriphoto

News Potatoes

Chamber wants to move potato harvest deadline

26 September 2023 - Redactie Boerenbusiness - 12 comments

The House of Representatives wants the latest harvesting date for potatoes on sand and loess to be postponed by two weeks. A motion for this was submitted by the BBB and SGP was adopted by the House of Representatives this afternoon. Potatoes should have been harvested before October 1, but due to the wet and late spring, this date was seen as unrealistic by growers and processors.

Recent research from Wageningen University shows that more nitrogen is absorbed when sowing catch crops in the second half of October compared to the proposed reduction in the nitrogen use standard, the motion states. That is why MPs Caroline van der Plas (BBB) ​​and Roelof Bisschip (SGP) requested that the harvest be made before October 1 and that the catch crop that must be sown afterwards be postponed by two weeks.

Yesterday it was announced that Minister Adema has postponed the latest harvest date for maize in the provinces of Drenthe, Groningen and Friesland from October 1 to October 10.

Minister's response will follow
The government did not actually want to postpone the deadline because, according to them, scientific research has shown that the earlier the catch crop is sown, the more effective it is in capturing nitrogen. After the motion on the harvest date of potatoes was adopted, Van der Plas asked the minister to provide a quick response. After all, it will be October 1 in a few days. Adema has promised to submit a letter this week after the signal from the House.

The House of Representatives wants to get rid of calendar farming
The House wants to get rid of so-called 'calendar agriculture' completely. This was evident from several adopted motions, including one in which the House asks the government to fully focus on target regulations instead of means regulations in the 8th Nitrate Directive action program yet to be drawn up. The current manure rules lead to a calendar on which farmers must take some form of action on almost sixty dates in connection with manure legislation, the CAP, or other matters, according to the petitioners, Thom van Campen (VVD) and Van der Plas (BBB). Farmers do not work with a government calendar, but with the conditions of nature and these product regulations - such as the October 1 harvesting date for ware potatoes - are counterproductive, because potatoes are not yet ripe and will still absorb nitrogen if they remain in the ground longer, it says. in the motion that can count on a majority.

The House also requests the government to expand the (agricultural) measuring network with which water quality is measured and to adjust the measuring frequencies in such a way that there is clear insight into the effects of the measures in the 7th AP, including the early harvesting of crops.

The House also wants the government to consult with the sector about proposals put forward by the sector itself, such as an obligation to sow catch crops as an alternative to the discount on the nitrogen application when harvesting in October on sand and loess, possibly supplemented with other mitigating measures. measures. Preferably with a view to next year and in any case in the run-up to the 8th AP.

Do you have a tip, suggestion or comment regarding this article? Let us know
Comments
12 comments
Subscriber
sefO 26 September 2023
This is in response to it Boerenbusiness article:
[url = https: // www.boerenbusiness.nl/akkerbouw/aardappelen/artikelen/10906117/kamer-wil-oogstdeadline-aardappelen-verschuiven]Kamer wants to shift the harvest deadline for potatoes[/url]
I don't care about the 7th or 8th AP, you are not going to subordinate the main product to a catch crop, that is an abuse of power, a serious form of expropriation, the farmers can have their own land at their disposal between /- March 15 and September 30, I call that pure theft.
The Dutch farmers guaranteed top products, but due to a minister's bungling, that guarantee is taken away from the farmers, it is no longer normal what a minister's clumsiness can bring about
Subscriber
Louis Pascal deGeer 26 September 2023
Finally some common sense in the House of Representatives, just before the elections it seems as if the BBB is already becoming very big. Conducting scientific research into what every farmer has known for a long time seems to me to be a waste of time and money. Every time we do not follow Nature but want to dictate it, we make a serious mistake. Calendar agriculture must be flexible and not depend on a decision by the cabinet or parliament, but on what Nature says.
Subscriber
Pieter 26 September 2023
You must have sprayed your potatoes 2 weeks ago to legally harvest them before October 1
Subscriber
innovative 27 September 2023
then you would have been very much behind the rules. who does that now?
and what captures more nitrogen? an earth crop that is still growing or a recently sown yellow mustard. what nonsensical regulations. it shows once again that politics and practice are still miles apart. I would get the nitrogen from somewhere abroad if I were to be cut back on it. You're not going to spray your nature to death sooner. what nonsense
Subscriber
Roy 27 September 2023
Calendar farming smells like communism. And indeed let her buy all those edges and edges first. From one day to the next they take part of the land out of production without compensation? It's surprising that there hasn't been much action against this
Subscriber
AVR 27 September 2023
Pieter wrote:
You must have sprayed your potatoes 2 weeks ago to legally harvest them before October 1
If you're so good you won't stay a farmer for long haha.
Subscriber
time bomb 27 September 2023
Roy wrote:
Calendar farming smells like communism. And indeed let her buy all those edges and edges first. From one day to the next they take part of the land out of production without compensation? It's surprising that there hasn't been much action against this
I don't think they should buy up those edges at all, far from it. The point is: they have to provide a generous compensation for this, the same with the geese foraging areas. In both cases they only talk about compensation. If they were to approach this in a more friendly manner, the farmers would be more willing to do so. They should not want a beautiful landscape as they think it should be at the expense of the farmer. A beautiful landscape is only beautiful if all crops can be farmed right up to the edge. Over time, all these field edges of today will become a huge dirty mess, and with a package of resources that will become increasingly difficult.
Subscriber
nitrate solution 27 September 2023
What nonsense. As a sector, we have had a nitrate problem for 35 years that we cannot solve. It has simply been shown that sowing a catch crop around October 1 results in a much lower nitrate leaching. However, you should choose early varieties that are already ripe in September. You're not going to achieve that with Fontane. However, the entire chain must participate in this, so that as a grower you have a constant balance and the processors can use it to make fries.
We can all shout bloody murder now, but that will not solve the problems. If we want to continue growing potatoes in the sandy areas, we will have to make changes. Otherwise there will simply be a ban on potato cultivation.
Subscriber
Zeeuw 27 September 2023
What great responses here. That's the right tone. Indeed, get rid of politicians and civil servants is the motto. Consult with experts! !! at the table with the government to ensure that this nonsense of data is quickly replaced by targeted policy. Not spraying field edges is okay, but not fertilizing is not cultivating and requires compensation on a structural basis. If not, then immediately start farming everything again as before. Send those idiots out onto the heath, so they can look for salamanders!
Subscriber
xx 27 September 2023
I don't think the nitrate solution is to just grow premieres, zorbas or anostas.
These are certainly not storage potatoes. We are doing a good job, when the potatoes are ripe we spray them and immediately add green manure after harvesting, regardless of dates. Then little N is lost. Just common common sense, that will get you the furthest.
Subscriber
Drent 27 September 2023
xx wrote:
I don't think the nitrate solution is to just grow premieres, zorbas or anostas.
These are certainly not storage potatoes. We are doing a good job, when the potatoes are ripe we spray them and immediately add green manure after harvesting, regardless of dates. Then little N is lost. Just common common sense, that will get you the furthest.
That's all fine, but here in the north, sowing green manure in October doesn't work out unless it has to be grass or rye. The problem with this is that you breed nematodes and wireworms again.
You can no longer respond.

What do the current
potato quotations?

View and compare prices and rates yourself

Call our customer service +0320(269)528

or mail to support@boerenbusiness.nl

do you want to follow us?

Receive our free Newsletter

Current market information in your inbox every day

Login/Register