News Potatoes
NAV wants to re-bundle potato growers
The Dutch Arable Farming Union (NAV) hopes to be able to enforce better contract conditions for growers of French fries by establishing a producer organisation. It has been investigating the possibilities of setting up a producer organization for the sector for some time now. It is now taking the next step in this, so writes it.
During the annual conference of the NAV, the subject was already discussed by Maria Litjens. She obtained her PhD on this subject at the University of Groningen. In addition, amended legislation in the European Union offers new possibilities for setting up producer organisations. The NAV sees this as a signal to commit itself to this, for example for chips potatoes or protein crops.
Restart
The NAV has already tried to set up a producer organization for potato growers, mainly to control the supply and force a better price. However, the producer organization never got off the ground. According to the arable farming organisation, this was partly due to the fact that the possibilities within competition law were too limited. That has now changed.
According to Litjens' research, a producer organization now offers many more possibilities to protect primary producers. Among other things, the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) provides that a producer organization in the primary sector is no longer subject to competition law, but to agricultural law. This allows farmers to organize a larger part of the market. In the past this was 5% to 10%, now the NAV aims for 70% of the potato area.
Mastering the market
The producer organization may do what is necessary to achieve the objective, for which 10 objectives have been formulated. The producer organization must choose at least 1 of these, such as regulating the supply to stimulate the sales price. Making agreements with other producer organizations is not allowed. In the past, France has gone wrong with this. However, different organizations can join a Union of Producer Organizations (UPO) association. These are then seen as 1 producer organisation.
A producer organization must be recognized by the government before it can act. To this end, the NAV has already held talks with the Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality and Maria Litjens. The stated requirements call it feasible. The producer organization does not have to do sales for the members, as is now the case in the fruit and vegetable sector. These are subject to different regulations.
Not just potatoes
The NAV believes that the producer organization offers good opportunities to strengthen the chains and achieve a better product price. Not only for chip potato cultivation, but also for protein crops. The requirements imposed on the producer organization are simple, so that it does not entail high costs. Since the members can organize their sales themselves, the consequences for an entrepreneur are not great.
The intended producer organization offers opportunities in particular for joint contract negotiations with buyers, as potato growers in North America have been doing for decades. The trade union believes that supply can then be better matched to demand. That is why it is important that enough growers join the organization, so that the chip factory cannot ignore it. The union therefore writes: "The larger the producer organization, the more influence it can exert."
How further?
The NAV is in talks with various parties to clarify the options and support. In addition, discussions are taking place with other European stand organisations. The producer organization is not aimed at the buyers, but for an equal position in the chain. A better return is important for the entire chain and therefore also for the consumer.
Niels van der Boom
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