Guus Loman (64) has been faithfully using the for four years now Arable farming Pro subscription† He finds it important for his company to keep an eye on market developments.
His father was assigned a farm in the Flevopolder in 1956, where Loman was born a year later. He knew from the age of five that he wanted to be a farmer; nothing else interested him. The same was true for his brother Henri Loman (60). Henri took over the parental farm and Guus that of his parents-in-law. They have now been in a partnership for almost XNUMX years.
What kind of company do you have?
"At the moment we have 30 hectares of seed potatoes - which is my biggest hobby - 11 hectares of onions and another 11 hectares of grain. We have let the sixty to seventy cows loose in recent years due to physical circumstances and have been out of our business for three years at the moment. The young stock was on this farm at that time and before they calved they went to my brother's farm. I was actually more of a cattle rancher, but over the years I have specialized in potatoes. width of the platform from Boerenbusiness fits in nicely with the different activities."
"I keep the company going together with my brother Henri and we also have one or two separate employees who help with sorting and harvesting. In the winter we do everything with the potatoes ourselves, except for bagging them in big bags. We plant, we milling, we select and in storage we also do everything ourselves, but we leave the harvesting and spraying to a contractor. The contractors have the very best machines and a driver, that works perfectly. The crop protection man is also very important for my company. I always tell him with a joke: 'In the summer the products are yours and after the harvest they are ours'."
How often are you on the site of Boerenbusiness?
"I check the website once or twice a day. Just a quick and easy click on the computer or telephone, inside or outside, it's all possible. I find it fun and interesting to keep track of everything, especially the potatoes and the However, in my opinion the seed potato market could be a nice addition to the site content of Boerenbusiness† I always glance at the front page for an overview of the news that is going on in the sector. I also think free trade is an important point within the company. I actually want to know what the onions are doing two or three times a day. It is of course the best to sell them as expensive as possible, but then you have to know the market. Actually, I can conclude that I like free farming, I need the tension to keep paying attention."
What do you excel in?
"I want to distinguish myself in terms of the quality of my seed potatoes and using new things that appear on the market. I want to classify the seed potatoes as high as possible and I try to be up to date with the new gadgets as quickly as possible. Now For example, I have a new remedy, Aloe Leaf, and eleven years ago I was also one of the first with an ethylene storage. Boerenbusiness is a valuable resource in this regard; one push of a button and you have a complete overview of what is going on in the sector. I'm getting wiser!"
How do you view the future?
"The future is difficult to determine… I actually don't know how long I'll be here. I don't have a successor at the moment. In principle, of course, we will continue as usual, as long as I continue to enjoy the game and my health allows it." This profession is simply the most beautiful thing there is, isn't it?!"