'CZAV shortening is not a cigar from its own box'

Coöperatie CZAV pays out a discount of €1,3 million to its members. The cooperative closed the 2017/2018 financial year with positive figures for its core activities. This despite the special season.

Despite the drought problems in 2018, the cooperative managed to achieve positive figures. However, the drought problem has meant that less crop protection products and fertilizers have been used.

According to Ko Francke, the deputy director of CZAV, not much less fertilizers have been used in arable farming. "Most fertilizers had already been applied when the drought started. The livestock farmers have applied considerably less, but CZAV notices that less. This has to do with the acreage ratios."

Fewer crop protection products
Fewer crop protection products were used. "The disease pressure was less (there was less phytophthora and less mildew), but the insect pressure was very high," reports Francke. It is also expected that less crop protection products will be used in the long term.

Francke says that the profit on those crop protection products is not leading. "After all, the return for the farmers is leading. So if there are opportunities to reduce cultivation costs, we take them. We try to meet the requirements of the buyers, including through PlanetProof."

Despite the fact that less was sold, CZAV has clearly increased its market share. This is due to the arrival of new customers or expansion of existing companies. Francke indicates that the revenue of CZAV is therefore stable to increasing.

'No cigar from your own box'
The reaction from the farmers is that the shortening is a 'cigar from its own box'. Francke is clear about this: "We are a cooperative and do not withhold profit, while other companies may do so. However, we as a cooperative must be healthy. It is also true that the shortfall comes on top of the competitive market price."

The discount will be paid out next week (week 48). Last year the shortfall also amounted to € 1,3 million, but in the years before this it was regularly higher.

Anne-Jan Doorn

Anne Jan Doorn is an arable expert at Boerenbusiness. He writes about the various arable farming markets and also focuses on the land and energy market.

aj.doorn@boerenbusiness. Nl

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