'There is also money to be made in potato trade'

De Boerenbusiness Crop Tour 2021 will follow this year 10 plots of potatoes of the Innovator variety spread across the Netherlands. Every week we ask 1 potato grower about the plot, his choices and his vision. This week it is René Mesken, arable farmer in Appelscha (FR).

The potato planting has started, how is your company doing?
"We have not yet started planting, but I think we will go onto the land next week. I lease all my potato land and am still looking for more acreage for this year. Partly because of this, I do not yet know which plot is participating in the crop tour "We are of course busy preparing. Depending on the soil type, which is mainly sand here, we do the pre-treatment. For processing I have a grassland cultivator, a 7 meter cultivator, a spading machine and a 6 furrow plow. This year I have a new Grimme GB430 with ridging hood. With this I hope to plant around 250 hectares of potatoes this year."

Growing potatoes in a large area requires good organization, how do you organize that on the company?
"What I mainly work on is managing and arranging the company. It's about where your passion lies, what you enjoy. For me it's not about sitting on the tractor all day. contact with people, doing trade and large-scale agriculture. The company mainly grows French fries potatoes. Fontane, Innovator, Agria are my largest varieties. That market suits me best and that's where I have the connections." 

"You can go a long way with the staff and good transport. I have 3 trucks and can store 4.500 tons of potatoes myself. That is not enough, so I rent storage for potatoes elsewhere in the Netherlands. That way, not everything is sold ex-country. I rented a place to store potatoes near the processor last year. 

What is your vision and how do you see the company in 10 years? 
"My vision is large-scale agriculture, but I don't want to set a goal. A goal causes tunnel vision and then you get blinders on, you miss other things that come your way. Suppose I only want to have more potato acreage, then I would have I was not concerned with the onions. While there is easy acreage for that here. Large-scale farming is my vision and maybe in 10 years I will have 500 hectares of potatoes and 250 hectares of onions. We'll see what comes along."

Large-scale agriculture is your vision, how will you achieve this?
"I have so much energy, I want to use it where it pays the best. That is not every day chasing the boys on the field. I want to trade a lot in potatoes, because there is also money to be made there in addition to cultivation. I have some other plans that I want to pay attention to. The company should actually run on its own. You have to do what you are good at and what is necessary. The necessary thing I do is maintain relationships with all parties. the 9 things someone else can do better than me."

Why are you taking part in the Potato Crop Tour?
"I like to be on the road and you can learn something everywhere you go. You meet people and you never know how the ball will roll. That way you also prevent tunnel vision. I hope that despite corona we can visit each other in the field to share experiences. That's why I'm joining the crop tour."

Jesse Torringa

Jesse is an editor at Boerenbusiness and focuses in particular on the arable farming sector, including grain and onions. He also closely follows the fertilizer market. In addition, Jesse works on an arable farm in Groningen with seed potatoes as the main branch.

j.torringa@boerenbusiness. Nl

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