Dutch Crop tour Dirk Binnema
'You can only trade with onions and grain'
De Boerenbusiness Dutch Crop tour eight plots with yellow seed onions will follow this year. The participating growers take us along with the growth from sowing to harvest and the decisions in cultivation. In this series of company reports we introduce them. In the second part: Dirk Binnema from Eenrum (Gr).
Father, mother, daughter and two sons are active together with one employee on the Groninger arable farm of the Binnema family. Binnema farms on the Groningen clay and has seed potatoes as its main branch. Moreover, many onions are grown in this remote corner of the Netherlands, a crop that is now indispensable on Binnema's company.
The total acreage is 180 hectares, of which 70 hectares are intended for seed potatoes, 33 hectares for sugar beet, 18 hectares for onions (of which 5 hectares are red and 13 hectares yellow), 15 hectares for winter wheat and 10 hectares for winter barley. It grows on light loamy soil with a siltability of 15 to 20%.
In the area that listens to the name Het Hogeland, the cultivation of seed potatoes prevails. Along the entire northwest side of Groningen, large storage sheds are everywhere and you can see potato crates outside in the yard from miles away, often piled up to six high. This is not the case with the Binnema partnership. All boxes have a neat shelter and the yard and barn look sleek. Dirk Binnema grows most of the seed potatoes for HZPC. 70 hectares of seed potatoes are planned for the coming season. He will also start growing mini tubers for the first time next season. A decision encouraged by Dirk's sons, who are both active in the business. They are already in the partnership and want to continue the business. His wife also helps where necessary, as does his daughter who works in agribusiness.
Growing in acreage is not easy
The company farms on 180 hectares and Dirk Binnema is definitely interested in expanding the acreage further. However, the problem lies in the availability of potato and onion land. Almost every grower in this area grows seed potatoes, so competition is high. In addition, land prices are skyrocketing. "If potato land becomes available at all, there is plenty of interest from an awful lot of growers. You just have to roll between them or win the lottery".
The building plan does not change much for this season. This also includes yellow seed onions, a plot of which is followed in the Dutch Crop tour† The reason for opting for seed onions is clear to Binnema: the revenue model. He can grow wheat there, but that has not been a high netting crop in recent decades. That is why he started with onions and that has improved in terms of balance in recent years. For example, 5 hectares of red and 13 hectares of yellow onions are planned for this year. Some of these are grown freely, so that Binnema itself has a free hand in sales. "With beets you are at the mercy of the cooperative, you have absolutely no influence on the seed potatoes, but with grain and onions you can speculate and trade".
Own storage pool
Binnema has a multi-year contract for dry from the shed with participation for 25% of the onion acreage. Binnema also uses its own pooling mechanism for the onions as a sales strategy by selling them in parts. The reason for this is to prevent the onions from leaving the shed for nothing again. He is not a fan of very long storage. After the cultivation of onions, sugar beets or seed potatoes are produced. The plots where potatoes are grown are plowed in the spring, which is doable on the light loamy soil of 15 to 20% silt. What the company does have to deal with at this location is the sensitivity of the soil to silting. As a result, irrigation before emergence is not an option.
The company is not organic, but the sprayer does not work overtime with insecticides. He says he only sprays when it is really necessary and always works carefully. Insecticides also have a negative effect on insects with a positive effect, Binnema explains. The seed potato grower does see that several crops are more difficult to maintain due to fewer herbicides and fungicides on the market. It is becoming increasingly difficult to control weeds and fungi.
Rainbow Farmer
With the exception of an irrigation system, the Binnema partnership has all the machines a farmer's heart desires. With the exception of beet harvesting, all work is carried out in-house. From your own fertilizer spreader to crane and from shovel bucket to mowing bucket jaws, it can all be found behind the dam piles of the Binnema partnership. Furthermore, his machinery is very modernized and not brand specific. There are many colored tractors to be found at the company. "In America they call that a rainbow farmer," laughs Binnema.
Robin Winter
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