Crop tour Rene Mesken
'Future plans bring tunnel vision to potatoes'
De Boerenbusiness This year, Gewastour is following ten plots with the French fries potato variety Innovator. 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 first part: René Mesken from Appelscha (Fr).
Renowned by many agricultural entrepreneurs in the Northern Netherlands and often looking for potato land, that is René Mesken. Known for its hunger for potato soil, where distance is only a very small factor. The two yards of the Mesken company are located on the separation of Drenthe and Friesland in Appelscha. Apart from these heirlooms, Mesken is more into renting than owning. He rents land for onions, silage maize, but especially potatoes. He does this in Groningen, Friesland and Drenthe and grows around 250 hectares of potatoes.
Future subject to availability
For this, Mesken has all the mechanization in its own hands, including a high unloader and three trucks that can be driven with a T driving license. Partly due to the trucks that have a maximum speed of 50 kilometers per hour for which the driver does not have to take mandatory breaks, it is possible for the company to grow potatoes in remote areas. Not everything is stored by Mesken. About half of the potatoes are delivered ex-land to the processor. Of this 50%, 40% is grown under contract. The other potatoes are kept in one of the two storage sheds of 600 tons each or in sheds that Mesken rents extra.
During this period (end of March 2022), Mesken is still organizing potato soil for this growing season. He doesn't know how he sees his future: "The future is completely dependent on the government. If they make it even more difficult for livestock farming, it will be easier for farmers to rent out potato land. If you focus on a goal or if you want to in x number of years achieve certain things, then you are too focused on that. We call it tunnel vision. As a result, you no longer have a view on other possibilities that come your way and you have to watch out for that."
Selling in a rising market
Mesken grows a lot of potatoes freely, for which he has mapped out a strategy for sales. So he tries to sell in a rising market. This is because the customer is less difficult than in a declining market.
Partners of Mesken
Mesken's company is fully equipped for potatoes with its Dewulf Kwatro, high unloader and potato laundry. In onions and maize, the entrepreneur makes more use of contractors. For example, he works in the onions together with a contractor who carries out almost all the farm work and organizes the storage of the onions. The maize cultivation is largely done by another contractor and transported from land to livestock farmers. The same contractor is also responsible for all the spreading of the manure on the plots of Mesken.
Robin Winter
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