Ware potato growers Agrico, Leo de Kock and Nedato join forces in new independent cooperative

The ware potato activities of Agrico and Nedato, along with Leo de Kock, shall be hived off to form a new independent cooperative of ware potato growers. The new organization will start its activities this autumn. Further integration will then take place in stages.

Given the changing needs of consumers and the vision to set up sustainable integral chains , the three parties have spent the past few months giving in-depth consideration to the best way of collaborating. The general principle was that a collaboration has to result in a powerful, healthy organization that offers ware potato growers a good long-term prospect and responds to current and future consumer needs.

The new cooperative of ware potato growers will cooperate across the entire chain of growing, trading and packing. To maximize the benefits of this integration, the trading and packing activities will take place at the current site of Nedato in Oud-Beijerland (Netherlands). This site is the most suitable location to centralize these activities.

The site offers plenty of available space and is more centrally located for the majority of the growers involved. Centralizing the activities in one location brings improved control of the entire process, ensures more efficient business operations and contributes to the creation of a company-specific culture.

The relevant personnel of the three companies will transfer to the new organization, therefore continuing to ensure the knowledge of the ware potato market and operations. To secure the quality and reliability, the transition to one location will take place carefully and in phases.

Mark Zuidhof, Chief Operating officer of Agrico:
 

"In this new cooperative, the strategy focuses entirely on potato cultivation for consumption and the ware potato growers themselves are the owners. This joining of forces therefore ensures better long-term prospects for the growers involved."

Wim Van de Ree, Director of Nedato bv:
 

"Pooling knowledge and activities relating to ware potatoes creates a highly specialized organization with control over a short chain, in which customer needs and growers’ interests are linked effectively."

Jan Bijleveld, Director of Leo de Kock & zn BV:
 

"By means of this integration, we can further improve our services to customers and strengthen our position in the market. We are excited about the new opportunities that this merger offers our ware potato sector."