On 7 and 8 November, Agrico held its annual variety show at its research station in Bant. During this show, the cooperative presented its new, innovative varieties and inspired visitors to work together to maximise professionalism in the chain.

Professionalism in potatoes

Good growth is at the core of Agrico’s strategic course. The growth ambitions can only be achieved by delivering the highest quality. To accomplish this, the company continuously invests in increasing the levels of expertise. This knowledge is shared to result in a professional product that all parties can benefit from.
 

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Impression of the Agrico varieties and seedlings show 2019

New on the variety list

Agrico lays the foundations for quality through measures such as innovation at its breeding station.

This year their efforts produced four new Agrico varieties for the Dutch Variety List:

Lugano

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Lugano; a new fries variety with excellent processing quality. It is also resistant to all pathotypes known in the Netherlands of both Globodera Rostochiensis and Globodera Pallida (AM Ro1,3)(Pa2,3).

Corazon

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Corazon; a fairly early ware potato with an attractive red skin and pale yellow flesh.

Paradiso

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Paradiso; a ware potato for the traditional markets in North Africa and South Europe. The variety stands out for its elongated, oval tubers with a fine skin.

Levante

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Levante; one of Agrico’s ‘next generation’ varieties. This is an excellent ware potato that offers Phytophthora resistance and an extremely high yield. It also has a lovely taste and attractive skin.

Agrico also has high expectations of its breeding company for the coming years. Thanks to the new greenhouse complex, improved and more efficient varieties can be developed for the future.

Spotlight varieties

In addition to the new varieties, Agrico also highlighted three other young innovative varieties that are currently conquering the market:
 

• Constance: an easy to grow ware potato with a wonderful skin. The variety is distinguished by a specific taste and is suitable for various preparation methods.
• Vogue: a ware potato with big tubers, intended for traditional markets. The excellent taste and fine texture distinguish this variety within this specific market segment.
• Laudine: a high yielding ware potato with an attractive yellow skin. As well as being ideal for boiling, this variety is also perfect for other preparation methods such as homemade fries, fried slices and mashed potatoes.

Sharing knowledge

Agrico’sactive commitment to boosting professionalism in the chain was illustrated bythe knowledge sessions organised during the show for Agrico customers. By sharing knowledge on its varieties and other important topics, Agrico aims to contribute to the growth of professionalism and cooperation in the chain.

The subjects addressed by the three knowledge sessions were: the potato market in Turkey, professionalism in the chain and an explanation of the spotlight varieties.

Theme Turkey

The theme of the variety show this year was Turkey. In the form of its subsidiary AR Tarim, Agrico has a professional partner for its exports to Turkey. About 150,000 hectares of potatoes are grown in Turkey, with a total yield of around 4.7 million tons (31 ton per hectare).

Turkey exports potatoes to Iraq, Georgia and other countries. The Netherlands, France and Germany are the most important countries of origin for the import of seed potatoes for Turkey.

In recent years, local production of certified seed potatoes has grown considerably to around 230,000 tons. In addition, 26,000 tons of certified seed potatoes were imported, yielding a total of 256,000 tons.