Potato storage costs could be cut by around £2,000 by focusing on key issues directly affecting store running costs, claim British Potato Council (BPC) storage experts.
Speaking at the Seed Industry Event, Adrian Cunnington of the BPC’s Sutton Bridge Experimental unit highlighted ways to cut unnecessary expenses.
He said a typical 1,000 tonne refrigerated store could save as much as £2,140 over a seven-month period by using differential tariffs and by fitting storage controls which offer tariff management.
“Using night time electricity and altering day time tariff rates are options to could consider,” said Cunnington. “Further savings are made when store insulation is brought up to scratch by plugging air leaks, ensuring doors are kept closed and fitted with draught-sealing brushes and that temperature probes are working properly.
“This helps to limit fan running times to when the crop needs cooling, rather than simply having to expend energy to compensate for heat that has leaked into the store.
Cunnington said regular checks on tubers throughout the store must remain a priority to ensure energy cost savings do not compromise quality.
He said: “For disease or sprout control, maintaining a low temperature is often the best solution and energy use has to be managed to achieve this.”
He advised using the BPC’s Store Improvement Check as a guide for completing daily and weekly checks. And he urged storeowners to investigate other storage costs following a BPC survey last year which revealed 85 per cent of store managers were unaware of their costs.
The BPC has developed benchmarking programmes for seed, processing, pre-pack and salad crops, which include a storage costs calculator. The programme will calculate a total production cost for comparison with other UK operations.
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