I am part of a group of 15 young people on the first AHDB Potatoes Next Generation programme, which aims to give us exposure to the whole supply chain.
May was the introduction to the course, the people on it and the different AHDB Potatoes teams at their offices in Stoneleigh.
There were discussions on challenges to the potato industry, be it seed, production, storage, market volatility or consumption. We also heard from several people within the AHDB on areas such as their vision to help the industry grow and be more sustainable, the ways they are promoting and protecting potatoes and the various schemes and initiatives such as Grow Your Own, Cook Your Own and One Voice. The group also discussed the need to make potatoes relevant and accessible after hearing about the changes in the population, consumption and eating habits.
June our focus was on processing. We visited McCain in the morning who gave us information about their place in the market, the increased consumption of processed potatoes and the emphasis McCain puts on agronomy and working closely with growers.
We were then given a walk-through tour of the factory and the journey the potatoes take starting as the raw product and ending as McDonald’s fries.
That afternoon we visited Yorkshire grower RS Cockerill, where Martin Cockerill explained how their business developed and spoke about their relationship with Walkers before we were shown solutions to box layout and air flow that are being trialled.
Gary Collins from PepsiCo UK was also present and he told us about the ways they are working with Cockerill to deliver a 50 per cent reduction in carbon and water use, as part of the Pepsico Fifty in Five programme.
July’s focus was on potato handling and engineering technology. We started the day at Tong in Spilsby, where we were given a tour of the site and heard presentations from Edward Tong about the innovations that have taken place in areas such as cleaning, from being shook by hand to their Easyclean system, and design from sketches through to render that enables them to show the grader animated in a grower’s yard.
We were shown the flat bed laser cutter and how a flat plate can be made into any shape, aided by the use of indents in the steel and were able to give this a go by folding a flat sheet into an aeroplane.
In the afternoon we went to Grimme in Swineshead where they told us the history of the company and how they have expanded to being present in over 110 countries in the world. We also had a session on damage prevention, followed by a quiz on the company at the end.
In September the focus was on storage and fresh. We started at Sutton Bridge Crop Storage Research where the challenges facing storage, such as efficiency, sprout suppression and variety management were discussed. This was followed by a walk around the centre, with a practical session on diseases.
Simon Faulkner from Produce World was also present and spoke about the need to adapt and projects they are looking at such as the electronic nose and aerial photography.
We then went to IPL where Mark Taylor spoke about the company and issues for the industry, such as one in five potatoes in the home being thrown away and the fact there is no active rejection of potatoes but reduced purchases are an unconscious decision.
There was a workshop at the end where the group summarised by talking about the need for shared risk, increased trust and communication from seed to supermarket shelves.
In November we attended BP2015 where we had a networking lunch with the AHDB Board and senior staff and enjoyed the industry dinner together as the Next Generation group.
Our next session is in Scotland in December looking at seed.
Bryonie Cundy is field managaer at Nene Potatoes.
