With the theme "Planting without breaking the sprouts. Harvest early", the new potato expert meeting was held at ROPA Rheinland on February 1, 2023.
The experts Barbara Kanders (NRW Chamber of Agriculture), Johannes Beckers (Wilhelm Weuthen GmbH), Peter-Heinz Küppers (Böhmer Verpackung und Vertrieb GmbH & Co.KG), Markus Unger (farmsupport GmbH), and Dr. Rupert Geischeder (ROPA Fahrzeug- und Maschinenbau GmbH) discussed opportunities and problems of new potatoes and pre-sprouting with the large audience.
After the panel discussion, the guests were able to continue and expand the discussion at a dinner together.
Besides the expert discussion, there was another highlight for all visitors: the ROPA hand planter for pre-sprouted potatoes. With this new machine, which was displayed for the first time at the ROPA Open House in November 2022, ROPA is supporting professional growers of new potatoes. Thanks to the gentle treatment and minimization of the mechanical stress of pre-sprouted potatoes, the seed potatoes are planted without any damage to the sprouts. One of the other main features of the machine was the working space for the staff. It is equipped with the best possible range of options to make working on the machine as comfortable as possible.
Planting without breaking the sprouts with ROPA planting technology
The four-row planter can be loaded with up to 5 pallets on which the pre-sprouted potatoes are stored in boxes. An operator loads the conveyor belts with full boxes of potatoes and ensures that the boxes are returned emptied. 8 operators take the pre-sprouted tubers from boxes on the conveyor belt and put them into the planting belts. This technology ensures the best possible protection of the pre-sprouted potatoes and allows to achieve daily yield of about 6 ha. The combination of the gentle treatment of the pre-sprouted potatoes and the precisely adjustable planting distance ensures optimal planting of the potatoes as well as fast and uniform coverage of the field and homogeneous sorting of the crop.
In the course of discussion with the expert audience, the new ROPA planter for pre-sprouted potatoes convinced many farmers of the benefits of effective and gentle planting, which does not break the sprouts. In the upcoming weeks, the new machines will be tested in the field by the farmers, who cultivate new potatoes.