Potato farmers are concerned about new nitrogen rules from the Ministry of Agriculture. Potatoes in sandy and loess soil must be harvested before 1 October and replaced by a so-called catch crop that absorbs a lot of nitrogen.
If farmers leave the potatoes in the ground longer, they can use less nitrogen the following year, Minister Piet Adema of Agriculture recently decided. Farmers hoped that their potatoes would be included in a list of winter crops.
This includes plants that are harvested after 1 November, for example, or plants that absorb as much or more nitrogen than would be the case with a sown catch crop, such as the starch potato. A farmer may also keep that plant in the ground after 1 October. Farmers with consumption potatoes must harvest before 1 October.
Farmers, however, predict the necessary problems. The growers point out that the potato is not yet fully grown at the end of the summer, especially since sowing started later this season due to the colder spring. Farmers believe that choices in agriculture are made based on what happens in nature, not because the calendar forces you to do so.
Potato farmer Henk Bosma from Zuidvelde therefore has little understanding for the new rules. “With a harvest before October 1, you have to start destroying foliage in early September, which takes a few weeks,” he says.
“The potato is still in full growth and the foliage doesn’t want to die in that case. That means you need at least twice as many pesticides.” In addition, says Bosma, a beeper in growth collects the necessary nitrogen in the last few months.
After the government presented a so-called draft list of winter crops last year, the government received hundreds of responses from farmers who shared similar concerns to those of Bosma. In the final decision, the responses were assessed and discussed with a group of experts. However, that did not lead to consumption potatoes being designated as a winter crop.
According to the ministry, the harvest largely takes place in July and August. That will happen in October at the latest. “These potato plants are sprayed to death before harvest, so that less nitrogen is absorbed than would happen if the plant were to die slowly. That is why it is necessary to sow a catch crop to absorb the remaining nutrients,” the ministry writes.
Bosma does not agree with the government’s explanation and does not intend to adhere to the date of October 1. The grower takes the consequences for granted. He expects civil servants to come to the conclusion that the new rules will not work. “Seasons shift. So you can’t plan the harvest in advance. In any case, I don’t do anything with these rules. We’ll see what the consequences are later. An official has to come up with a very good explanation to be able to explain this. “