Largest sheep farm in Europe
DLV Consultancy has designed the largest sheep farm in Europe in cooperation with other Dutch consultants. The farm has been built in Kursk, Russia and...
Read moreSharing storageknowledge abroad
DLV Consultancy is a knowledge-based organisation. Inside the organisation is a lot of knowledge about the storage and preservation within the arable farming. This knowledge is shared with the customers. Our specialists discuss issues about the construction of building and the preservation of potatoes with the individual entrepreneurs and the industry that processes them. Barry Akkerman, projectleader construction, shared his knowledge with a big Israëli processor of potatoes. In this article, Barry tells you about his experiences in Israël.
Barry Akkerman: “I was invited in Israel to visit the biggest processor of fries. This factory produces fries for Mc Donalds, and all other kind of potatoproducts. Recommendations from our Dutch network brought us all the way to Israel.”
Damage due to pressure
The Israeli company has a lot of problems with good storage of their tubers. Damage due to pressure is a major problem. Because of this damage a large part of the tubers stored are unsuitable to use for the fries. Barry was asked to find a solution to this problem. “During my stay I thouroughly checked the factory and discussed with the processteam. I did a couple of measurements in the cells and compared the data with their previous data and the data from our knowledgebank. I discussed the results with the team. At our last meeting the director joined. When he heared about all the knowledge and experience of our company, he immediately changed his question. He no longer wanted advies based on the problems caused by the damage due to pressure, he wanted an honest vision and advice about the complete construction of the buildings and the preservationstechniques used.”
Better circumstances for storage and preservation
When Barry got back in the Netherlands he worked out the advice. He kept the differences between the countries in mind. The circumstances for storage and preservation is different in both countries. For example: there is another climate, and temperature during the day and night. This factory produces its own potatoes, which sometimes makes the periods for storage longer than what we are used to in the Netherlands. Sometimes the potatoes have to be stored for almost a year! When the production of potatoes is lower than expected, the factory buys potatoes in France and the Netherlands.
In warm countries it is hard to get cold open-air. Extra attention was neccessary to get fresh air to the products. Protocols where made to improve the quality of the storage and preservation.
Specific advices
Every building for storage and preservation of potatoes is different. For the company in Israel it became clear that blue damage spots due to pressure could be prevented by changing the height of the deposit of potatoes. However, this has a direct impact on the storagecapacity. Extra space is needed to store the products.
To get the best circumstances for the storage and preservation Barry wrote some protocols for the cooler, CO2 level and the use of the ventilation system. In his report he made a difference between short term actions and long term actions and investments.
Do you want to know more about the storage and preservation of potatoes? Please contact Barry Akkerman.