Potato Review

18 POTATO REVIEW NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2019 PREVIEW: BP2019 Next season’s agronomic challenges and a seasonal evaluation can be discussed with Belchim Crop Protection’s Technical and Development Country Manager Adrian Sisson at BP2019. “For UK potato growers, it is an ideal time to evaluate the 2019 season, discuss what worked well and what didn’t, and begin planning for the next series of agronomic chal- lenges,” Adrian said. “Canopy management without diquat will undoubtedly be one of the biggest hurdles next season. Our team of Review agronomic challenges with technical expert technical experts will be on hand on stand 139 to advise on future approaches to desiccation and share what we have learned from our trials over the last four years.” He added: “We not only o er UK potato growers a complete range of solutions in pre and post emergence weed control, desiccation and potato blight control but also a wealth of knowledge and practical advice.” Belchim’s product range in potatoes includes Praxim (metobromuron), Gozai (pyra ufen- ethyl) and Ranman Top (cyazofamid). Yield management app to be launched A new app called Crop4Sight will have its o cial debut at BP2019. Crop4Sight is for potato crop yield management and has been developed by Produce Investments Ltd. It combines easi- ly-captured potato crop milestone data, such as emergence, ground cover and sample digs with 30 years of potato data and some clever software to give growers instant insight into their crop’s performance. From the date of rst emergence, Crop- 4Sight forecasts and benchmarks individual potato crop performance, enabling growers and agronomists to objectively understand the likely gross yield performance and ‘saleable’ crop yield by variety, region and planting date. Growers are invited to try the app for themselves at the show, as well as hear testimonials from growers who have trialled the technology. One of these is Emma Kelcher, Technical Manager at Elveden Farm Estate on the Norfolk-Su olk border. She said: “Going forward, the potential of the Crop4Sight app for us as a business will help us look at our yield potential, which may increase by more than 10%, which is very signi cant.” “ e Crop4Sight app has the potential to increase our saleable yield by more than 10%. In order to do this, the app gives us the graphs and the charts that we need to make these decisions in an instant.” Join 90th birthday celebrations Potato and vegetable handling equipment manufacturer Tong Engineering, which is sponsoring BP2019, is inviting visitors to join its 90th anniversary celebrations whilst discussing the latest developments in advanced potato handling solutions at its stand in hall 2. e company’s roots date back to 1930. It manufactures grading, washing, polishing, pro- cessing and box handling equipment. A move to a new state-of-the-art production facility is scheduled for completion in Spring 2020. “We are very grateful to our customers in the UK and overseas for the opportunities over the years to design and manufacture some of the most advanced vegetable han- dling systems,” said Edward Tong, Managing Director at Tong Engineering. “Our company’s development, reputation and track record has been built upon our close working relation- ships with growers and processors of all sizes.” Chairman Charles Tong said: “Our anni- versary celebrations highlight our ongoing commitment to the industry to invest in the latest technological advancements, whether that is in progressive equipment controls or modern drive systems.” e company launched several new products in 2019, with key developments in its range of washing equipment, including its next generation barrel washer, pre-soak tank with integrated destoner, the FieldLoad PRO, and high capacityMonstaFill box ller.