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Boni and Everyday potatoes from a close partnership with Belgian growers
8
June
2020
Ever since it was discovered in South America, the potato has been part of our daily cuisine. Since September 2018, Colruyt and OKay customers are able to buy potatoes resulting from a close partnership between 17 Belgian growers and Colruyt Group. The goal of this project? To achieve a more constant quality, guarantee a stable price for growers and extend the potato season in Belgium.
Close partnership
The potatoes in our Boni Selection French fries and Everyday Mealy potatoes (5 kg) are the harvest of a close collaboration between Colruyt Group and 17 Belgian potato growers. In the past, they hardly ever had contact with supermarket chains. In this project however, they sit around the table together and share their knowledge. This has enabled them to select the varieties best suited for the Belgian soil types and to make agreements about quality. Colruyt Group is the first Belgian retailer to have set up this kind of partnership.
As a producer, we now feel more involved. It is nice to know who our customers are and where our potatoes are sold. Because of our close relationship with Colruyt Group, we are doubly motivated to set the bar higher and higher for quality.
Patrick Van de Steene, cultivation supervisor for late potatoes and grower from Hainaut.A close collaboration, many advantages
Because of this close partnership, benefits and risks are fairly distributed. Rony Neufkens, head of Colruyt Group’s vegetable purchasing department explains: “We want to highlight the expertise of Belgian potato growers and at the same time protect them against price fluctuations. Together we also managed to extend the Belgian potato season, before switching to imported potatoes. By helping each other, cooperation is only becoming stronger.”
With this initiative, we contribute to the following Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations.
