Soils for potato products
Companies in the food industry face challenges. The betterSoil team conducted a workshop together with contract farmers on behalf of a large manufacturer of frozen potato products. Together with the customer and its partner farmers, betterSoil analysed problems in potato cultivation and developed solutions that could be successfully implemented.
Weather fluctuations make planning difficult
Highly fluctuating weather conditions lead to wet winters, as was recently the case in 2023/2024, meaning that farmers were unable to plant their seed potatoes until late in the season. This increases susceptibility to disease and infestation by pests such as the Colorado potato beetle. In other years, there are longer dry spells than usual, such as in the spring of 2025. Plants were affected by drought stress particularly early in the year.
Planning & procurement | Stabilizing yield
This makes planning for the purchase and production of potato products more difficult and costs more money. In the workshop, the betterSoil team led a technical exchange on how soil and proper soil management can reduce disease infestation and stabilise crop yields even under fluctuating conditions. The external expert perspective on the topic and the structured discussion led to a fruitful exchange and discussion of positive and negative experiences. The result was a number of promising practical solutions for the next growing season.
Location-specific crop rotations using satellite data
Potatoes are what is known as ‘heavy feeders’. They require a lot of nutrients and good soil preparation is essential. Therefore, the right crop rotation is crucial. betterSoil is currently working on a digital tool that combines satellite data and practical agricultural knowledge to recommend a tailor-made crop rotation for potato cultivation over several years. The recommendations are tailored to the soil properties of individual fields and regional climate conditions. The project is funded by the European Space Agency (ESA) as part of the ESA BIC (ESA Business Incubation Centre) programme.