Potato Cooperative Agrico celebrates its 50-year anniversary

Throughout the year, Agrico will organise various events for growers, members, buyers and employees. ‘With heart and soil. Committed to the next generation’ will be at the heart of all of these celebrations.

2 April 1973

Fifty years ago, the passion for the potato served as a basis for the creation of the cooperative Agrico. On 2 April 1973, Agrico was formed from a merger of three cooperatives: the Groninger Pootaardappel- en Zaaizaadverkoopbureau (PZVB), the Coöperatieve Drentse Telersvereniging G.A. (DTV) and the Coöperatieve Producenten- en Handelsvereniging voor Akkerbouwgewassen G.A. Zuiderzeepolders. With a network of subsidiaries around the world, Agrico has become a serious global player.

With heart and soil

The world has become Agrico’s farmland. The potatoes taken from the ground by Agrico growers here in the Netherlands, are replanted in the ground elsewhere in the world to grow into mature plants. The earth connects us all and we look after it. The potato fits in perfectly with this, because the potato allows you to still achieve a high yield and high nutritional value on a relatively small area and little water is required.

Agrico passionately contributes to food security for a growing world population. Agrico has committed itself to this mission for the past 50 years ‘with heart and soil’.

“Throughout the world, Agrico is constantly establishing and increasing the sustainability of potato value chains. To be able to meet the increasing global demand for potatoes now but also in the future”, says Jan van Hoogen, general director of Agrico.

Committed to the next generation

Along with the growers and through the breeding by Agrico Research, Agrico has focussed on developing, growing and marketing sustainable seed and ware potatoes that are suitable for climates and markets throughout the world. The potato trading company has developed various varieties that are grown and sold all over the world.

Agrico is at the forefront of the development of new varieties, with a focus not only on flavour, quality and yield, but primarily on a more sustainable world for the future generations.

Future-oriented

Jan van Hoogen looks to the future with a positive attitude. “In the coming years, a lot will change in our playing field because of EU legislation. This legislation presents significant challenges for our growers. Agrico’s new Next Generation varieties will have to play a major role in this, turning the challenges into opportunities. In addition, the ‘next generation’, Mark Zuidhof, will be taking over from me,” says Van Hoogen. The theme chosen for Agrico’s 50th anniversary ‘With heart and soil. Committed to the next generation’ shows that Agrico is also truly committed to the next generations.

About Agrico

Agrico is a company of potato growers on a cooperative basis that breeds, grows, collects, processes and markets an average of 500,000 tons of potatoes per year. Agrico is committed to delivering a quality product that meets the specific requirements and circumstances of the customer, no matter where they are in the world. The company has a packaging facility for table potatoes in Purmerend, called Leo de Kock & Zonen B.V., its own breeding and research company, called Agrico Research B.V., in Bant, and many of its own trial fields at home and abroad. The commercial and administrative activities are managed from the head office in Emmeloord. Agrico also works through its own subsidiaries and holdings in countries including France, Spain, Great Britain, Poland, Sweden, Canada, Slovenia, Turkey and Kenya and has representatives in almost all seed potato importing countries. Read more about Agrico at www.agricopotatoes.com.