PROFILE Three Musketeers
for example, in conserving water, we can align with customer wants. As individual farmers we don’t get that access at, say, a Tesco meet- ing.”
Despite last year’s diffi cult growing conditions, every con- tract was supplied in full at con- tract prices. But, to achieve that, customers were asked to widen their specifi cations, and, in the case of onions, at renegotiated prices to refl ect poor yields.
Diff erent markets “Having Ed’s expertise and focus gives us access to so many differ- ent markets and together we can offer continuity of supply wheth- er it’s a short or a long year,” says Andrew. “Being able to negotiate spec changes on Maris Piper last year, for example, saved 10-15 of the crop being disposed of. To do that as an individual would have been much harder.” “The key focus is to maximise
profi t/ha back to the farm,” says Ed. “As a group we can have bet- ter discussions and negotiations than as individuals. Working for-
ward we need more collaboration.” Working together also means that data can be collected and trends mapped as a group, so that, for example, rates of crop growth can be judged on more than a few individual fi elds, and on more than a gut feel, enabling proper conversations to take place on how to maximise yield.
There are currently six share- holder farms, and a further four, based as far as Nottinghamshire, whose crops are marketed by 3Ms. More members would be wel- comed for the benefi t of both the group and the individual farms. “We want to extend what we of-
fer to customers and to do that we need to extend our window. Some of our sand land is not conducive to produce crops for storage, for example, so we’d like some addi- tional heavier land.”
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Onions being irrigated at Wantisden Hall Farms. They will be marketed through Suffolk Produce. Right: Investment in potato grading equipment has enabled 3Ms to develop markets in other European countries.
Investment in advanced pota- to grading equipment has enabled 3Ms to develop markets in other European countries with different
customer specifi cations. While the UK market is fo- cused tightly on convenience, with, for example, a spec of 42 down on Charlotte salad potatoes, the larg- er 42 ups are still good to trade in France, Germany and Belgium, where the market is geared more to taste and cooking quality. “Before, we were supplying spo-
radically, but now we’re growing specifi c varieties to meet demand.
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Ian Houlgrave Email:
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Tel: 01507 466352 Mobile: 0780 134 3023 Fax: 01507 462812
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