With former colleague Jan Gielen at the 25th anniversary of Champfood in the Netherlands, 2016. Photo: John Peeters


to prevent salmonella using the pasteurisation process and by reducing the moisture content as much as possible before the waste was incinera- ted.” After this ‘small diversion’ he combined the tasks of grower and consultant (compost production) at mushroom farms in Denmark and Switzerland before he started working in 1996 as General Manager at Peffer b.v./ ProChamp, one of the largest mushroom produ- cers in the Netherlands with 50,000 m2 of gro- wing surface area on three farms. “Production was 100% dedicated to the processing industry, about 350 tons of mushrooms a week. For that purpose, we made our own phase II and III com- post in tunnels. After that I worked for World- Champ in Ammerzoden for two years as a process manager for the development of indoor phase I.”


Consultant and director The change of direction came about in 2002, when Jos started working for Cpoint, the succes- sor of the COC in Horst. “Ad Peffer’s company went bankrupt and Trudy van Meegen was still looking for consultants, so we quickly came to an agreement. I was a consultant there for seven years (just like John Peeters – see previous issue) and when van Meegen left, I took over as director. That role took me all over the world, to congresses, but especially to farms and compost companies, with all kinds of systems and practi- ces. From growing on plastic bags in Brazil to modern ‘Dutch’ systems in Canada and the US, to tray systems in Chile at Nature Farm, and phase II and III compost block production at Champinter and Germinados in Spain. They all had their own phase I facilities, some in the open air, while others like Sterckx had an indoor composting system. Of course, the most impor- tant foundation of my work as a consultant was the years of experience as a grower and compos-


ter. I could share that knowledge because I had worked with so many different companies and systems, and with so many diverse raw materi- als, and had wide personal experience of all the facets of mushroom growing and compost. I have never regretted joining Cpoint, it taught me a great deal, for example, much more financial insight.”


Entrepreneur and author Since 2009, Jos has worked as an independent all-round consultant from his base in Chile, a location chosen partly due to all the work he has done for Nature Farm (Bosques) there. “I advise companies as a compost consultant, and help growers optimise quality and production. I usu- ally work for companies in North America, such as Phillips, Piccioni and Loveday. “My objective has always been to realise the best results with my clients. After all, success is the best visiting card you can have. And if the results are good, the relationship with those clients stays on a good footing too. In fact, I have been a regular at one mushroom producer in the USA - a very large company with a Dutch-style cultivation system - for 15 years. That’s a track record I’m quite proud of. I don’t have any competition to speak of, I have enough clients, and at my age it’s nice to be able to take things a bit easy. Plus, I focus exclusively on compost and growing, and not on, for example, harvesting or legal matters.” Jos also believes that a lot has changed in the sector, and in the way advice is given, over the past decades. “I think this is mainly due to the rising costs for producers, while their revenues have not risen accordingly. That means that every grower and composter has to aim for top production each time. So the consultant also has to deliver quality and keep completely up to date about all the latest (technical) developments. Failure to do so will


‘Just as a grower or composter, a


consultant has to deliver top quality’


 MUSHROOM BUSINESS 43


Foto: John Peeters.


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48