Dec 27, 2023Potato cooperative Agrico passes sales milestone
Potato cooperative Agrico, based in the Netherlands, bid farewell to its long-time chair as it passed the 400 million euro ($436 million) mark in sales for the first time in its history.
Adrie Vermeulen has served as chair of the cooperative, founded in 1973, for seven years and as a member of its board for 12. At a members’ council meeting on Dec. 14, Johan Barendregt was appointed the new chair of Agrico’s board and supervisory board.
General director Jan van Hoogen also handed over the baton to successor Mark Zuidhof, appointed operational director in September 2022. van Hoogen has worked for Agrico since 1989, spending more than 10 years as CEO.
A record amount of 233 million euros ($256 million) was paid to the coop members, according to a news release.
Seed potato sales were approximately 34 million euros ($37 million) higher than the previous year, an increase of 16%. Table potato sales were approximately 19 million euros ($20 million) higher, an increase of 50%.
The increase was mainly attributed to higher prices, with the volume of seed potatoes rising by 4% and the volume of table potatoes by 6%.
Higher sales at international subsidiaries resulted in a 14 million euro ($15 million) increase in turnover, according to the release.
Inflation caused cost increases, particularly in transportation and logistics, the coop said.
Peter Oldenkamp, director of Agrico Research, spoke at the December meeting about investment in new construction projects, particularly laboratories, as Agrico Research looks to expand in the development and use of modern breeding techniques, including molecular markers.
Agrico has locations in Europe, Africa, Asia, North and South America and Oceania.
