AFTER FIRE DESTROYED A POTATO STORE SEVEN YEARS AGO, A FARM OWNER HAD TO START AGAIN – AND THE REPLACEMENT BUILDING HAS PROVED TO BE A WORTHWHILE INVESTMENT
A MAJOR investment in potato storage at Monkton Court Farms, near Ramsgate, Kent is helping to keep the harvested crop in ideal condition – in one instance for more than a year – while proving very economical to run.
Monkton’s current stores were built in 2017 to replace its previous complex which was destroyed by fire.
Farm owner Philip Smith had to start from scratch. He liaised with Graeme Skinner from Provenance Potatoes, who now manages the stores and markets the crops, before opting for Crop Systems Limited’s PosiStor box store design.
The complex features three ware stores with 3,500 tonnes capacity and a 350 tonne seed store. It is fitted with the company’s SmartStor controllers which enable staff to monitor and make changes to store settings remotely.
More recently, Crop Systems added its SmartSola system to help the farm make optimum use of the renewable electricity it generates.
Philip had installed 50kW of solar panels on land adjoining the stores around a decade ago, and has now added a further 150kW on its roof.
Graeme said the stores were already recording some excellent energy use figures and effectively harnessing the farm-generated electricity is improving them, which further insulates the business against variable energy prices.
Monkton’s complex proved the benefits of efficient, modern storage as soon as it was finished. By using renewable energy to optimum effect, it has slashed the farm’s costs and carbon footprint.
In 2017 the potato market was over-supplied and prices suffered as a result, but they were much better in 2018 when conditions were much drier.
Monkton’s crops are usually sold out from February to July – meaning the last crops stay in store for 10 months.
But they were able to hold onto some of 2017’s harvest until October 2018 – 13 months after harvest – and as a result received much stronger prices.
The stores use an open plenum to optimize airflow and ensure the air reaches all parts of the store, and glycol fridges that use just a quarter as much gas as conventional DX fridges, while also cutting costs and leakage risks.
They also feature inverters on all fans and in-line humidity with adiabatic cooling.
These features help keep crops in ‘just harvested’ condition, minimizing potential shrinkage and weight loss.
Their potatoes are marketed through Graeme Skinner from Provenance Potatoes, with crops of Desiree, King Edard, Laura and Lanorma going into the supermarket and pre-pack trade.
Adding SmartSola has further improved the stores’ performance, Graeme said.
“The system exports power to the grid in the morning until production reaches 30kW then it switches that energy to running the first store, which the system itself identifies on the basis of need. It then repeats that pattern as power output rises to 60kW.
“We normally store crops at 2.7oC, with a 0.2oC differential. So when the panels are producing enough power in the day we take the opportunity to cool the crop to 2.5oC. Then if the next day is duller and the panels are not producing enough power, we minimize the use of mains electricity because the energy we need is stored in the potatoes.”
They are also harnessing the solar power in the farm’s irrigation system, using mains electricity to pump water into the system, and then solar power to pressurise it.
Both Philip and Graeme credit the SmartStor controller for making the stores easier to manage and reducing the stress involved.
SmartStor is a control system that enables operators to monitor and manage their stores remotely via any suitable mobile device. From a technical point, Philip says this means stores can be checked without having to visit them or opening the doors, so storage conditions are never compromised.
Graeme said: “Being able to check everything is working correctly – and make any adjustments needed – without having to visit the store itself is a major time saving. It also gives me complete peace of mind that the crops are being kept in prime condition.”
The system also collates a huge amount of information and turns it into valuable and useable business data, he adds:
“It records everything and although I can take snap-shot measurements, this system shows me what has been going on in all those days inbetween.
“I can look at graphs or download actual numbers on screen, which is much more valuable and easy to understand than working through paper records and spreadsheets.”
