Well, your little potatoes are all grown up now and ready to leave the field. Over the coming months, we hope they will fulfill their collective destiny, ultimately making their way to consumers’ plates. To help ensure your potatoes are comfortable and safe until the day they become delectable delicacies, we present to you this storage equipment buyers’ guide, with many of the industry’s leading innovations for making sure your crop leaves storage looking as good as it did coming in.
Drexel Chemical
(901) 487-6005
Sprout-Stop
Sprout-Stop from Drexel Chemical is a liquid growth retardant used to prevent sprouting in potatoes and onions. It is registered for use in dry-bulb onions, dry-bulb shallots, garlic, and storage potatoes.
Sprout-Stop prevents cell division but does not prevent cell elongation. Bulbs and Potatoes will continue to grow after the appropriate foliar application date. See label for additional information.
Tolsma USA
Intelligent Storage & Processing Solutions
Tolsma-Grisnich is a true specialist in intelligent storage technology. The company is renowned for automating and optimizing the processing of agricultural products.
The combination of technology and storage advice results in the highest possible storage efficiency for customers. The company’s strength lies in its broad expertise and experience all over the world.
GroupAg
(208) 356-7800
(208) 970-0091
Post-Harvest Solutions
GroupAg is a full-service post-harvest company. The core of the business services includes potato storage ventilation and post-harvest chemical application. GroupAg’s proprietary application methods are among the most efficient and effective in the industry. With industry-leading products and expertise, GroupAg helps growers you create and maintain the ideal conditions to maximize the value of their crop through the storage and shipping processes. GroupAg offers engineering expertise to design storage ventilation systems with industry-leading components, then offers services to maintain any new or existing system.
GroupAg represents and distributes for 1,4Group, Biosafe Systems, BTU Ventilation and Forte.
Forte Humidifiers
Forte Humidifiers have proven to be a cost-effective solution for achieving ideal humidity and cooling conditions in storages. While being offered at a fraction of the cost of current market alternatives, Forte humidifiers increase humidity fog quality and allow for more adaptable installations. In addition, all Forte humidifiers have been carefully designed and constructed with materials that resist corrosion from water and acids, and thus can be used as chemical applicators.
Syngenta
(866) 796-4368
Stadium Fungicide
For the best possible yield and quality, growers should utilize an integrated full-season approach from seed through storage. The yield and quality that result from good growing practices must be protected with good storage practices to preserve potato quality. Fusarium dry rot is one of the most important post-harvest diseases of potato. Soil-borne Fusarium infects tubers at harvest through wounds and can be present in the soil for many years. Silver scurf causes damage to the potato skin and results in higher water/weight loss during storage. Damaged skin may result in higher waste in removing the skin during processing.
Stadium fungicide combines three active ingredients—fludioxonil, azoxystrobin and difenoconazole—to provide targeted disease control for potatoes. Each active ingredient in Stadium has a different mode of action, which is highly effective for managing the spread of silver scurf and Fusarium dry rot during storage. Stadium remains active for months of storage, providing long-lasting protection with only one application.
Agri-Stor Companies
Twin Falls, Idaho: (208) 733-7000
Blackfoot, Idaho: (208) 785-7000
Warden, Wash.: (509) 349-7000
Monte Vista, Colo.: (719) 850-7783
SmartBlock
For processors and fresh market alike, sprout control is of vital importance. SmartBlock is a post-harvest sprout inhibitor that effectively achieves extended sprout control in stored potatoes. It is a naturally occurring molecule commonly found in foods such as yogurt and mushrooms. SmartBlock has been FDA-approved as a direct food additive and has no effect on finish, color, sugar levels, taste, texture or cooking quality.
Agri-Stor can fog SmartBlock directly into potato storage units using its commercial thermal fogging equipment. Its patented technology works effectively alone or combined with other sprout inhibitor products to burn off peeping or fully sprouted tubers and restore dormancy. Depending on storage temperature, one SmartBlock application can have ongoing sprout control for up to three months.
Gellert
888-GELLERT
Agri-Star Control Panel
The Agri-Star control panel has gotten a facelift. New features such as home screen icons show which equipment is on or off, helping processors and growers see whether everything is functioning properly. These icons also appear on the Agri-Star app for quick-touch control of equipment. Another new feature is the ability to set up alerts on the app to notify users that storage lights have been left on.
Several new Agri-Star control panel models are now available, including the mMulti-System Controller, which incorporates complete controls for two separate sets of equipment. Perfect for those tight areas where space is a concern. Gellert’s Door Controller can be added directly to this model for convenience.
Seed and variety growers have had good things to say about Gellert’s new, smaller and more affordable Bin Controller, which offers segmented and individual control.
With Agri-Star, processors and corporate growers have visibility up and down the corporate chain as well as historical trend analysis for look-ahead planning.
Techmark
(
517) 322-0250
Storage Ventilation and Controls
Techmark is an international agricultural engineering company specializing in storage and production systems. Techmark applies technologies that create positive returns for growers and industry.
Techmark engineers apply innovative technologies with advanced engineering concepts to design efficient and effective ventilation systems. Their experience from working across many locations and environments has given them the knowledge to recognize different needs across different regions and understand how design can be utilized to maximize performance.
Jet Harvest Solutions
(877) 866-5773
www.jetharvest.com
Jet-Ag
Whatever structure growers use to store their harvested potatoes and onions, they can look to IVI’s Jet-Ag service to ensure optimal conditions inside. Jet-Ag is a broad-spectrum, peroxyacetic acid, certified organic, agricultural sanitizer registered as a fungicide, bactericide and algaecide for agricultural and horticultural use and post-harvest/storage fogging.
It is used for the control of fungi and plant pathogens. Post-harvest fogging application controls micro-organisms that cause decay or spoilage. Jet-Ag is a versatile, proven product that is effective at the initial moment of storage or any time thereafter.
BTU Ventilation
(888) 884-8070
www.btuventilation.com
BTU Ventilation Systems
BTU Ventilation offers the engineering expertise to design your storage facilities, along with incorporating BTU ventilation systems to meet the specific needs for different operations. BTU offers growers the state-of-the-art systems with features that will maximize a crop’s quality from post-harvest storage to market delivery.
BTU systems can be implemented as upgrades to existing storages or as part of a new storage construction. In either case, BTU provides engineering management to assure that a grower’s investment provides the best return season after season.
Meridian Mfg.
(800) 830-2467
ArchWall Buildings
With buildings whose capacities range from 25,000 to 200,000 hundredweight, Meridian ArchWall structures offer high-strength engineered steel and provide the best environment for potatoes. Meridian works with dealers and air companies to custom-design the fanhouses and plenums for proper ventilation, humidification, refrigeration and heating systems. Ask about Meridian’s insulated heated walls to help keep potatoes off the foam.
Tristeel Manufacturing Co.
(800) 279-2689
Logan Scoop Pro Scooper
The recently redesigned Logan Scooper combines a robust design, ample power, and recent innovations to provide excellent value and functionality. The 30- or 36-inch models feature a number of new improvements to include tractor axle and fender lift, push-button tow/no tow wheel drive boxes, auxiliary control panel, VFD drives, and an attractive, durable, polyurethane paint finish.