74 GRIMME JUN / JUL 2021 • farmers-mart . co . uk
done with capacity to accommodate many more . I have to say , I thought Grimme were pure potato specialists but as Adam said to me , “ As well as potatoes we have carrot , parsnip , beetroot and leek growers , all serviced from here . Something else I had not realised was that during the past 10 years Grimme have really ramped up the irrigation side of the business , with supply of irrigation pumps , standard and flat reels . Completing the new depot is a line-up of every piece of Grimme machinery , all of which are available for demonstration .
There are now 25 people employed on the site , including 5 new people and a service apprentice and service manager , all taken on specifically for the new depot .
Grimme are market leaders in both the UK and worldwide for potato equipment . Adam described Grimme machinery as the BMW and Mercedes of agricultural machinery . German engineering at its best . They pride themselves in providing the complete cycle from field , to bag , to factory . Development is a constant process , there is now a definite move towards 2 and 4 row self-propelled , harvesters and drillers . These bring with them both labour and fuel cost savings as well as considerable reduction in soil compaction .
Some of the recent recent development milestones enhancing their product range Following a strong relationship with ASA LIFT ( specialists in bespoke solution vegetable harvest technology ), Grimme enhanced their product portfolio by acquiring the company outright in 2013 .
At Agritechnica in 2019 , they showcased their Harvey 1 sweet potato harvester . It uses intelligent technology to allow the harvester to navigate autonomously on the field . For optimum soil protection and traction , the harvester is equipped with two rubber tracks . Grimme ’ s well proven ridge intake system ensures a reliable and gentle harvesting . In 2019 also , the company teamed up with Stanhay to distribute their vegetable seed drills .
Another important partnership has been with the Haith Group , which means
they can offer the most modern washers , graders , and bespoke handling systems .
The demand for vegetable harvesters has been growing for a number of years , however with COVID and Brexit this has pushed demand for home grown vegetables . The shortage of harvest labour has really accelerated the demand for vegetable harvesting machinery , tripling for cabbage harvesters in 2020 . Grimme have fully embraced this demand and now cabbage , onion and leek harvesters are available for demonstration . Behind the scenes , other types of harvesting machinery are under development , with Grimme determined to score more firsts !
Brexit has thrown up extra challenges : apart from the expected paperwork headaches , the export of machinery now requires scrupulous cleaning to avoid soil contamination and can be refused on site at the docks if not up to standard , which then involves considerable cost in re-cleaning . Just another frustration which the company takes in its stride . I asked Adam about future plans for the depot and Grimme . “ We aim to expand our customer base here and really develop the service side by introducing fixed price servicing . This will encourage essential pre and post season maintenance , reducing the chance of breakdown at key times . We are also looking at extended warranty . All of this will help with budgeting , which is key for today ’ s vegetable grower ”. He went onto say that Grimme are currently in the final year of testing one of what will be one of the staple machines of the vegetable industry - exciting times !
Grimme has been going for 160 years and from the humble beginnings at the foundry in Damme in 1861 , to the 24-hectare production plant in the industrial area ‘ Niedersachsenpark ”, about 12 km away from Damme they now , as I said before , sell in 120 countries across the world , employing more than 2700 people . It is a significant company who are passionate about the development of their products and people , coupled with an absolute dedication to their 000 ’ s of customers .